FN MAG / M240 vs PKM: how to tell them apart

Two machine guns that are easy to mix up at a glance. Here is what tells them apart.

FN MAG / M240

Machine gun, Belgium. In service since 1958

What gives it away

Heavy 7.62 mm belt-fed gun with a tall box receiver, a carrying handle on the barrel, a bipod under the gas tube and a solid stock.

Used by

Over 80 countries incl. USA, United Kingdom, Denmark, Sweden, Norway

PKM

Machine gun, Soviet Union. In service since 1969

What gives it away

Skeletal stock with a large hole, long plain barrel with a carrying handle and a belt box hung under the receiver.

Used by

Russia, Ukraine and many others

FN MAG / M240 · PKM · All guides