GPMG Weight: Under 9.5 kg vs FN MAG 11.8 kg, HK MG5 Compared
Our 7.62 mm GPMG is under 9.5 kg; the FN MAG is 11.8 kg weapon weight; HK publishes no MG5 figure. Effective range 1,200 m. Weight, range and export-chain risk compared side by side for all three.
Our general purpose machine gun runs on the same gas-operated, tilting-bolt platform as its light machine gun, with a machined receiver and a spare barrel supplied. It is stated to be light enough for sling carry, hip fire and paratroop use, so one weapon covers the light-support and sustained-fire roles. Every transfer is governed by classification and end-use controls.
Side by side
| Attribute | Represented by UnstratGeneral purpose machine gun | FN HerstalFN MAG (M240, L7A2, MAG 58)1Belgium | Heckler & KochMG52Germany |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class and operating principle12 | 7.62×51 mm NATO general purpose machine gun, gas operated with a tilting bolt | 7.62×51 mm NATO general purpose machine gun, gas operated, open breech | 7.62×51 mm NATO medium machine gun, indirect gas operated, locked rotating bolt head firing from the open bolt |
| Weight12FN's figure is the weapon; the barrel assembly is a further 3.05 kg. HK's site did not publish a weight figure at the accessed page. Our figure is a ceiling and sits well below the FN weapon weight. | Under 9.5 kg | Approx. 11.8 kg weapon; barrel assembly approx. 3.05 kg | Not published |
| Effective range12 | 1,200 m | Not published on the technical data sheet | 600 m main combat range; 1,200 m accurate suppressive fire |
| Muzzle velocity12 | Above 800 m/s | Not published on the technical data sheet | 810 m/s (v5) |
| Rate of fire12 | 600 to 700 rds/min | 650 to 1,000 rds/min | Adjustable to 640, 720 or 800 rds/min |
| Barrel length12 | Not published | 630 mm overall, 487.5 mm rifled portion | 550 mm or 460 mm, selectable |
| Overall length12 | Not published | 1,230 mm | Not published at the accessed page |
| Feed12 | 235-round belt | Belt | Belt feed from the left, DM60/M13 NATO disintegrating link |
| Barrel change12 | Spare barrel supplied with each weapon | Quick-change barrel; barrel assembly weight stated at 3.05 kg | User-exchangeable barrel with a carrying handle, changeable hot without gloves |
| Sighting and rails12 | Top rail plus extra Picatinny rails at 3 and 9 o'clock, with iron sights and day and night optic mounting | MIL-STD-1913 Picatinny rail for day and night sighting; optional forward twin-rail assembly | Mechanical back-up sight (400 m); various sights can be mounted |
| Portability role stated by the maker12 | Light enough for sling carry, hip fire and paratroop use; one gun covers light-support and sustained-fire roles | Fires from mountings on vehicles, aircraft, ships and tripods; also used by troops on the ground | Ground-mount support weapon, vehicle armament or infantryman's hand weapon by configuration |
| Design and build origin12 | Machined receiver, manufactured by the small arms manufacturer we represent on four decades of precision CNC machine building | FN Herstal, Belgium; original designer and manufacturer of the MAG | Heckler & Koch, Germany |
| Transfer conditions stated in the vendor document12Belgian and German export consent are both held outside the buyer's capital. | Classification and end-use controls; independent, non-aligned origin with no political exposure to a major-power ecosystem | Not addressed in the vendor document | Not addressed in the vendor document |
Competitor values are quoted from the vendor documents listed under Sources, as published on the date shown. Configurations vary, so treat every row as a starting point for the evaluation rather than a like-for-like test result.
What the table means
The MAG is the reference, and it is also the heavy option.
FN publishes 11.8 kg for the MAG weapon plus a 3.05 kg barrel assembly, and 1,230 mm of length. It earned its status as the world reference on reliability and accuracy, and no one should pretend otherwise. But the GPMG is under 9.5 kg, and it is described as light enough to carry on a sling, fire from the hip and jump with. For a force that has to move its sustained-fire capability on foot or by parachute rather than off a vehicle pintle, that weight gap is the whole argument.
Reach is comparable, and the way each maker states it tells you something.
