History of WWI Primer 105: German MG 08/15 Documentary

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Othais and Mae delve into the story of this WWI classic. Complete with history, function, and live fire demonstration.
C&Rsenal presents its WWI Primer series; covering the firearms of this historic conflict one at a time in honor of the centennial anniversary. Join us every other Tuesday!
Additional reading:
The Devil's Paintbrush: Sir Hiram Maxim's Gun
Dolf L. Goldsmith
Honour Bound: The Chauchat Machine Rifle
Gerard Demaison, Yves Buffetaut
Ammunition data thanks to DrakeGmbH
/ drakegmbh
Animations by Bruno!
/ @baanimations3689
Snail Mail us at:
C&Rsenal
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JOHNS ISLAND, SC, US, 29455

[@lordsummerisle87]

"Freidrich, we need a new light machinegun." "Okay, a new machinegun." "A light machinegun." "A new machinegun. Understood."

[@MarkiusFox]

"Ein LICHTES machinengewehr!" "Ja! Ein neues machinengewehr."

[@victorsemenov5504]

LOL. Then again, i took some technical drawing in highschool. the prospect of trying to invent something that complicated without CAD fills me with despair. he may have slightly misunderstood the reqs, but still massive props to his spacial visualization abilities.

[@TheRealColBosch]

"Here's the finished design!" "Freidrich, this is not lighter, and it's not new." "I know! I did a very good job." "THIS NOTHING LIKE WE ASKED FOR!" "GOOD BOY FREIDRICH!"

[@CC-xh3eo]

@@TheRealColBosch I suppose this is funny only for americans?

[@geroldgrimel4811]

When your weapon designer is a body builder.

[@michaeltriola3978]

That picture of Maxim killed me! "Feeling cute, may change warfare forever later, idk."

[@ferdblu1946]

Timestamp?

[@angelomercolino3880]

@@ferdblu1946 1

[@xthee_0nly_1x11]

@@ferdblu1946 2:00

[@alexrennison8070]

😂😂😂😂Brilliant

[@Trashcansam123]

“For someone who clearly saw the future, he’s kind of lost to the past” that’s deep

[@chitoryu12]

Imagine being the guy who looks at a Vickers and goes "Yeah, I can make it man-portable."

[@BHuang92]

I could imagine an LMG version of the Vickers being made in lieu like the MG08/15 if the Lewis gun was not available. Alas, we'll never know for sure.........

[@itsnodawayitustabe5654]

Look up the Parabellum MG14, really a shame there don't seem to be any surviving examples

[@hanskc3302]

@@itsnodawayitustabe5654 There are bunch of surviving Parabellum MGs. In Leeds, for example.

[@TheSeanoops]

Cody Cromarty Mad Lad.

[@SlavicCelery]

@@itsnodawayitustabe5654 I'm pretty sure Ian did a video shooting one a long time ago.

[@chekovsgunman]

Your comment about fighting fire with smaller, more portable fires has stoked my hopes that we’ll see a flamethrower episode at some point.

[@maewinchester2030]

I suppose when we go to show the target for hit accuracy it'd just be a pile of smoldering ash.

[@allreddan]

@@maewinchester2030 Only if they hit it. Which, let's face it, is very likely.

[@Edax_Royeaux]

They can make a freshly slaughtered cow a target and judge accuracy by how well cooked the meat is.

[@Arbiter099]

I wonder if Ian's contact with Charles S. Hobson, the flamethrower expert, for his flammenwerfer videos a few years back could come back into play getting a video for C&Rsenal

[@Legitpenguins99]

@@Arbiter099 im sure he would be more than happy to help out. That is if he has a WW1 flammenwerfer

[@jonathanyoung7724]

"2.2 pounds or some undecipherable amount of kilograms" - I caught that, you magnificent sneaky-humor person.

[@ashtray4757]

Metric is nice: 1 litre of water = 1 kg = an arbitrary number lb

[@farmerboy916]

Wahlsachse ... All units of measurement are arbitrary. One pound is an odd number of grams, too; very silly

[@marekvrbka]

@@farmerboy916 1 kg = 1000 grams.

