WW1 Weaponary
Rifles
The standard issue rifle was the short magazine Lee Enfield (SMLE). It was the fastest military bolt-action rifle of the day.
A well-trained rifleman could fire 20-30 aimed rounds in 60 seconds. It had a 10 round magazine loaded with 5 round charger clips, and an effective range of 500m
British - Lee Enfield
French - Lebel
The standard issue rifle was the Lebel model 1886 bolt-action rifle.
It was the first military firearm to use smokeless powder ammunition, and had an 8 round tube magazine, with an effective firing range of 400m.
The main German infantry rifle of WW1 was the Gewehr 98 bolt action Mauser rifle. It fired cartridges from a 5 round internal clip-loaded magazine.
British and American manufacturers rapidly adopted its advanced features. The rifle had an effective range of 500m that could be extended to 800m with an optical sight.
German- Mauser
Machine Guns
British - Vickers
The British Vickers machine gun had a reputation for reliability firing up to 600 rounds of ammunition per minute at targets up to 4000m away.
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The French Hotchkiss machine gun was developed by the Hotchkiss arms company in France through an improved adaptation of an Austrian design, following the purchase of the patents in 1893.
The gas actuated air-cooled machine gun fired 8mm Lebel cartridges and could fire 450 rounds per minute, 3800m. It used 24 round strips and later 250 round metal belt fed ammunition. This machine gun was later also used by the Americans
French - Hotchkiss
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US - Browning
The American Browning machine gun was water cooled and capable of firing 450 - 600 rounds per minute, but only entered service in later September 1918.
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Artillery
British - 18 Pounder Field Gun
The Quick Firing (QF) 18 Pounder was the principal Field Gun of the British Army. Its ammunition had the shell combined with the cartridge thus giving it the description of ‘quick firing’.
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British - Limber
The Limber contained ammunition for the 18 pounder. The two wheeled ammunition limber was hooked up to a team of six horses, while the tail of the gun was hooked to the limber. In this way, both the gun and the ammunition were transported to and from the battlefield.
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