Description
Original Item: Interesting WWII barrel vise for an MG 15. Wood base with bakelite lined clamp to hold barrel thread without fear of damage. A very unusual accessory.
The MG15 was developed from the MG 30 which was designed by Rheinmetall using the locking system invented by Louis Stange in the mid to late 1920s. Though it shares the MG 15 designation with the earlier gun built by Bergmann, the MG 15nA (for neuer Art, meaning new model having been modified from an earlier design) has nothing in common with the World War II gun except the model number. The World War I gun used a tipping lock system while the WWII aircraft gun uses a rotating bolt/lockring. The World War II MG 15 was used in nearly all Luftwaffe aircraft with a flexible-mount defensive position.
It was a modular design with various attachments that could be quickly attached or removed. Operation was easy and the bolt remained in the cocked position after expending the 75 round double drum (also called a “saddle drum”) magazine, negating the need to re-cock once a fresh magazine was installed.
The MG 15 fires from an open bolt, meaning that the bolt stays back when the gun is ready to fire, and also making it nearly impossible for “through the propeller” synchronized forward firing on a fuselage mount. Pulling the trigger releases the bolt and allows it to go forward, stripping…
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