249/240 marksmanship and general use tips

[SOW_0331]

Well...hello gents. What have we here?

Okay, a few things in this discussion being discussed and a few important things being left out. My reference is going to be an excessive amount of time with a pig, primarily on the 240G and later the 240B. Also I have my Green Monster, aka my Machine Gun Bible, so if you need particular data I can get that for you and ref the pub so you can sound all Officer SmartyPants.

Where you need to begin your period of instruction is an introduction to the weapon and it's technical data. Its not exciting, it's repetitive and when you have a belt fed thunder stick, you don't want to read knowledge (do they still call it that?). But it's important that your troops not only be able to memorize the information but that they understand it. I always like to start with a breakdown of parts and nomenclature, and have your guys identify all the parts on a diagram. Then have them explain the function of each part, which may mean YOU have to learn those parts as well. Equally important at the introduction phase is to beat into their heads the importance of the Cycle of Operations for each weapon. Remember...Fat Chicks Like Fvcking Unless Eating Easter Candy. Which is how they can remember Feeding Chambering Locking Firing Unlocking Extracting Ejecting Cocking.

To keep an MMG in the fight reliably and effectively, the gunner must demonstrate his understanding of the CoO and what they look like on the gun. He must think of his Machine Gun as a machine, it has a process. An input and an output and when the machine malfunctions, being able to identify what part of the Cycle of Ops the failure occured. Isolation will drastically reduce the amount of time taken to diagnose and correct the malfunction. Speed is everything in a gunfight, slow is smooth, smooth is fast.

Diss and Ass. Your troops should be taught how to disassemble the weapon entirely, then reassemble the weapon and perform a functions check. Your average troop should be able to perform this in under 3 minutes. A designated gunner needs to be under 90 seconds. "Better, do it again". Have your guys compete to add incentive to being the best if you need to, but make sure they are doing it right.

Now they might be ready for the next step, mounting the weapon onto the tripod quickly and efficiently and learning the importance of the tripod. They need to know how to use the T&E to get their gun on target and keep it there. With the gun on the tripod, you can better explain the process of drawing range cards and designating sectors/fields of fire. This is a good opportunity as well to explain some basic employment of the gun and use of a belt fed. Every gunner needs to be able to identify his PDF, FPF FPL and communicate dead space to Team Leaders or Patrol Leaders. Make sure your troops understand the absolute importance of communicating their PDF and Back Azimuth, and how their gun is part of a bigger scheme.

When you get ammo, please for the love of all things holy have your troops shoot Qual Tables. Its not exciting and they won't get to feel like Rambo. But they'll display their ability to manipulate the tripod (measure in mils) and bipod and keep rounds on target.


I could blubber on all day about the beauty of the 240 and the absolute awesomeness that it is. I've seen videos of certain units and their use of the gun in places like the mountains of Afghanistan and it makes my stomach turn seeing the lack of ability and proper use. You can't put a MG in a troops hands and suddenly he's a Machine Gunner. You can't look at the 240 as "a big SAW" and you can't let the 249 become a way to spray ammo without a target. The above isn't even the tip of the iceberg of MG Gunnery but you can at least teach the basics. The single most common failure in units who don't use their guns right is an absolutely embarrassing lack of discipline in a gunfight. Teach discipline from day one and they'll remember it forever.

If you want to PM me I can call you or we can Skype, something that will allow us a good communication option. Because as the Officer you need to know a lot more about the gun and employment/gunnery than you might think.

[Failure2Stop]

The single most common failure in units who don't use their guns right is an absolutely embarrassing lack of discipline in a gunfight. Teach discipline from day one and they'll remember it forever.

This, all f**king day long. Discipline with an MG is one of the most important factors in a real fight.

[Arctic1]

Regarding mags and malfunctions, we have the same issue with the M249 (Minimi). It is not reliable, and the use of magazines shall be a last resort.

And just to reiterate, we do see malfunctions with said weapons. The point was that it was not attributable to the open bolt design.

[Arctic1]

Well...hello gents. What have we here?

Okay, a few things in this discussion being discussed and a few important things being left out. My reference is going to be an excessive amount of time with a pig, primarily on the 240G and later the 240B. Also I have my Green Monster, aka my Machine Gun Bible, so if you need particular data I can get that for you and ref the pub so you can sound all Officer SmartyPants.

Where you need to begin your period of instruction is an introduction to the weapon and it's technical data. Its not exciting, it's repetitive and when you have a belt fed thunder stick, you don't want to read knowledge (do they still call it that?). But it's important that your troops not only be able to memorize the information but that they understand it. I always like to start with a breakdown of parts and nomenclature, and have your guys identify all the parts on a diagram. Then have them explain the function of each part, which may mean YOU have to learn those parts as well. Equally important at the introduction phase is to beat into their heads the importance of the Cycle of Operations for each weapon. Remember...Fat Chicks Like Fvcking Unless Eating Easter Candy. Which is how they can remember Feeding Chambering Locking Firing Unlocking Extracting Ejecting Cocking.

To keep an MMG in the fight reliably and effectively, the gunner must demonstrate his understanding of the CoO and what they look like on the gun. He must think of his Machine Gun as a machine, it has a process. An input and an output and when the machine malfunctions, being able to identify what part of the Cycle of Ops the failure occured. Isolation will drastically reduce the amount of time taken to diagnose and correct the malfunction. Speed is everything in a gunfight, slow is smooth, smooth is fast.

