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View Full Version : any m85 out there

n11769
11-17-2008, 04:03 PM
Just curious are there ever any m85 guns parts etc on the market seems you always hear
about the m3 or m2
Dan Wilson
11-17-2008, 04:31 PM
What is the M85?
Thanks

Dan
n11769
11-17-2008, 04:38 PM
from what i have read it was a 50bmg used in the m60 tank but also had a tripod
ground version
usmcss77
11-17-2008, 06:18 PM
Is it ma' deuce or similar? I think the M85 was lighter than M2.:peep:
n11769
11-18-2008, 05:29 PM
Its not a m2 it was another type of 50 the US used close to the m2 just thought it was weird you never see any,it would make a neat build

http://i453.photobucket.com/albums/qq256/n11769/M85_righthand.gif


http://i453.photobucket.com/albums/qq256/n11769/M85_52.gif
Dan Wilson
11-18-2008, 09:45 PM
Cool, thanks.
I recognize the flash hider now.

N11769, that looks like a aircraft registry number....

Dan
btwiest
12-18-2008, 07:24 PM
I believe it had problems and was not that good. Not the 1st time a US weapon was like that.
Armorer
05-06-2009, 04:36 PM
I believe it had problems and was not that good. Not the 1st time a US weapon was like that.

I think that is true just like the M73 7.62mm tank machine gun that was a flop. The technical manual for the M85 that I have was from July 1985 (TM 9-1005-231-24&P) with change 2 from November 1986. I have not heard anything about it since then and I don/'t see any pictures from the desert to indicate that it is still in use. There are manuals for the M2 that were published in the 90's so if the M85 was supposed to replace the M2 it seems that it failed.

From what I can see in the manual it shares no parts with the M2.
Armorer
05-06-2009, 04:57 PM
Just looked it up an Wirkipedia and confirmed what I thought. It states that the M85 was made by General Electric and used with the M60 series tank . It was lighter than the M2 but proved to be unreliable and extremely complex. It was not fitted to the Abrams tank. The British also tested and rejected the gun.

Chances are it was never exported so it is unlikely that you will ever see any kits or parts. I found another article that states the US Marine Corps still stores about 3 million rounds of ammunition for the M85 even though the Marines have removed the gun from their inventory. I cannot find anything that states how the cartridge was different from the standard .50 cal round however.