Our gun is quoted at a 1,200 m effective range. HK states the MG5 reaches 600 m as its main combat range and 1,200 m for accurate suppressive fire, which is the more careful way to describe a machine gun's envelope: point targets close in, area suppression far out. FN's technical sheet does not publish an effective range at all. When you compare reach, insist every bidder says whether the figure is point-target effective range or suppressive range, because the same number means two different things.
One platform across light-support and sustained-fire is a fleet-cost argument.
The GPMG shares its gas-operated, tilting-bolt platform with our light machine gun, and it is stated to move between the light-support and sustained-fire roles without a change of weapon. A force that fields one platform for both roles trains one armourer course, stocks one set of spares and machines one receiver. The MAG and the MG5 are excellent guns, but each is one point in a range a buyer then has to spares and train for separately.
Two European guns, two foreign approvals, and the approval is where programmes stall.
Neither the FN nor the HK document mentions who signs the export or what happens to belt, barrel and spare supply if relations cool. Belgian and German consent both sit in a capital that is not the buyer's, and both have been withheld before. Our gun is supplied from an independent, non-aligned source under classification and end-use controls, so a resupply decision for a sustained-fire weapon is taken with the parties on the contract rather than in Brussels or Berlin.
Questions buyers ask
What is the best lightweight alternative to the FN MAG for a dismounted or airborne force?
The FN MAG is the class reference, and FN publishes 11.8 kg for the weapon plus a 3.05 kg barrel assembly and 1,230 mm of length. That weight is manageable off a vehicle mount and heavy on foot. Our 7.62×51 mm GPMG is under 9.5 kg, reaches 1,200 m and is stated to be light enough for sling carry, hip fire and paratroop use, from an independent, non-aligned source under classification and end-use controls.
How does the GPMG compare with the Heckler & Koch MG5 on range and rate of fire?
HK states the MG5 reaches 600 m main combat range and 1,200 m for accurate suppressive fire, with a muzzle velocity of 810 m/s and a rate of fire adjustable to 640, 720 or 800 rds/min. Our gun is quoted at a 1,200 m effective range, above 800 m/s muzzle velocity and 600 to 700 rds/min. When you compare, pin down whether each 1,200 m figure is point-target effective range or suppressive range, because they are not the same claim.
Can one machine gun cover both the light-support and the sustained-fire role?
That is the design intent of the GPMG. It runs on the same gas-operated, tilting-bolt platform as our light machine gun and is stated to move between the light-support and sustained-fire roles without a change of weapon, which means one armourer course, one spares set and one receiver to support. The FN MAG and the HK MG5 are each strong single-role answers, so a force running both roles would spares and train for two separate guns.
Which 7.62 GPMG is lightest to carry on foot?
Of the three compared here, the GPMG at under 9.5 kg is the lightest published figure; the FN MAG is 11.8 kg for the weapon plus a 3.05 kg barrel assembly, and HK did not publish a weight at the page we accessed. Weight decides whether a sustained-fire weapon moves with a dismounted or airborne section, so confirm the exact figure and loading state with each bidder before you rank them.
Which general-purpose-machine-gun specifications does Unstrat not publish?
Barrel length and overall length are not in our public catalogue, while FN and HK publish most of theirs. We state under 9.5 kg, a 1,200 m effective range, muzzle velocity above 800 m/s, 600 to 700 rds/min, a 235-round belt, the rail layout and the portability roles, and where a competitor publishes a figure we do not, this page marks it 'Not published'. The remaining figures are released under a signed enquiry inside the classification controls that apply to any small-arms transfer.
Sources
- 1. FN Herstal, FN MAG technical data sheet (copy held on this site)Retrieved: 2026-07-31 · Technical data table gives 7.62×51 mm NATO, gas-operated open-breech principle, 1,230 mm length, 630 mm barrel (487.5 mm rifled), belt feed, weapon weight approx. 11.8 kg with a 3.05 kg barrel assembly and a 650 to 1,000 rds/min cyclic rate. Effective range and muzzle velocity not stated on the sheet.
- 2. Heckler & Koch, MG5 medium machine gun product page and technical specificationsRetrieved: 2026-07-31 · Technical specifications give 7.62×51 mm NATO, indirect gas operation, locked rotating bolt head firing from the open bolt, DM60/M13 belt feed, 810 m/s muzzle velocity, 600 m main combat range, 1,200 m accurate suppressive fire, 550 mm or 460 mm barrel and a rate of fire adjustable to 640, 720 or 800 rds/min. Weight and overall length not rendered at the accessed page.