Browning M1917A1
- Category
- Machine Gun
- Barrel
- 610 mm
- Weight, empty
- 14.97 kg
- Introduced
- 1917
About
What it is, and why it matters
The M1917A1 is the water-cooled heavy machine gun designed by John Moses Browning and adopted by the US Army in 1917 as America's standard belt-fed automatic. Chambered in .30-06 Springfield, it operates by short recoil with a closed-bolt, full-auto-only trigger group, fed from 250-round canvas belts, with a 3.5-liter water jacket surrounding the 610mm barrel for sustained fire cooling. The 1936 A1 update added a strengthened bottom plate, improved sights, and a heavier M1917A1 tripod. Renowned for reliability, the M1917A1 served from the trenches of WWI through the Pacific island campaigns and Korean defensive lines, where its sustained-fire capacity made it the gold standard for fixed-position defensive firepower until air-cooled successors and the M60 finally replaced it.
At Springfield Armory's May 1917 acceptance trial, Browning's prototype fired 20,000 rounds without malfunction, then a second 20,000-round string with only a single broken sear at approximately round 39,500 - an unprecedented endurance demonstration that secured immediate adoption. Of 30,582 M1917s shipped to France, only ~1,200 reached front-line combat before the November 1918 Armistice.
Production split across Colt, New England Westinghouse, Remington, and others. Lifetime production ~128,369 (~68,500 WWI; ~53,000 WWII). Fully kitted weight (gun + tripod + water + ammo) is ~47 kg; gun alone dry is ~15 kg. M1917A1 tripod weighs ~24 kg.
Specification
Everything measured
IdentityWhat it is, who built it and when.
- Manufacturer
- Colt's Manufacturing Company LLC
- Category
- Machine Gun
- Country
- United States
- Status
- Out of production
- Produced
- 1917 to 1955
DimensionsAs issued, without a magazine or an optic.
- Barrel
- 610 mm
- Overall length
- 968 mm
- Weight, empty
- 14.97 kg
- Weight, loaded
- 47.00 kg
ActionHow it cycles, what trips it, and what feeds it.
- Action
- Short recoil
- Firing mechanism
- Closed bolt
- Trigger
- Full auto only
- Capacity
- 250
- Magazine
- Belt
MaterialsEach swatch is the material itself, not a colour chosen to stand for it.
- Frame
- Steel
- Barrel
- Steel
- Finish
- Blued
BallisticsFrom the service cartridge, not a handload.
- Muzzle velocity
- 853 m/s
- Muzzle energy
- 3380 J
- Effective range
- 1300 m
- Maximum range
- 6800 m
- Rate of fire
- 450 rpm
Trajectory
What the round does downrange
Solved from the muzzle figures and the bullet. The dashed rule is the effective range on the record, and the crosses are the steps the solver returned.
No load solved for this record yetThe flight path is computed from a cartridge and a bullet. This record has no ammunition filed against its chambering, so there is nothing to solve.
Features
What it has
What the record lists as fitted, drawn from the catalogue.
- Water jacket cooling 3 5l
Browning toggle lock
M1917 tripod mount
Raised leaf rear sight a1- Strengthened bottom plate a1
Standing
How it compares
Each figure against the firearms of the same type and cartridge that record it, or of the same type where that cartridge has too few. Positions are read to the nearest tenth.
| Measurement | This firearm | Median | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| Empty weightAmong 261 machine guns | 14.97 kg | 10.50 kg | Heavier than about 70% |
| Overall lengthAmong 260 machine guns | 968 mm | 1156 mm | Shorter than about 90% |
| Barrel lengthAmong 257 machine guns | 610 mm | 605 mm | Near the median |
| Magazine capacityAmong 222 machine guns | 250 | 50 | Holds more rounds than about 90% |
Answers
Questions about the Browning M1917A1
How much does the Browning M1917A1 weigh?
The Browning M1917A1 weighs 14.97 kg (33.00 lb) empty and 47.00 kg (103.62 lb) loaded.
What caliber is the Browning M1917A1?
The Browning M1917A1 is chambered in .30-06 Springfield.
How many rounds does the Browning M1917A1 hold?
The Browning M1917A1 holds 250 rounds, fed from a belt.
How long is the Browning M1917A1?
The Browning M1917A1 is 968 mm (38.1 in) long overall, with a 610 mm (24.0 in) barrel.
Who makes the Browning M1917A1?
The Browning M1917A1 is made by Colt's Manufacturing Company LLC (United States). It was designed by John Moses Browning.
When was the Browning M1917A1 introduced?
The Browning M1917A1 was introduced in 1917 and discontinued in 1955.
How does the Browning M1917A1 operate?
The Browning M1917A1 uses a short recoil action, and its firing mechanism is closed bolt.
Compatibility
Which parts fit this firearm
Studio
Every part that mounts on this, resolved
Not a list the maker typed out: the answer comes from the mounts this firearm exposes and the interface each part needs, so it stays right when either one changes.
- Every part that mounts on any firearm in the catalogue
- Interface standards, platforms and fit overrides
- The same answers through the API and the MCP server
Requires a signed-in GunSpec account on the Studio plan. The answer is computed per part, so it is not part of the public record.
Provenance
What the record holds
Every figure above was taken from one of these pages. The confidence reflects how much of the record came from a page a claim can be checked against.
In service
- United States Army
- 1917
- United States Marine Corps
- United States
- British Army
- 1917
- Norwegian Army
- Norway
- Polish Army (wz.30)
- 1930
- Swedish Army (m/36)
- 1936
- Republic of Korea Army
- South Korea
Provenance
Confidence in this record
92%
Stockists
Where to buy
Offers link straight to the shop. GunSpec never takes the order.
No shop has listed this firearm yet
Stock and prices come from the shops themselves. If you sell this firearm, you can list it and it appears here.
List a firearmMCP
Ask an assistant about it
The same record, reached the way a person asks for it rather than the way a program does.
Ask GunSpec
Works with
Point an MCP client at GunSpec and it answers from the catalogue rather than from memory. A free key covers the read tools.
API
The call that returns this record
The same fields, in the same units, from the same endpoint the page reads.
curl --request GET \ --url 'https://api.gunspec.io/v1/firearms/browning-m1917a1' \ --header 'X-API-Key: your_key'{ "id": "browning-m1917a1", "name": "Browning M1917A1", "manufacturer": { "id": "colt", "name": "Colt's Manufacturing Company LLC", "countryCode": "US", "foundedYear": 1855, "website": "https://www.colt.com", "logoUrl": null, "description": "American firearms manufacturer headquartered in Hartford, Connecticut. Founded in 1855 and now a subsidiary of Colt CZ Group, continuing production of iconic firearms including the 1911 pistol.", "status": "active", "defunctYear": null, "stateOwned": null, "makesFirearms": null, "parentId": null, "predecessorId": null, "createdAt": "2026-02-11 23:44:38", "updatedAt": "2026-02-18 03:43:38", "version": "7143c7ff3f7e156063a240f2df7b4746ee1c0394d7cd5f592d05bac43233d637" }, "category": { "id": "machine-gun", "name": "Machine Gun", "description": "Fully automatic firearms for sustained fire" }, "country_of_origin": "US", "year_introduced": 1917, "barrel_length_mm": 610, "weight_empty_g": 14970, "action_type": "short_recoil"}