Diss and Ass. Your troops should be taught how to disassemble the weapon entirely, then reassemble the weapon and perform a functions check. Your average troop should be able to perform this in under 3 minutes. A designated gunner needs to be under 90 seconds. "Better, do it again". Have your guys compete to add incentive to being the best if you need to, but make sure they are doing it right.

Now they might be ready for the next step, mounting the weapon onto the tripod quickly and efficiently and learning the importance of the tripod. They need to know how to use the T&E to get their gun on target and keep it there. With the gun on the tripod, you can better explain the process of drawing range cards and designating sectors/fields of fire. This is a good opportunity as well to explain some basic employment of the gun and use of a belt fed. Every gunner needs to be able to identify his PDF, FPF FPL and communicate dead space to Team Leaders or Patrol Leaders. Make sure your troops understand the absolute importance of communicating their PDF and Back Azimuth, and how their gun is part of a bigger scheme.

When you get ammo, please for the love of all things holy have your troops shoot Qual Tables. Its not exciting and they won't get to feel like Rambo. But they'll display their ability to manipulate the tripod (measure in mils) and bipod and keep rounds on target.


I could blubber on all day about the beauty of the 240 and the absolute awesomeness that it is. I've seen videos of certain units and their use of the gun in places like the mountains of Afghanistan and it makes my stomach turn seeing the lack of ability and proper use. You can't put a MG in a troops hands and suddenly he's a Machine Gunner. You can't look at the 240 as "a big SAW" and you can't let the 249 become a way to spray ammo without a target. The above isn't even the tip of the iceberg of MG Gunnery but you can at least teach the basics. The single most common failure in units who don't use their guns right is an absolutely embarrassing lack of discipline in a gunfight. Teach discipline from day one and they'll remember it forever.

If you want to PM me I can call you or we can Skype, something that will allow us a good communication option. Because as the Officer you need to know a lot more about the gun and employment/gunnery than you might think.

Great post. Completely agree with the discipline part.

You also bring up a very important point; the difference between practical MG knowledge/skills (shooting, malfunction clearance, diss/ass, cycle of operations) and MG employment as part of SUT.

[J8127]

A claymore yes, but a GBU never because the sound of the clicking of the fins give 1-2 seconds of warning.

Now I've heard it all.

[R0N]

If you are actually listing you can hear the click, click of the "Bang, Bang" method of controlling the fins. It is very prominent in LGBs

[SOW_0331]

I wanted to add a little to my last post because it was longer than hell on its own, and I know the average reader can only stand so much before they start skimming. To the OP, I hope you were able to get something out of that. Those are some basics and I would highly advise you soak up as much of this as you can. You might not be leading an SOF Team, but you're actually at a disadvantage here. Your troops get handed weapons on deployment that they're supposed to stake their lives on and they're expected to use them. And as their OIC that falls on you to ensure it doesn't go terribly.

Anyway, you may not have much time to get your troops schooled up. So I have put together a cheat sheet for you, because I'm a good guy like that. I've broken down what the gunners need to know and how they must show proficiency. I've added a seperate list for your NCOs and Small Unit Leaders. Then there's a list of what YOU need to know as their Platoon Commander or whatever the Sam hell you're doing.

Im simply not going to discuss some of the more advanced gunnery and employment methods. The 249 and 240 are always getting a bad rep as being unreliable and I couldn't agree less. The problem with the 249 is the worn parts in the feed tray cover, particularly the feed pawls. We started jig-rigging our SAWs with hand cut and formed sections of wire from Hesco barriers. Which reminds me...if you have a guy humping around a belt fed gun, it would behoove him to keep a Gerber multitool in his pocket. Dummy cord that shit to him.

The 240G and later 240B I became so intimate with never failed once. No misfires, no FTF, no runaway gun, I kept her clean and wet and well fed and she did her part. The weapon is almost difficult to neglect to the point of effecting the functions of the gun. I had an Army group (will not identify because the individuals don't represent the units) and later a Navy group who were very unhappy with their 240s. When I inspected the weapons, carbon had corroded the gas collar and the brass had turned into blue crystals fused to the feed tray. The other gun had a worn sear and a gas regulator that was completely obstructed with dirt and LSA (in the desert...yeah) and the reason was "Well we were never taught how to take it apart that far". Awesome.

There's a lot for you to learn OP, and I'll make you a special offer. I'll jump in my truck and head to your AO and we can talk guns and tactics. I'll even stick around to RSO or cover the more unconventional methods and uses. You might laugh at my offer but I'm still jazzed up from it being 03-31

[Wake27]

I have been getting a lot out of the discussion here, so thanks to everyone that has helped me out. Unfortunately they put me on something else that takes priority so I am no longer running this range. I'll be hanging on to the knowledge as best I can though, I'm sure it'll come up again. And SOW - let me know if you manage to get that truck over to Oahu any time soon.

[SOW_0331]

I was half asleep and I didn't put that together. But it's a Tacoma so I think if I inflate the tires a little more and weld a rudder to the tailgate, I should be able to make her seaworthy.

[Cagemonkey]

Thanks for the update and info on the M240 and M249 Reliability. If guys can't keep a M240 running, would have loved the days of the M60E3. As a former Marine Armorer, I can attest to the horrible preventative maintenance that is performed on MG's. They don't believe in preventatively overhauling MG's by replacing certain parts like top cover feed pawls and springs. They'd rather use the nickel and dime approach. Its sad, since small arms are so cheap in comparison to an aircraft.