Breda Mod. 5C

The Breda 5C was an Italian medium machine gun, which was adopted by the Royal Italian Army and used in the Second Italo-Ethiopian War and in World War II.

Breda 5C, together with Fiat Mod. 26, was designed by the Italian Society Ernesto Breda Costruzioni Meccaniche to replace the machine gun SIA Mod. 1918. Despite the unsatisfactory results of both arms during the tests, however, they were adopted by the Royal Italian Army to address the critical shortage of automatic weapons. Assigned to the troops of Tripoli, a few dozen unit were used by meharists during World War II. It also armed the armored cars Fiat 611.^[1]

The weapon displayed multiple features that would go on to be used in the Breda Mod. 30. The weapon sported a quick-change barrel which separated from the carrier sleeve with a half-turn. Operation was via recoil, firing from a closed bolt. The weapon was fed by a side-mounted, non-detachable twenty-round box magazine, which was opened on a hinge, filled via a twenty-round charger, then closed, in a similar manner to the Modello 30. The 5C also sported range-adjustable ironsights and a heavy tripod that doubled as a transportation saddle for the weapon.^[2]

This version is essentially the same weapon, with the same operation, but adapted to light machine gun size. The knobs are replaced by a stock with a lower removable tip and a wooden grips and a trigger. The tripod is eliminated and replaced by a bipod attached to the barrel holder sleeve.

• Mitragliatrice Breda Mod 5C e 5G, Società Ernesto Breda Costruzioni Meccaniche, 1930.
• Nicola Pignato, Armi della fanteria italiana nella seconda guerra mondiale, Ermanno Albertelli Editore, 1979.

• Breda Mod. 30
• SIA Mod. 1918