[@farmerboy916]

Marcuss2 Yes, I understand basic word roots. The point being that converting between _systems_ of measurement is always going to end up with weird "illogical" results in one, and that in and of itself is no argument for or against one or the other.

[@canicheenrage]

Guys...The joke is 2.2 pounds is roughly equal to a kg...

[@mountainhobo]

This is a proof that C&Rsenal is good for your health. I was going to go to sleep, but now I might as well exercise for the next hour while watching. Feast for mind and body.

[@MilsurpMikeChannel]

An hour episode gets me two treadmill runs.

[@chemech]

The 08/15 was so ubiquitous that the model number is still used in German speech today... It has a lot of connotations, but null acht - fuenfzehn can be used to mean something analogous to GI in American parlance. 08/15 maneuver has a meaning that resembles several unprintable phrases in English, basically implying a complete waste of time... The German author Hans Hellmut Kirst wrote a series of novels titled 08/15 set from pre WWII Germany up into the 1960s titled 08/15 in German - in English translation, the Gunner Asch series. The German analog to GI Blues... In the German movies made based upon the novels, the phrase 08/15 maneuver is used a lot - more so than in the written novels - to describe some pointless aspect of army life. (I'm being discrete with my language here...)

[@lamolambda8349]

Fresse

[@DailyBrusher]

Thanks so much for this invaluable cultural/historical info! Sehr interessant!

[@theonlymadmac4771]

08/15 doesn’t mean something pointless, rather something standard or boring. Fits as it was one of the first really standardized items in germany

[@willblucat3335]

Sleep is for those who aren't addicted to maxims. Keep up the exelent work guys!

[@JenniferinIllinois]

Othias is obviously worried the French will attack the C&Rsenal studio, hence the fully loaded magazine. I'm guessing Mae and Crozier have many more, ready for quick reloads.

[@voiceofraisin3778]

Nah, Ians friendly!

[@tholmes9341]

"Several dozen burglars". Got a love it.

[@the_major]

Curse you Imperial Germany for making a successful light machine gun that would inspire a bespectacled bearded man to make a dope video about it and then keep me up way past my bedtime! Curse you Kaiser! Curse you!

[@Samuel070793]

Well, Wilhelm II betrayed Germany.

[@kaiserfriedrichlll3702]

Why tho

[@andik.4235]

I`ve learned something today: The 08/15 was maybe avarage as a light machine gun. But it is also the conceptual granddaddy of the MG 34 and oh boy, this piece is still pretty impressive.

[@Barabel22]

Man, 120,000 made, that’s more than I thought. A lot more widespread usage then I thought as well.

[@SlavicCelery]

08/15 is a German term for commonplace. FYI.

[@phann860]

A very excellent programme, again Mae is a highlight with her glee at firing the weapon. History again is key, explaining the thought processes of how it was built and used.

[@rayfeltz8477]

“In case of several dozen burglars” Yo I heard this guy has a bunch of expensive old guns! Cool, let’s steal them. 2 minutes later. “Wrong house fool!”(The disconcerting sound of dakka, lots of dakka)

[@ZGryphon]

"Broke into the wrong god damn rec room, didn't ya!"

[@SlavicCelery]

I like how the initial development of later German tactics in WW2 can clearly be seen in WW1 (in hindsight of course)

[@Aviationlord7742]

*a sentry kit is available near your location*

[@jcameronferguson]

wake me up when they get to the non-shitty one (crosses fingers that someone loans Othais a Villar Perosa)

[@fuckinantipope5511]

@@jcameronferguson the MG 08/15 sentry was shit? Can't confirm. I held objective E all alone on Amiens with it for almost a whole round with the help of one support

[@blankblank5409]

FuckinAntiPope wish the mg 08 was for support :(

[@nukclearfunykmyu6999]

You fucking Muppet , you can't carry around an mg08 you have to disasemble.it.and then assemble it

[@johnmatthews723]

One of my favorite videos! I have watched this vid multiple times. I really love the kooky smile Mae gets when she is emptying a full mag! This vid really helped me when I took the lock out of an 08/15 and couldn’t get it back together again! Thanks so much guys, keep up the good work!

