This is an excellent example of a late 1970s fully transferable, fully automatic, non-U.S. marked, regular production, Class III/NFA registered M60 Medium Machine Gun manufactured by the New England Group of the Maremount Corp. These weapons were developed in the late 1950s or early 1960s as a replacement for the ageing 1919A4 MG and was the main general purpose/medium machine gun that was used at both the squad and platoon level in US Army and USMC infantry companies during the Vietnam War, including many SEAL units in a cut down version. These were used well into the 1980s until it was eventually replaced by the M249 Squad Automatic Weapons System (SAWS) produced by FN Herstal and eventually FNMI. These were lovingly referred to as the "pig" by those who carried them because it was heavy and ugly but man could it put out fire power when you were caught in a fire fight and the chips were down! This series of machine guns used a disintegrating metal ammunition belt/feed mechanism and was the first true Army machine gun to have a quick change barrel that also fired from an open bolt. These weapons also used various design features that traced their lineage back the MG42 and FG42 series of WWII German machine guns. To change out the barrel only required a simple flick of the barrel locking level to remove the barrel directly from the front of the receiver group and reinstall the spare barrel, as these machine guns had a fixed headspace. Originally these machine guns were issued with two barrels; one spare and one fitted on the machine gun, along with a spare barrel bag and heat resistant glove to assist in removing the hot barrel. This lot does not include a spare barrel. The top of the receiver is correctly marked "MACHINE GUN/7.62MM M60/NEW ENGLAND GROUP/MAREMONT CORP./U.S.", ( SACO Defense). The left upper side of the receiver directly below the rear sight is stamped with the serial number "07710135". US GI part numbers are stamped on the trigger housing, cocking handle assembly, top cover and various internal parts, the feed tray assembly as well as the buttstock, buffer and bolt and operating rod assembly. The left rear side of the barrel is correctly stamped with "26978-7269028 8-77-8093229" which corresponds to the Maremont Corp. contractors identification code, Maremont part number, the month and year of manufacture and the US Government part number. The barrel is fitted with a high, fixed front sight, and the action has an adjustable rear sight graduated from 300-1100 meters. The barrel is also correctly stamped with a "P" and "M" indicting that this barrel was correctly proofed fired and magnetic-particle inspected before being accepted/shipped from the factory. They were equipped with a folding bipod as in this case; however when in a fixed position they used a M122 tripod with pintle adapter and a T&E mechanism, all of which are not included with this lot. However, these items/accessories are easily acquired on the secondary marked. These are very rare on the open market as only a very few were ever released as a commercial Class III/NFA weapon. 99% of those actually purchased by the U.S. military were all destroyed/demilitarized after the adoption of the M249 SAWS or sold under as an FMS sale to a foreign government. This is only the second example of an original New England/Maremont Corp. M60 machine gun that we have ever offered for sale! This very desirable machine gun comes with an heat resistant glove (for use when changing out the barrel), a gas piston wrench an original GI operators manual and a FM 23-67 Filed Manual, a bottle of LSA lubricating oil and a scaled down, solid metal model of an M60 sitting on a tripod. It also includes the original cardboard shipping box with the cardboard inserts that is stamped with its serial number "7710135" on the outside of the box.

Excellent plus with 99% of the original parkerized finish overall with maybe a hint of wear from hand cycling the action. Some areas of the barrel/bipod have taken on a slight oxidation appearance; however, it is because it has been sitting in its box and just needs a good/light cleaning and oiling. The bolt face maybe shows some evidence of light factory test firing but nothing else! NOTE: This weapon is a National Firearms Act (NFA), fully transferable Class 3, which is registered with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, (BATFE) under the provisions of 18 U.S.C. Chapter 44 and 27 CFR part 478.