# Johnson light machine gun

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/johnson-light-machine-gun/981039>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [March 11, 2023, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/johnson-light-machine-gun/981039 "2023-03-11T19:54:06Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\
**Post date:** [March 11, 2023, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/johnson-light-machine-gun/981039/1 "2023-03-11T19:54:06Z")

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There are a couple of other people on the 'Dope interested in firearms, so…  
I just watched Forgotten Weapon’s episode on the Johnson light machine gun. The similarity to the German FG-42 is mentioned several times. There were US/Canadian units using the JLMG, as well as the US Marines. Could the Germans have gotten their hands on one before the FG-42 was designed?

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**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\
**Post date:** [March 11, 2023, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/johnson-light-machine-gun/981039/2 "2023-03-11T19:57:07Z")

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Links  
[Johnson](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vf40tHdKmno)

[FG-42](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f01N2QuXFHA)

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**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\
**Post date:** [March 16, 2023, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/johnson-light-machine-gun/981039/3 "2023-03-16T20:56:30Z")

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Not impossible but unlikely. From what I can see it mostly was deployed in 1942, while the FG42 entered design late 1941. So captured Johnsons - maybe not. Espionage, who’s to say.

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**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\
**Post date:** [March 17, 2023, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/johnson-light-machine-gun/981039/4 "2023-03-17T01:42:22Z")

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You are probably right, thanks.  
The similarity is surprising.