FULLY TRANSFERABLE, BIRMINGHAM SMALL ARMS MARK III LEWIS MACHINE GUN

FULLY TRANSFERABLE, BIRMINGHAM SMALL ARMS MARK III LEWIS MACHINE GUN

03-1909 | Cal. 303 British. | S# A198. | Bbl. 26″.

The Lewis Machine Gun was one of the first light machine guns to be used in war time in a large scale. The first was originally adopted by the Belgian Army in 1913. The British Army, soon thereafter, obtained manufacturing rights & it was made in large numbers for the remainder of the war. The primary interest points were two-fold; it was light enough to be fielded by a single man, where it could keep up with an infantry battle. The second attractive point was the fast turn around in manufacturing. 6 Lewis guns could be made with the same time & expense it took to build a single Vickers gun. The Lewis Gun is a gas operated, open bolt mechanism that fires in full automatic only w/ an average cyclic rate of approximately 550 rounds per minute. It is fed w/ a pan-style drum, typically made to hold either 47 rounds or 97 rounds. The action is based on a turning bolt w/ rear locking lugs. It was made in large quantities during WWI & was used by France, The Netherlands, Norway, Japan, Imperial Russia, Belgium, Portugal, Italy, Honduras, Nicaragua,the United States & the British Commonwealth. One common visual characteristic of the Lewis Gun, aside from the pan style drum magazine, is the large barrel jacket that conceals the cooling fins around the barrel. At first glance it looks more like the water cooled machine guns of the era though this design is air cooled only. This particular example was manufactured by Birmingham Small Arms Ltd. in England for Armes Automatiques Lewis in Belgium, & marked as such on top receiver cover. It appears to be one of the 801 Lewis Guns that arrived in Alexandria, VA in February of 1959, after original serial numbers had been lined through and replaced with a new serial number range of “A-001” through “A-801,” presumably when they were reconditioned at British depots before being transferred to the Irish Free State in 1922 and later. This example is serial number A198. It is a Model 1914, designated the “Lewis Auto Gun”. The original number that was lined through was #2551. The front sight is a protected blade. Rear sight is an elevation adjustable vertical peep sight marked out to 1900 meters. It is a gas operated, full auto only action, charged by a reciprocating charging handle located on the right side. 2-piece hardwood grip panels. Hardwood shoulder stock w/ steel butt plate & bottom mounted rear sling swivel. Receiver & cooling jacket section marked matching “2551” with a strike-through. Under the magazine it is marked “A198” the serial number under which it was registered, as indicated on paperwork. Folding bipod wraps around cooling jacket & marked “MOUNT FIELD .303 / LEWIS GUN MARK III / H&E Ltd. MAKERS / BIRMINGHAM”. Sling swivels front & rear. MAGS: (3 total) 2 steel 47 rd. drums, marked “303 MkVI & VII”, & 1 marked 30-06. UNATTACHED ACCESSORIES: 1 wooden 4 mag carrying box, serial numbered & signed copy of “The Belgian Rattlesnake” published by Collector Grade Publications. NATIONAL FIREARMS ACT MG REQUIRING BATF TRANSFER BEFORE TAKING POSSESSION. FULLY TRANSFERABLE.STATUS: CURIO CLASS III.