What is General-purpose machine gun?
[[File:M60.jpg|thumb|300px|right|An American [[M60 machine gun]]]] A '''general-purpose machine gun''' ('''GPMG''') is a [[machine gun]] which gets its [[ammunition]] from a [[belt (firearms)|belt]]. It can be used in many different roles: it can support infantry from a [[bipod]] or [[tripod]] or be put onto a [[helicopter]] or armoured [[vehicle]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.army.mod.uk/equipment/support-weapons/1463.aspx |title=British Army weapons |author=British Army |work=British Army |publisher=British Army}}</ref> It can provide fire support for vehicles or infantry from a variety of mounts. A general-purpose machine gun is generally a [[medium machine gun]]. It also fires rifle [[cartridge (firearms)|cartridge]]s like the [[7.62×51mm NATO]] or [[8x57mm IS|7.92x57mm Mauser]]. It is usually used from a [[bipod]], [[tripod]] or on a vehicle. This is because it is usually too powerful and heavy to be fired well on foot or while moving. == Examples == Some examples of general-purpose machine guns are: *[[Nazi Germany|German]] [[Maschinengewehr 34]].<ref>{{cite book| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MuGsf0psjvcC&dq=encyclopedia+of+weapons+of+world+war+ii+mg+34&pg=PA246 | title=Encyclopedia of Weapons of World War II | author=Bishop, Chris | year=2002 | isbn=9781586637620 | accessdate=July 24, 2012}}</ref> *[[Nazi Germany|German]] [[Maschinengewehr 42]].<ref>{{cite book| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MuGsf0psjvcC&dq=encyclopedia+of+weapons+of+world+war+ii+mg+42&pg=PA247 | title=Encyclopedia of Weapons of World War II | author=Bishop, Chris | year=2002 | isbn=9781586637620 | accessdate=July 24, 2012}}</ref> * [[United States|American]] [[M60]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=55szjc6g520C&dq=M60+general-purpose+machine+gun&pg=PA395 | title=Tactical Small Arms of the 21st Century: A Complete Guide to Small Arms From Around the World | author=Cutshaw, Charles W. | accessdate=July 24, 2012 }}{{Dead link|date=September 2021 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>