It was adopted in 1957 and issued to units commencing in 1959. It's served with every single branch of your U.S. military and even now serves While using the armed forces of other nations.
The barrel latch system (a swinging lever) could capture over the gunner's devices and unintentionally unlatch, resulting in the barrel to fall out of the gun. On new M60s, the lever was changed which has a force button mechanism that was less likely to become unintentionally released, but few of the more mature M60s have been modified on account of cost, with a lot of the extant weapons continue to bearing them.
There were two versions of hulls used for the M60-series. The M60 hull experienced a straight slope and beak when compared with the sooner M48's rounded just one. The hull base experienced a powerful boat-like look having a pronounced recess concerning the upper tracks and exterior suspension arms and just one shock absorber on the very first roadwheel pair. The armor was improved, at 6 inches (one hundred fifty five mm) about the entrance glacis and mantle of stable rolled homogeneous armor, while it absolutely was four.
The M60E2 was electrically fired, but experienced a handbook trigger being a backup, as well as a steel loop within the back for charging. The gasoline tube down below the barrel was extended for the full length of the weapon to vent the gasoline outside the car. This Model realized a mean time among failures of 1,669 for the duration of tests while in the 1970s.
It was determined that a considerably less deep crucial would considerably prolong the service life of the barrel.[seventy three]
The M60-2000 was check-promoted all through 2000 in addition to a variety of nations in NATO and the Middle East were being briefed over the automobile. Pursuing purchaser responses, specific engineering function was carried out As well as in December GDLS made a decision to create a functional prototype. The company rolled out the evidence of notion prototype of your 120S tank at their Detroit, Michigan, facility in August 2001. It absolutely was proven on the IDEF Exhibition held in Turkey in October 2001.[107]
A British Royal Air Pressure officer handles an M60 during a demonstration for Merged Joint Process Force Exercising (CJTFEX) in 2004. The design drew on a lot of typical concepts in firearms manufacture of the interval, including stamped sheet metallic development, belt feed (a modified system for how to transfer a machine gun belt feed within the MG 42 with an individual pawl), quick how to transfer a machine gun barrel alternative, a pistol grip and stock, as well as a semi bullpup layout just like the FG forty two (Significantly from the motion occupies the weapon's inventory). The M60's operating method of the working rod turning a rotating bolt was influenced via the FG forty two, which was based upon the Substantially previously Lewis Gun.
M60 sequence tanks were phased countries where machine guns are legal away from US company by 1997 and Opposing Power (OPFOR) teaching use in 2005. Along with the large range of M60 MBTs still in overseas assistance and a significant US Army surplus stock, numerous updates for the tank have been offered starting in 1985.
The vehicle was formulated as A non-public undertaking with the export marketplace and was hardly ever evaluated for US army provider. Unofficially known as the M60AX, the improve offered to raise the security, firepower and mobility for the M60A1 and A3 tanks.[104]
This gun is all matching apart from the inventory arms, which ended up replaced at some time. The bore is bright and shiny and capabilities well. This is certainly an earlier gun Together with the preset...
A M60A1E2 tank prototype which has a Type B turret. As being the M60A1 hull grew to become obtainable in 1966, it had been decided to upgrade these prototype motor vehicles to your M60A1 hull common. Automobiles utilizing the M60A1 hull and chassis obtained the M60A1E2 designation, and ended up used to build the Type B compact turret as well as XM81E13 gun variant.
As a result of swiftly acquiring advancements in anti-armor capabilities and good-condition electronics with the nineteen seventies, combined with the how many transferable machine guns standard dissatisfaction from the M60A2, an improve in the M60A1 was desired. In 1976 operate began on the M60A3 variant which featured several technological enhancements.
The Visible similarity of such types along with their overlapping duration of company has triggered some sources buy machine guns to informally title the first variant on the M60 as being a Patton tank.
Early Mk 43s have selected discrepancies around M60E4 within the similar period, the obvious being the duck-Invoice flash hider and unique handguard. This change is now not seen on the current Mk 43s still produced by U.S. Ordnance.