[@MWD1234567]

DAMN YOU OTHIAS!! HOW DARE YOU MAKE ME LEARN???

[@jimvandemoter6961]

I know. It's a bitch, ain't it?

[@jbeers1234]

7/8” inch barrel sleeve... Hans converted to inches for this one boys! WE GOT ‘EM!

[@carlistasycia]

Great to see the tactics and unit organisation behind these guns, they cannot be understood in a vacuum, without a context.

[@cannonfodder4376]

Oh boy I know what I will be watching during lunch at school tomorrow.

[@tacitus7698]

Don't let a teacher catch you with this, they may be worried you are going to shoot up the school with a Maxim gun!

[@tenofprime]

@@tacitus7698 The sad part is that it is true. In today's world you have to be careful who sees you watching these things. I like them for the history and mechanical aspects but one never knows.

[@LeFeuauxpoudres]

I'm only at 15min and I will watch this video till the end for tonight because this is just perfect... All the research behind the video for videos and original pictures is awesome. I really like it, thank you so much for what you are doing, you deserve wayyy more subs. Love, from France (yep I'm a nerd french firearm collector and I liked a video on a goddam mg08 surely my ancestors meet....)♥

[@charlesperry1051]

So much information in every episode! Love it.

[@davidkatz1503]

My phone vibrated with this notification as hard as the 08/15 vibrates while firing

[@silverfingerthesilverstack5062]

The metal thickness of the ejection hole is still very thick, excellent vid as always.

[@michaelkazakewich5263]

Thank you for all the hard work

[@Mr1deerslayer]

Love this channel! What a time to be alive...

[@222foont]

Good to see you again Mae!

[@nathanzylla4961]

Prefect episode while cleaning my 1911! classics are fun

[@doktornowak9759]

Cool- I didn't know i could unscrew that brass cap as a drain mechanism. Vielen dank!

[@Liam_TheNoob]

It's very satisfying that the MG 08 was done on episode 080 and that the 08/15 was done one 105, not exactly the right numbers but still fun how it worked out to have similar numbers

[@McNubbys]

Othias: You gonna learn today! Me: Yay!😊

[@smackarel7]

Burgler 1: Don't worry this will be easy. Burgler 2: Yeah you're right, whats the worst that could happen. Door opens to a Sasquatch aiming an MG08/15.

[@walterschumann2476]

I read that after a failed British attack, German medics with stretchers would canvas the battlefield looking for British wounded. Actually, under the blanket on the stretcher would be a pile of Lewis guns. During the war almost 10,000 Lewis guns were captured and changed to the German caliber.

[@DARIVSARCHITECTVS]

May's grin at 15:43 is contagious. That looks like so much fun.

[@Sedan57Chevy]

Awesome video! I would've watched this when it came out, but the opportunity to watch a video about the 08/15 on 8/15 was just too good to ignore.

[@jsma9999]

Thank you Jeff/Geoff

[@jbc98k]

Jeff, welcome

[@PBJT292]

Watching Mae being shaken into a smile at 960 frames per second kinda restores your faith in humanity somehow.

[@CC-xh3eo]

The manual says that the bipod has to be mounted in a way that it is pointing towards the shooter, not towards the enemy, because this would prevent the muzzle to climb up during full auto. I can't try this myself as I don't own the gun, but that's what the manual says.

[@Boreas74]

Wait a minute, that's not a revolver!

[@tenofprime]

I am imagining some overly macho action hero dual wielding an MG 08/15 and a Lewis gun in a gunfight. I am now amused to no end.

[@hanskc3302]

@@tenofprime If I remember correct, Necrovision has dual wielding MG 08/15 option.

[@HellskyMr]

Thanks ! Now i understand much more MG08/15 .

[@SlavicCelery]

Seeing that scale of weights had me appreciate the brilliance of JMB getting the BAR down to 16lbs. AKA some unknown amount of KG.

[@G0ldbl4e]

The more I understood this less as "a light assault machine gun" and more as "the predecessor to the MG-34" the more it made sense why it was so important a weapon.

