Original Item: Only One Available. One of the first we have had in some time! This is a fantastic British WWI Production Vickers Inert Fluted display non-firing Medium Machine Gun, complete with multiple accessories and an original tripod. The display gun was built to BATF specifications using an all original Vickers parts sets assembled on a BATF compliant inert non-firing dummy receiver. The right side plate has been demilitarized to BATF specifications, with all of the cam portions removed. The left side plate has also had the cam portions removed, the "ears" on the lock ground off, and the firing pin welded in place. This display "non-gun" is totally legal to own without any federal restrictions or license as it is no longer legally considered a firearm.

The inside of the receiver still incorporates some of the internal components, such as the crank assembly, which can still be moved back and forth with spring action due to the intact fussee spring assembly. It also has an intact steel 9mm feed block, which should be able to mount a dummy belt if desired. A truly fantastic display set!

The water jacket on this example bears serial number C11700, which indicates manufacture by Vickers, Sons & Maxim Ltd., the name the company went by during the WWI Era. The company had several factories making Vickers guns, with "C" indicating manufacture at their Crayford Plant in Kent during 1916-1918, with guns later made during 1918 having a "D" prefix, so it was almost certainly completed during WWI. It however most likely did not see WWII service, as it is in the "Turkish Contract" configuration. Britain had originally wanted the Ottoman Empire as an ally during WWI, but they chose not to send purchased arms, resulting in the empire joining the Central powers.

Once WWI was over, Britain heavily supported Turkey and their new leader Ataturk providing copious aid including armaments. The result was that Turkey stayed neutral in WW2, much to Britain's relief. Turkey adopted the British water cooled Vickers Machine Gun in the 1920s and with war looming all over Europe in the late 1930s asked for a further quantity of 1,176 from England in 1940 which Britain, despite its own precarious position, supplied. The Turkish Vickers contract required all guns to be in the German 7.92mm caliber, since they had untold millions of cartridges in that caliber. They required their own model Tripod with different style legs and a very large brass soup-plate traversing azimuth dial. These guns were fitted with antiaircraft spider sights supported by a rear flag folding back sight.

Due to the great shortage of parts the Turkish contract featured many early Vickers traits such as a WWI "flat nosed" muzzle booster and many of the components bear the very early V.S.M. maker's markings denoting Vickers Sons and Maxim of pre/early WW1. Masses of detailed information are available on pages 432-437 in "The Grand Old Lady of No Man's Land," by Dolf Goldsmith, published by Collector Grade Publications (1994).

This example falls right into this category having the above described antiaircraft sight system and multiple VSM marked components. It is fitted with a lovely WWI type parabolic flash hider, under which is just the correct muzzle attachment with a flat-faced muzzle booster. The display gun has the correct "flag" rear anti aircraft sight mounted to the top cover, and there is the fitting for the spider sight attached to the back of the smooth water jacket. The long range sight on the top cover still flips up, and is fully functional. The feed block is the correct steel type, marked CAL 7.9 for the 8mm Mauser Rimless cartridges.

The gun comes with an extremely hard to find complete Vickers Tripod, with a brass crosshead and elevation mechanism. It does not have any data plate on the legs, and is a WWII issue example, paired with an earlier produced gun. The tripod is fitted with a British brass crosshead which has some great markings cast into the side: MOUNT. TRIPOD. M.G. MK. IV., which is the official designation of the tripod. There are additional markings on the top of the right side as well: № 1282 MA 1940, which indicates it was produced in 1940 in Australia, most likely at Lithgow arsenal. The number at the front would have most likely matched it with a specific gun at some time during service. The elevation mechanism is present and functional, as are both cross pins, and all of the retaining chains look to be present, definitely a rarity.

Attached to the crosshead is a lovely replica tripod ammo box carrier, which has an original box inside. Extremely hard to find, these were replicated some years ago, and are perfect for really dressing up a Vickers display gun.

These have become EXTREMELY scarce recently, especially complete original tripods. Many more parts sets were imported than tripods, and they are highly sought after. This is the first example we have had in some time. A fantastic collector's opportunity that we do not expect to see again anytime soon!

The Vickers machine gun or Vickers gun is a name primarily used to refer to the water-cooled .303 inch (7.7 mm) machine gun produced by Vickers Limited, originally for the British Army. The machine gun typically required a six to eight-man team to operate: one to fire, one to feed the ammunition, the rest to help carry the weapon, its ammunition and spare parts. It was in service from before the First World War until the 1960s.

The weapon had a reputation for great solidity and reliability. Ian V. Hogg, in Weapons & War Machines, describes an action that took place in August 1916, during which the British Army's 100th Company of the Machine Gun Corps fired their ten Vickers guns continuously for twelve hours. Using 100 new barrels, they fired a million rounds without a single breakdown. "It was this absolute foolproof reliability which endeared the Vickers to every British soldier who ever fired one."

The Vickers machine gun was based on the successful Maxim gun of the late 19th century. After purchasing the Maxim company outright in 1896, Vickers took the design of the Maxim gun and improved it, reducing its weight by lightening and simplifying the action and substituting components made with high strength alloys. A muzzle booster was also added.

The British Army formally adopted the Vickers gun as its standard machine gun on 26 November 1912, using it alongside their Maxims. There were still great shortages when the First World War began, and the British Expeditionary Force was still equipped with Maxims when sent to France in 1914. Vickers was, in fact, threatened with prosecution for war profiteering, due to the exorbitant price it was demanding for each gun. As a result, the price was slashed. As the war progressed, and numbers increased, it became the British Army's primary machine gun, and served on all fronts during the conflict. When the Lewis Gun was adopted as a light machine gun and issued to infantry units, the Vickers guns were redefined as heavy machine guns, withdrawn from infantry units, and grouped in the hands of the new Machine Gun Corps.

After the First World War, the Machine Gun Corps (MGC) was disbanded and the Vickers returned to infantry units. Before the Second World War, there were plans to replace the Vickers gun; one of the contenders was the 7.92 mm (.312 in) Besa machine gun (a Czech design), which eventually became the British Army's standard tank-mounted machine gun. However, the Vickers remained in service with the British Army until 30 March 1968. Its last operational use was in the Radfan during the Aden Emergency.