By Jean-Francois Legendre
The author Dolf Goldsmith presents in his authoritative study on Maxim machine guns The Devil’s Paintbrush: Sir Hiram Maxim’s Gun, the story of the early Maxim machine guns adopted for service in Italy. The earliest Maxims purchased by the Italian government were chambered for either 10.4x47R Vetterli or 6.5×52 Carcano. Trials span between 1887 and 1906 when finally the Italian Army officially adopted the Maxim machine gun under the designation Mitragliatrice Maxim M. 1906 calibro mm 6.5. A total of 220 Maxim machine guns chambered for the 6.5×52 Carcano cartridges were purchased from the Vickers Sons & Maxim company (VSM). Tripods were not purchased together with the weapon itself from VSM but rather from the Spanish company Gabolino y Cia in Eibar. Some ammunition belts might have probably been supplied from VSM but others were manufactured locally in Italy. So far, only one scarce Italian-made Maxim belt has been encountered by the author and it remains unknown if any other different Italian makers ever produced belts, or even if VSM ever provided ammunition belts on a large scale.
The Italian-made belt described here was made by the company Unione Elettrotecnica Bresciana in the city of Brescia. It is characterized by an odd capacity of 200 rounds, which reason might perhaps find its origin in the size of the ammunition box available.
As soon as 1914, the Italian Army adopted a new domestically designed machine gun, the Revelli Model of 1914, whose only major advantage was being of Italian origin. This new weapon soon caused the end of the Italian Maxim adventure.
Italian-made Maxim belt caliber 6.5x52mm Carcano. According to the capacity of 200 rounds, cartridge pockets situated at both ends of the belt are fitted with two long spacers. 
Detail of the starter tab showing the name of the Italian manufacturer Unione Elettrotecnica Bresciana in Brescia as well as the capacity of the belt being 200 rounds.
Belt loaded with 6.5x52mm Carcano cartridges. 
Detail of the FAB and crown inspection stamp, which has also been examined on Italian-made 8x50R Schwarzlose belts. 
Italian 6.5 Maxim M. 1906 machine gun. This side view illustrates the very close resemblance with the US Model 1904 Maxim, which is the reason why this Italian gun is sometimes named 6.5x52mm caliber American M. 1906 Maxim. The tripod is a Spanish-made variant of the Schwarzlose mount. (Courtesy Dolf Goldsmith The Devil’s Paintbrush) 
According to the size of the Italian 6.5mm cartridges, the total length of the long spacers is 57.8mm. Also note the enlarged circle-shaped spacer at the position of the third eyelet. This specific shape is also found on contemporary VSM belts to cope with the large difference in diameter between the cartridge neck and the cartridge body.
| This article first appeared in Small Arms Review V9N11 (August 2006) |