[@MrBigCookieCrumble]

Fascinating engineering, and fascinating history.

[@cannonfodder4376]

Got done watching it, fantastically informative as always Othais and Mae. And oh boy another Crozier video. 🤣

[@HerrPolden]

Based on experience with 84mm m2Carl Gustavs, (which are 30 pounds of steel balanced on a central bipod), the shoulder strap could be useful for picking up the gun when moving. Instead of trying to scoop up the thing in your arms, you get to a knee and either slip the strap over your shoulder or grab it like a handle. In fact, a suitcase style handle was added to the m3 CG for this reason. You do not carry the weapon by it over distance, it just makes it easier to manhandle.

[@davidbrennan660]

Best part of every other week.

[@chrisfyfe4047]

Great Episode ! Very insightfull !

[@scifimom42]

I’ve been waiting for this episode

[@Niklas.K95]

0815 is still a synonym for "boring mass standard" even when nearly no one remember its origin. I use it sometimes.

[@cameronaustin7734]

Welp guess im calling off work for tomorrow i have a video to watch at 1 AM!

[@G-Mastah-Fash]

A little history of Friedrich von Merkatz translated from the german Wikipedia article: Friedrich August Oskar von Merkatz (born August 3, 1876 in Hirschberg; died April 9, 1949 in Berlin) was a German military writer. He was valued as a weapons specialist and was often referred to as a technician. *Origin and Family* His father worked as a major in the Prussian army and was awarded the Iron Cross, second class, in 1870/71. *Career* Von Merkatz joined the Prussian army and on May 18, 1907 achieved the rank of Oberleutnant as an assistant in the Rifle Examination Committee while serving in the Guards Machine Gun Section No. 2. Until then, he was also a bearer of the Prussian Order of the Crown IV Class. After the outbreak of the First World War, he now held the rank of captain in Machine Gun Section 1 in Breslau. In September 1914 he was awarded the Iron Cross 2nd Class for his services in France. On Christmas of the same year he was awarded the Iron Cross, First Class, for his services in Russia. In the Weimar Republic he worked in the Reichswehr from 1921 as a major in the Reichswehr Ministry. On December 1, 1922] he was promoted to lieutenant colonel and simultaneously transferred to the Free State of Anhalt, where he served as station elder in Dessau and as commander of the 1st Battalion in the 12th Infantry Regiment under Colonel Rudolf Schniewindt in Halberstadt. In 1925 he left the Reichswehr in this position with the rank of colonel. In 1928 he was still living in Dessau, more precisely at Stiftstrasse 16. *Books* Das Maschinengewehr 08 : Auszug a. d. Unterrichtsbuch f. d. Maschinengewehr-Kompagnien. R. Eisenschmidt, 1907 Unsere Maschinengewehre, ihre Technik, Schießlehre, Verwendung : Handbuch f. d. Unterricht. 1913 Unterrichtsbuch für die Königlich Sächsischen Maschinengewehr-Kompagnien Gerät 08. R. Eisenschmidt, 1917 Unterrichtsbuch für die Kgl. Bayerischen Maschinengewohr-Kompagnien Gerät 08. R. Eisenschmidt, 1918 Das Zusammenwirken der Infanterie mit ihren schweren Waffen : Eine Studie. R. Eisenschmidt, 1925 Geschichte der Maschinen-Gewehr-Abteilung Nr I (8). Bernhard Sporn Verlag, 1936

[@alan-sk7ky]

43.05 I like the way the gun is digging it's bipod into the ground :-)

[@FlintFreedomGotAnAk]

The music awakens the spirits that handled that weapon

[@Warpwaffel]

19:45 Good thing there's a reminder on the box to put up the crank. :D

[@hanfpeter2822]

That must be the predecessor to those ugly and ridiculous safety warnings they put on guns nowadays.

[@tonyvancampen-noaafederal2640]

Sort of a Red Green machine-gun -- MG 08/15 I can move if I have to, I guess.

[@Candrsenal]

If the troops don't find you handy, they should at least find you CAPABLE OF SUSTAINED FIRE.

