The Steyr Machinengewehr 74 Belt-Fed Machinegun: The Modern MG42

The MG42 was one of the most terrifying weapons of World War II, and the modern Steyr Machinengewehr 74 represents the ultimate iteration of that machinegun.

February 13, 2024 By Leroy Thompson

I’m a big fan of Steyr firearms. Of the “Bull Pup” designs of assault rifle, the AUG is my favorite. I still shoot an SSG69 I’ve had for years and still consider it one of the classic sniping rifles of all time. For longer-range use, I have a Steyr SSG 04 in .300 Win Mag. I also own a .338 Lapua SSG 08. I have found all of the SSGs extremely accurate. Finally, I own two Steyr Scout rifles and often carry one in my truck for “preparedness.” I wasn’t really that surprised, then, when I fired the Steyr M74 GPMG that I was impressed with it. It wasn’t that I hadn’t fired the MG42, upon which the MG74 is based, before as well as other GPMGs based on the MG42, but the Steyr version of this classic machine gun shows typical Steyr quality and attention to detail.

steyr-74-machine-gun-02 — An Austrian soldier in firing position with his MG42 on a center mounted bipod. (Bundesheer)

Actually, the MG74 I fired was brand new, unfired. As Steyr had manufactured the MG42 for the Wehrmacht during WWII, tooling, machinery, and blueprints for the weapon were already available. When the post-war Austrian Army was formed in 1955, it was equipped primarily with US weapons. However, in 1959, MG42s were issued, though modified to chamber the 7.62x51mm NATO Cartridge. These were designated MG42/59. Development continued, with cyclic rate reduced to 850 RPM by using a heavier bolt. Another change was the use of a select fire trigger group, rather than the full auto action of the MG42. To be clear, there is not a selector switch system. But, similar to the AUG, a lighter pull gives semi-auto and a harder pull gives full auto. The cross-bolt safety is retained. The wooden butt stock of the MG42 was replaced with polymer, usually in the green color familiar on the AUG. The new “furniture” helped lower the weight of the MG74. Finally, the sights were upgraded, including addition of an anti-aircraft sight. The improved MG42 was adopted as the MG74.

steyr-74-machine-gun-03 — German soldiers firing the MG3 machine gun using the Feldlafette tripod with Zielfernohr 4x24 optical sight. (Wikipedia Commons).

Germany had led the way on 7.62x51mm versions of the MG42. The designation MG2 had been used on WWII MG42s that had been converted to 7.62x51mm. Sights had to be changed to be correct for the new chambering. It was also necessary to widen the ejection port: 7.62x51mm cartridges had a rim diameter of .473 in. versus .470 for the 7.92x57mm cartridge. One final upgrade from the MG42, which reflected Germany’s alliance with NATO, was that both German non-disintegrating belts and USM13 disintegrating belts could be used. In 1959, Germany introduced the MG3, which had been chambered in 7.62x51mm, and these GPMGs remain in service with the Wehrmacht, though the intent is to replace them with the HK M5. As with the original MG42, cyclic rate can be altered by using a lighter or heavier bolt along with a different recoil spring. For example, an extra-heavy bolt was used in the MG74. In the MG3, bolts of 33.51 oz. versus 23.81 oz. were used, to get the cyclic rate to 850 RPM. During development of the MG74, Steyr cooperating with Beretta had the advantage of lessons learned when the G3 was produced in 7.62x51mm NATO. As had its predecessors, the MG-74 retained the roller locking system.

steyr-74-machine-gun-04 — Close up of the MG74’s pistol grip showing the cross-bolt safety and the flare at the bottom of the grip to keep the hand from slipping in full auto fire (top left). The MG74 is easily identified from other MG42-type machine guns by the distinctive green furniture. The MG74 retained the butt shape of the MG42, which allows good placement of the support hand when shooting. The MG74’s rear sight (top right); though marked to 1,200 meters, 600–800 is really a more realistic maximum effective range. View of the right side of the MG74 offering a good view of the large cocking handle and the port through which empty links exit the action (bottom right).

