Design of the Model 1914 was somewhat conventional in overall scope. The receiver was a boxy, rectangular shape housing the needed internal working components. It supported a pistol grip with integral trigger unit as well as a vertical charging handle set to the left side of the receiver. The barrel measured 31 inches in length and its base was shrouded in five noticeable cooling fins intended to help dissipate heat build-up. The gas cylinder was mounted under the barrel and tapped the barrel along its midway point. The barrel was not capped by a flash suppressor of any sort though a forward iron sight was fitted. Along the sides of the receiver were support arms for the adjustable tripod mounting. A large loop handle was affixed to the receiver of the receiver. Overall weight was 54lbs with a listed rate-of-fire of 500 rounds per minute and muzzle velocity of 2,325 feet per second. The Hotchkiss Model 1914 was truly a classic and successful machine gun of her time.
The Model 1914 was produced under license in Spanish factories and this allowed them to be used in number by both sides of the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939). By the time of World War 2 (1939-1945), the Model 1914 was still in widespread circulation with French and Belgian forces which allowed the Germans, having conquered Belgium and northern France, to reconstitute stocks of the weapon as defensive measures along the "Atlantic Wall" in defense of the shores of the growing German Empire under Adolf Hitler. The Model 1914, therefore, could claim to have seen combat service all through World War 2, joining a select group of weapons seeing service in both major World Wars. Many examples were also outfitted to various French-designed tanks prior to the war including the mammoth Char 2C. The French continued to use their Model 1914s in static defensive roles during their engagements in French Indochina and Algeria (the Algerian Revolution of 1954-1962) and by Legionnaires in Morocco and elsewhere.
In addition to the stated war record, Model 1914 machine guns saw combat service in the Mexican Revolution (1910-1920) and the Polish-Soviet War (1919-1921). As such, operators of the type proved numerous and went on to include Belgium, Chile, Greece, Italy, Brazil, France, Germany (Nazi), the Empire of Japan, Mexico, Norway, Peru, Poland, Spain (built under license), Sweden, Turkey and the United States. The Japanese utilized a license-produced version of the Hotchkiss Model 1914 as the "Type 3 Heavy Machine Gun". Naturally, these were chambered for the local 6.5x50mm Arisaka cartridge. The Type 92 was similar in scope and function and from the Hotchkiss lineage though tailored for the larger 7.7x58mm Arisaka cartridge to help improve effectiveness.
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