The M205 Lightweight Tripod for Heavy Machine Guns is the replacement for the current

M3 tripod The M3 tripod is a Weapon mount#Tripod, weapon mount used on the M2 Browning machine gun, M2HB Browning machine gun and the Mk 19 grenade launcher. The M3 tripod has a total weight of 20 kilograms (44 pounds). The M205 tripod, formerly the XM205, ...

in support of the

M2 machine gun The M2 machine gun or Browning .50-caliber machine gun (informally, "Ma Deuce") is a heavy machine gun that was designed near the end of World War I by John Browning. While similar to Browning's M1919 Browning machine gun, which was chambered ...

and

Mk 19 grenade launcher The Mk 19 grenade launcher (pronounced Mark 19) is an American 40 mm belt-fed automatic grenade launcher that was first developed during the Vietnam War. Overview The Mk 19 is a belt-fed, blowback-operated, air-cooled, crew-ser ...

used in the

United States armed forces The United States Armed Forces are the Military, military forces of the United States. U.S. United States Code, federal law names six armed forces: the United States Army, Army, United States Marine Corps, Marine Corps, United States Navy, Na ...

. The soldier will experience less weight burden with the M205 Lightweight Tripod than with the standard M3 Tripod (, including the pintle and T&E), and will be able to take advantage of the enhanced tripod's integrated traverse and elevation mechanism for quicker, more accurate target engagement. Not only is the M205 (34 lbs) lighter than the M3 by over 16 lbs (33%), it is stronger and provides a more stable (lower dispersion) firing platform than the M3. The M205 was first fielded by the 1st Armored Division in November 2013. In addition to being lighter than the M3, it has an integrated Traverse & Elevation (T&E) mechanism that can be operated with one hand for faster and more accurate engagement. The legs have spades to dig into dirt or sand to be a stable platform. The M205 when stowed is long, high, and wide.“Ma Deuce” Gets a New Stand
- PEOsoldier.armylive.dodlive.mil, 9 January 2014

References

Military equipment of the United States Firearm components United States Army projects Military equipment introduced in the 2010s {{US-mil-stub

See also

References