I had been shooting an MG42 recently so before shooting the MG74 I spent some time examining the differences. One feature that immediately attracted my attention was the anti-aircraft sight, which folds down into its own protective compartment when not in use. Designed to allow for leading an aerial target, this is simple and appears to be easy to use. Admittedly, my first thought was, “In the days of supersonic jets, how useful is this feature?” But, then, I considered the terrain of Austria, much of which is mountainous. In Afghanistan, both the Russians and the Americans found that when flying through valleys, helicopters could be vulnerable to fire from emplaced machine guns on the heights or anti-aircraft missiles. Thus, I concluded that the anti-aircraft sight retained some utility on the MG74. Another feature of the MG74 that differs from the MG42 is attachment points for the bipod at both the front and middle of the weapon. However, for this article, the example I fired was mounted on the Lafette 74 tripod.

steyr-74-machine-gun-05 — MG74 front sight (top left); provision was made to install night sights on the MG74. Close-up of the MG74’s flash hider (top right), which is similar to the MG42’s. Close-up of the MG74’s belt feed port (bottom left). MG74’s anti-aircraft sight (bottom right).

This design dates from WWII and was intended to allow the MG42 to operate in the heavy machine gun role. Those tripods produced for the MG3/MG74 are still designed to allow the gunner to be in a trench, foxhole, etc. below the MG74 and while still laying down accurate fire through use of a Hensoldt Wetzlar Zeiss ZF 4 x 24 MG1 Telescopic Sight for sighting. The combination of its extension legs, remote trigger lever, and optical periscope sight allow the MG74 on the Lafette 74 mount to be zeroed for accurate fire relatively quickly, as once the MG74 is securely mounted adjustments are made to the entire weapon until it is on target. Note also that the MG74 has vehicle mounts available.

When firing from a tripod in the GPMG support role, the MG74’s quick-change barrel may be easily accessed by an assistant gunner through a panel on the right side of the receiver. However, as there is no quick-change handle, use of an asbestos glove to remove the hot barrel is advisable. The same process would be carried out to change barrels when firing from the bipod, but access might be slightly slower. The Lefette 74 tripod is cleverly designed to be easily transportable and incorporates a protective box to transport the periscope sight. Assembly is relatively quick, and operation of the dials for zeroing the bipod/GPMG is intuitive. The fastest method of getting the sights on target once the bipod is emplaced is to have the gunner fire single shots or short bursts at the target while the assistant gunner adjusts the dials to bring the MG74 on target. Adjustment of the legs allows a lower mounting for prone shooting or a higher mounting for seated shooting. The remote trigger lever allows adopting a low position, either prone or seated, to use cover while accessing the periscope sight and controlling the firing lever with the right hand. I found it was more comfortable to access the periscope and operate the trigger from the seated position.

steyr-74-machine-gun-06 — MG74 mounted on the Lafette tripod with legs extended and ready for operation. This tripod features a periscope and remote firing system.

I’ve noticed in photos of Austrian troops that they often mount the bipod in the middle of the weapon rather than the front. I meant to try firing a belt with the MG74 in that configuration, but I’ll admit I become enamored of the Lafitte 74 tripod and kept shooting with it. My friend Brian got the MG74/Lafutte 74 combo zeroed at 200 yards, and we took turns firing bursts into silhouette targets, finding that as the tripod was very stable we could fire accurate bursts of five to 10 rounds easily. The lower cyclic rate of the MG74 compared to the MG42 allowed accurate shot placement on full auto as well. Due to my aging knees, I found that I had to assume a seated position with my feet under the tripod to shoot most comfortably. From this position, I could look through the periscope comfortably and could also easily reach the remote trigger lever. It took a few bursts to gauge how much pressure and for how long to apply it with the remote trigger lever. Once I was used to the lever, control of bursts was easy, especially since there was no need to grasp the pistol grip, push the stock tight against my shoulder, or grasp the butt with my support hand. Though, I will note, that the MG74 retains the butt shape that allows a good grasping point for the support hand.

steyr-74-machine-gun-07 — Thompson firing a long burst form the MG74; note the empty links exiting the weapon. The MG74 test-fired for this article has green furniture and a bipod.

In previous test articles I’ve evaluated the original MG42 and the Yugoslav copy, the M53, but I rate the MG74 as the best descendant of the MG42. The lower cyclic rate is a major factor in its favor as is the chambering for the 7.62x51mm NATO cartridge. The ability to fire single shots with AUG-type trigger is useful, though, with practice single or double shots can be fired just be trigger control. Although an improved design, the MG74 retains most of the features I like about the original MG42 including the good-sized cocking handle and well-designed butt. As I mentioned at the beginning of this article, I like Steyr weapons, and the MG74 is no exception. I’ve worked in Vienna for short periods a couple of time and always enjoyed the sense of history I found there. For example, there were still buildings with cannon balls stuck in their walls from the Ottoman siege of Vienna in 1529! There’s history in that the MG74 offers technical features of the MG42, usually considered the first GPMG, but with the modern technology of Steyr.