When They Put a 20-Round BAR Magazine iInto a Springfield 1903-Germans Call It Fortres Killer

When They Put a 20-Round BAR Magazine Into a Springfield 1903 | The Failed WWI Commonality Experiment

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August 1918. Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland. US Army Ordnance faces a theoretical problem: the Springfield rifle and the new Browning Automatic Rifle both fire .30-06 ammunition, so why not make them share the same 20-round magazines to simplify logistics and quadruple the Springfield's ammunition capacity?

Their solution required extensive modifications: machine out the Springfield's magazine well to accept the wider BAR magazine, redesign the feed ramp to accommodate different cartridge presentation angles, install a BAR-style magazine catch, and reinforce the weakened stock with steel plates. The result looked awkward and performed worse.

We examine the brutal testing results showing 20-30% accuracy degradation from altered balance and feeding irregularities, the stock cracks that required steel reinforcement plates adding more weight, the magazine interchangeability problems where only specific BAR magazine lots worked properly, and the fatal logistics flaw: BAR magazines cost $2.15 each versus $0.08 for stripper clips, destroying the supposed "cost savings" argument.

Featuring detailed analysis of why ammunition commonality doesn't require magazine commonality, engineering documentation showing the extensive receiver machining required, combat evaluation showing the modified rifle couldn't replace either the Springfield or BAR effectively, and the critical lesson that making two weapons share parts doesn't mean they should share parts.

From Springfield Armory workshops to Aberdeen testing ranges, this documentary reveals how American engineering excellence was wasted solving the wrong problem—creating forced compatibility between weapons designed for completely different tactical roles, proving that technical feasibility means nothing without tactical utility.