I am seriously considering ordering up a 1919A4 eventually (Next 6 months or so). I talked to one of my friends, and he thinks its stupid to dump 2 grand on a semi-auto, belt fed weapon, and says I should get an M-1. My response to the M-1 comment is that the M-1 can only fire 20 rounds before you have to change the mag whereas the 1919: a little more than 20.....So my question is: Should I get a 1919A4 or not?

Depends on what you want.  If you want a reliable rifle that you can easily and accurately shoot with, then get a M1A/M14 (I'm sensing you meant that as you spoke of a 20rd magazine).  If you want some belt fed fun, then go for the 1919A4.

My friend has a Semi 1919 and its really hit or miss as to whether or not that thing will work.  Some days it runs great, other days it has some issues but in the end it comes down to what we're feeding it.  Additionally some semi's are built better than others so it is a very good idea to look into who you're getting it from as to whether or not they've got a good reputation and how the engineering on the semi is done.  I've seen some great ones and I've seen some duds.  You have to watch on the Izzy parts kits ones as most of those parts kits I've seen have had some seriously worn parts.  USGI parts kits that didn't get sold to the Israeli's are probably the best for semi builds, but those are tough to find.  Finally, the 1919 is by no stretch of the imagination light or easy to move with the tripod and you really do need two people to run and move it.  If you're looking for something a bit more portable go for the 1919A6 configuration, but again I think in the end the answer is that it depends on your desired application.  

If you're looking for something fun to hunker down with and make a lot of noise and smoke, then a Semi 1919 is what you're looking for.  If you're looking for a .308 battle rifle that can easily go anywhere and get the job done, then you're looking for an M1A/M14.

But, thats just my two cents....  

My guess is that if I "needed" either of those then what I would really need would be a squad of Uncle Sam's Finest to hide behind!  So that being said, and assuming money is not the issue, which one makes you smile when you think about them?  Get that one.  

You only live once.

Hell why not?

Think of the looks you'll get from your friends.

Max

i built one that alone was fun , not to hard to do i think if you can change your oil you can do it go to www.1919a4.com and look around ..the guns the cheap part ..linkers ,loaders, tripods  , ect .lots of ammo!! its a great gun everyone stops at the range to see what the hell i;am shooting  good luck,have fun shooting  .....    joe..

Do you have an M14/M1a ? If not then i'd get that covered first.The 1919 is a toy.You'll soon tire of the trigger not to mention feeding it and replacing burnt out barrels.The novelty will wear off. It's great for someone who's got the serious rifles and just wan't some "Holy Shit" factor out at the local range though.But other than make alot of noise and cramping your hand there's nothing it will do that an M14 won't do better.

get the 1919 so i can shoot it at the next lowcountry shoot

Get it.

Get one! Theres a guy named JOHN MQGUIRE on 1919A4.com that makes the highest quality 1919's period and for like $1,000. I bought one of them and they are great and they come with warranty and all. Everyone on the board knows of his stuff and will tell you hes the best. Go ask about him and the guns shoot great. Good luck.

I had the opportunity to see one of these in action last Saturday.  Pretty neat!



"1919 A4 / MG3 Mount Adaptor….This device adapts your 1919A4 to the awesome MG3 ground mount, enabling very rapid fire. Utilizes the mount’s original recoil system and isolated trigger system. Ammo can holder with feed ramp, link chute with collector can holder and spent cartridge chute also available, making the system a true ammo processor."

Web Site w/short video

Do it.

Quoted: I am seriously considering ordering up a 1919A4 eventually (Next 6 months or so). I talked to one of my friends, and he thinks its stupid to dump 2 grand on a semi-auto, belt fed weapon, and says I should get an M-1. My response to the M-1 comment is that the M-1 can only fire 20 rounds before you have to change the mag whereas the 1919: a little more than 20.....So my question is: Should I get a 1919A4 or not?

I personally am wanting some sort of belt-fed and will wait to see if VLTOR's semi PKM will materialize. But I guess it depends on your preference. Good luck with whatever you choose!

Don't forget about Vector's RPD.

IMHO, waste of money - if you have $2K budgeted for it already, save up $500 or so more and shop for a m11/9 or a MAC if you don't have anything full auto yet (I believe SC is a MG-friendly state).    I built one a couple of years back, probably spent about $1300 once all the accessories were added up, and I should have never have done it.    I've shot it all of three times, since it really is a pain to haul it out for what you get out of it.   It makes a better conversation piece than a shooter.  I suppose one of the semi 1919's would be a bit more fun with one of the crank mechanisms, but compared to owning a real MG, even a lowly MAC or M11/9, it seems sort of cheesy.

A few months later, I ended up getting my first MG, a m11/9.    I wish I simply bought another one, or perhaps a MAC instead of the 1919, as they were going for about that price at the time.    If you don't have anything full auto yet, get it now before dropping $2k on anything else.   They ain't gonna get any cheaper.

First check out 1919a4.com. You can get a good 1919 for less than 2 grand. I built my own semi from a parts kit, cost was around $700 wich includes having someone else machine the internal parts for semi convertion.
 These guns a really fun to shoot. And they are REALLY fun to shoot if you get a crankfire setup for it.  

You probably need to get it.

Do It.

I'm looking at getting one made by Blackbear.  I've heard nothing but good things about them.

If you can afford one and you want one than get one without question!

Quoted: Don't forget about Vector's RPD. www.fbmginc.com/semi%20rpd.JPG

You can't run a hand-crank on a Vector RPD though

I got 3 kits @ $299 each from OOW, 3 KMP trigger/sear sets @ $110 (IIRC), 3 ORF RSPs @ $130 (IIRC). 4,000 izzy links from OOW. 3 rivet sets from Tapco. 2 izzy A6 kits from Coles Dist.
Lessons learned:
You CAN do all the milling with a dremmal and angle grinder.
You do NOT need a linker.
The A6 kit is way cool.
I now have a hernia, as these pigs weigh about 40lbs.

I just finished mine tonight...DO IT!!!

I will have about $1K in the whole thing (Gun, Pintle, T+E, M2Tripod)

If you budgeted $2K for it, you have money for a Crankfire, and lots of ammo, and links.
Build your own linker if you want one of them to. Weidners has 1919 30-06 links for $10/1000.  
They will work with .308 if you stretch them. Izzy links are ~$70/1000.

KyARGuy