looking for a Squad Automatic Weapon (SAW) during the 1970's

[RCS]

The US Ordnance wanted a SAW weapon (belt fed) with better performance than the 5,56mm cartridge and during the 1970's some new ideas surfaced. The Stoner system had been in limited service since 1966 and by 1970 had received improvements but the 5,56mm still lacked long range. A 6x45mm cartridge (XM732) was designed and tested only in SAW weapons. This cartridge used a 6mm bullet(106 grs) with a velocity of 2830 fps and improved longer range over the current 5,56mm. The UK took the 5,56mm case and developed the 4,8x49mm cartridge in an effort to improve the ballistics. To use a different caliber from the standard rifle in a SAW weapon was debated and in the end, a better bullet was used in the standard 5,56mm in a SAW with the M27 link, This link was different from the Stoner link which has a different pitch. All Stoner links are marked BRW S63 and are not common to find.

Photos show the Stoner linked 5,56mm belt and the 4,8x47mm 5,56mm and 6x45mm SAW

[Beltfed]

Suggestion: Buy a M60 and forget about that wimpy 5.56mm. When they took our M14s away and issued the M16 we knew right away we were under gunned.

[Smokey]

Saw (no pun intended) somewhere the US military was working on squad automatic, with the 6.8 SPCII?

[RCS]

After Viet Nam, there was alot of thought about replacement of the M60 m/g. Actually you can trace the M60 bolt design back to the WW1 Lewis machine gun that was designed in the USA before WW1.

The Germans copied the the Lewis gun bolt mechanism for their FG 42 during WW2. Photo shows a US Ordnance design using the MG 42 feed mechanism on a FG 42. The M60 used the FG 42 bolt and gas piston and the MG 42 belt feed and link design (M13)

[Beltfed]

The U.S. developed the T44 light machine gun based off the FG42. As far as I know, it didn’t make the cut.

[RCS]

The point is that the M60 used the German FG42 bolt and gas piston and MG 42 feed system and copied the German link to modify into the M13 link.

The US Ordnance attempt to build a working model of the MG42 in 30M2 caliber failed as they did not allow for the difference between 7,92mm and
30M2 in the ejection port

Photo shows WW2 German links