[@fien111]

Now all rise for the Conscript's Prayer I'm a grunt But I can fight If I have to I guess....

[@kadeberrier3799]

The MG08/15 played a big role at Caporetto in 1917. The 2nd MG Kompanie of the Württemberg Gebirgs Bataillon was one of the Kompanien that Rommel lead. Checking the death list of the Bataillon, the 2nd MG Kompanie took many deaths but that was because Rommel used them as assault. Hermann Balck, leutnant of 2nd Kompanie of Hannoversche Jäger Bataillon stated that the machinegunner on their O8/15 was killed. He hopped on it and continued fire. He was then shot in the arms and back.

[@senecanero3874]

Dieses Video ist sowas von 08/15 (This Video is really 08/15) Na, it's great

[@chemech]

Es ist ja keine 08/15 maneuver!

[@blankblank5409]

It really is

[@chemech]

An interesting aspect of German infantry tactics that developed along with their machine guns was to focus the squad around them. This developed into a doctrine where two "light" machine guns per infantry squad were the primary focus, with the riflemen being ammunition bearers and grenadiers in the main part. This doctrine carried well into WWII before the changes in combat conditions pushed the development of semi-automatic rifles into front line service. In fact, even by their surrender in 1945, most German infantry squads were still focused on two LMGs with one or two 9mm machine pistols, and the rest of the soldiers equipped with bolt action rifles. They didn't have the time and production capacity to fully convert their infantry to the new semi-automatic rifles before they lost the war. The modern NATO infantry squad equipped with select fire rifles and a single LMG evolved from the German model as much as the Americans wide spread adoption of the semi-automatic Garand... and a major turning point was the development of the MG 08/15.

[@colinkelly5420]

The only German infantry squads with two LMGs were Panzergrenadier or Parachute squads. The large majority of German infantry squads had a single machinegun throughout WWII, and ended the war with a single mg. There was never a German doctrine for two LMGs, it was merely a TO&E for specific unit types, often ones that needed additional firepower given their role. There are not "NATO" infantry squads, most countries have somewhat different setups, though now most countries have adopted the fireteam concept. The fireteam concept was first codified by the US Marines in the pacific during WWII, who turned their 12 man squads into 3x 4-man fireteams with three M1s and a BAR as a base of fire. As far as I am aware, the Germans never developed any codified doctrine for two MG squads. The only impact the Germans had on US infantry doctrine specifically was highlighting the need to replace the BAR with something better, and ideally belt fed. By and large the US thought its squads had worked well, though they had been too large to command at 12 people and it was later reduced to ten men. The current 8 man squad is more of a result of the limited carry capacity of the Bradley then what the Army actually wanted.

[@gideonsimmons8015]

Germany lost the war because they didn't put a bayonet lug on this and the tankgewhr 1918

[@mattdickson2]

Confederate Rebel bayonet on tgewher..... did you mean a Pike?

[@SlavicCelery]

That, and they didn't use an arbritrary Mark/Star system of denoting upgrades to a system.

[@gideonsimmons8015]

Even a toothpick may have been enough to win the war

[@SlavicCelery]

@@gideonsimmons8015 well let's face it, he's enough for the entire wolverines by himself (old or new version)

[@brianj.841]

Don't forget the Reichsrevolver. (spelling?)

[@carlcarlton764]

Minute 05:29: "Field manual for machine gun detachments" is more like it. Divisions were called the same in Germany, Divisionen. ... And got job blanking out the cables that helped you get the gun on the table. ;)

[@andrewcomerford9411]

"In this world, we can't do as we please, or I would stay near you, /But when fruit hangs golden and ripe on the trees, ripe on the trees, I will wed you if you're true." I wish I could remember more of that German folk-song, but it's familiar to English-speakers as, "Wooden Heart."

[@imperialweimarball]

3 years later but the name of the song is Muss I Denn.

[@bengunderman5382]

I"M SO EXCITED!

