What is the difference between machine gun, sub-machine gun and machine carbine?
A carbine is a lighter, shorter version of a rifle, usually single shot in the context of WW1 or WW2. Machine guns are the full size, fully automatic fire guns like the Maxim, the Vickers, the Lewis and more recently the GPMG M60. Machine carbines are the smaller, lighter weapons like the Thompson, the Sten and the Owen. However the names ‘sub-machine gun’ and ‘machine carbine’ have now become almost interchangeable with common usage. Image from an original WW2 British Army Infantry Training Manual (Pamphlet Vol 1 No 21, 1944) on the Machine Carbine which covers the Sten and Thompson. Dated 1944.