[@chowderpilot3843]

Love your show because it is always well researched and informative. To answer your question "who gets metric"? Er....pretty much anywhere that is not the US gets metric, although many of us also get Imperial because, let's face it, so much high-quality stuff - my US Fender Stratocaster comes to mind - gets manufactured in the US...thanks again, keep up the great content and I hope this helps...😉

[@zachary8491]

I love your show so much. From France. Love the metric jokes because I always struggle with your imperials. Also after 10 years in the French army, without surrending once :) , the first time you talked of the gun rocking back and forth I imagined myself in the situation and it would have taken me 4 seconds of watching this thing to tell my team to slam it on a sandbag. Glad you talked about it at the end of the show. Any evidence of this happening at the time? Seems like the clever thing to do.

[@vaclav_fejt]

Lindybeige was right, after all. The BREN is a better light machine gun than the "Spandau"! EDIT: Don't get your knickers in a twist, this was meant to be a joke referencing Lloyd's blunder regarding not only his complete misunderstanding that MG 34 and 42 were different designs, but also shoving them in one sack with the incorrect label "Spandau" (if it was ever correct on anything).

[@farmerboy916]

Fuck off, I'd managed to repress that stupidity. Ugh.

[@NardoVogt]

I'm gonna slap you for that one.

[@planescaped]

Lindybeige is just... I'm sorry, but he's a moron. Not just in guns too, guy talks out of his ass about near everything he covers. >__>

[@randymagnum143]

The m60e6 is totally better than either of them. What's your point?

[@vaclav_fejt]

@@randymagnum143 A reference to this: watch?v=VXQygRVvEmM and subsequently this: watch?v=qgfBL1hz_zw

[@andythem320guy9]

I don't need sleep, I need answers.

[@lamolambda8349]

Pew pew pew

[@MattsModellingMemories]

Did you get the answers? Enquiring minds need to know! 😅😂

[@alanfhall6450]

Hi Guys, Great video, as always. Just added a comment to the Lewis Gun episode re: stoppages. May or may not help. Keep it up, Alan.

[@xthee_0nly_1x11]

Seems like the Germans were not just the first to mass produce and field the assault rifle, but they were also among the first to invent the concept of a GPMG (General Purpose Machine Gun.)

[@emmanuelmonge6965]

When mae shoots that gun she exists in multiple places at once for a brief period of time.

[@ISawABear]

hell yeah

[@toastpuppy3491]

They should add this into foxhole

[@666Blaine]

I get the feeling that while guns like the Chauchat and BAR where meant to be used in an assault , the MG 08/15 was more likely meant to be carried forward by assaulting troops to be quickly emplaced and used to resist counter-attacks. (They kinda say this later in the vid. message to self: resist the temptation to post before watching the whole video!)

[@planescaped]

That pistol grip and stock protruding from the receiver is almost comical in appearance. Also I thought 55:57 was a looping gif until I noticed the ammo belt.

[@alex7x57]

Look closely at the photo shown at 30:32. It isn't really an MG08/15. Rather, it's actually a standard MG08 fitted with a buttstock with an integral pistol grip.

[@Candrsenal]

Ooh neat

[@moonshinerman]

Mae! You shot it from the hip?? I LOVE you!!!

[@RiccardoCagnasso]

I just read a new book from the Italian historian Alessandro Barbero about the battle of Caporetto. The Germans were able to infiltrate small units with one or two of these machine guns in the "rear" and pin entire battalions in place to the point that they broke and fled. Could you do that with a Lewis Gun? Maybe? With a Chauchat? Eeeh... Today we don't really care for that kind of portable firepower because we have tanks and helicopters and guided missiles. But for the day, that thing would enable a small team to carry an awful lot of firepower wherever they went. Don't underestimate it just because it looks bulky.

[@AfrikaKorp42]

About damn time!

[@jbeers1234]

OMG, the MP18 has been in the light box (and on Anvil)... ITS COMMIN’ SOON BOYS!!

[@konstantinatanassov4353]

Hello dear C&Rsenal Team. Great Video and great analysis of those WW1 Machine Guns. I still have some confusing questions, which I can't resolve for myself. Why was this bad MG08/15 recoil handling accepted by WW1 German Army? How can this device be the backbone of the infantry firepower in early 1918 (4 lMGs on each 1 sMG), while having this huge vertical recoil movement in automatic fire? The mental creator - von Merkatz - would have headaches on his own when seeing this thing fire - in his books, he emphasizes on the beaten zones and calculability of needed shots for target destruction - not doable at all with the wobbling and thus random behavior of that gun; He should have been disappointed, by following his line of thoughts - but the reality seems to be the opposite; Was it moreover a weapon for moral effect on the enemy and suppression, rather than destruction? Or were the firing distances in the trench warfare far too short, and thus recoiling a lesser problem, while the ability to be able to cover a wider azimuth-angle from the same position a greater one? They had enough time to investigate the problems on the front line, and adapt to it - if it was just the bad design or placement of the bipod - they could have move it a bit (at least a bit) forward for better stability; Why maintaining it? Did rather the front line troops adapt (have read in some books that they moved the bipod forward and attached it to the water jacked by additional claps, or even removing it when the underground is not OK, using sandbags as support)? I'm gladly awaiting your response and thoughts on this. Best Regards

[@kevinsullivan3448]

In the video clip where the soldier carries the MG08/15 into the trench (actually using the strap) he has a distinct advantage to anyone who is trying to fire from the prone position. Using the weapon from a standing supported position makes it much better for maneuverability of fire, since you can just shift behind the weapons while protected by the trench.

[@desroin]

I like to go back to this episode just to hear Othias say "Null-Acht-Fünfzehn" xD

[@jasonprosser7392]

Hutier was talked about by The Great War as heading the German Storm troops doctrine. Which it sounds like what you were talking about .

[@alt5494]

Would be interesting to do this machine gun project properly. Use a Vickers inverted receiver with Lewis style barrel cooling. Possibly in bullpup format with a shorter barrel.

[@thedesignerblacksmith5953]

2:59 3:22 when you think a Chauchat is bad enough already, wait until you see a top-fed Chauchat

[@vaclav_fejt]

I rate this video 8/11.

[@russieandco4440]

08/15

[@Crow.Author]

I was gonna rate it 19/11.

[@jon-paulfilkins7820]

42:25 Mae attempts to describe the use of the MG08/15 through the medium of interpretive hand jive!

[@BigBoyz33]

It looks so cool

[@thendnjedi1388]

One my favorite machine guns during the Great War

[@JimBrodie]

I laughed at '2.2lbs or some indecipherable amount of kilograms'. Highbrow trolling.

[@이동연-c6d]

The Kaiser Wilhelm ii’s Mini buzzsaw!

[@p38kris]

Wouldn't that be more suited for the the mg 18?

[@Hibernicus1968]

It's amazing how this anticipated the US M1919A6 of WWII. Exact same problem (lack of a proper light machine gun; no time to develop one and work all the bugs out, then get it into production), exact same solution (take the standard "heavy" machine gun, lighten it as much as possible, and slap a buttstock and a bipod on it). Voila! Here you are troops. Here's your light machine gun. I'm sure the troops were saying "THIS is what you call light?" But it was the best they were going to get in the circumstances.

[@Odin029]

I've got a meeting at 8am... but that's what coffee's for

[@1jtolvey]

GREAT VIDEO !!! MANHANDLE OR MAE-HANDLE :-)

[@CherryRhubarb00]

Opportunity missed to upload on 08/15..

[@ZGryphon]

underrated comment.

[@PositionLight]

Can you please comment on the claim that the MG 08/15 is the one single weapon type responsible for the most deaths in human history (something north of 1 million)? I read this in some fairly authoritative source once some 15 years ago and I haven't been able to locate it since. Assume that it makes use of some advantageous definition of weapon type that would exclude large heterogeneous weapon families like the AK.

[@stephenkissinger4434]

This episode and the Chauchat episode had discussions of the tactical squads formed around the LMG/GPMG with attention to loadouts and equipment. What good sources are out there for that sort of information? It seems to get overlooked a fair bit with more attention paid to either the technical operation of the arm or a focus just on the immediate crew of gunner and loader.

[@g.55centaurosimp18]

That’s a *Big* revolver!