ZB vz . 26 The ZB vz . 26 was a Czechoslovak light machine gun developed in the 1920s , which went on to enter service with several countries . It saw its major use during World War II , and spawned the related ZB vz . 27 , vz . 30 , and vz . 33 . The ZB vz . 26 influenced many other light machine gun designs including the Bren light machine gun , FM 24 / 29 light machine gun , and the Type 99 Light Machine Gun . The ZB - 26 is famous for its reliability , simple components , quick - change barrel and ease of manufacturing . This light machine gun in the Czechoslovak army was marked as the LK vz . 26 ( " LK " means " lehký kulomet " , light machine gun ; " vz . " stands for " vzor " , " Model " in Czech ) . ZB vz . 26 is incorrect marking because " ZB - 26 " is a factory designation ( Československá zbrojovka v Brně ) , while " vzor 26 " or " vz . 26 " is an army designation . Development . In around 1921 the military of the young Czechoslovakian state embarked on a quest for a light machine gun of their own . Early trials included foreign designs such as Berthier , M1918 Browning automatic rifle , Darne machine gun , Hotchkiss M1914 machine gun , Madsen machine gun , St . Étienne Mle 1907 , and several domestic designs . Of these , the most important was the Praha II , a lightweight , belt - fed weapon built at Česka Zbrojovka ( CZ ) Praha ( Czech Arms factory in Prague ) . Development of the ZB - 26 began in 1923 after the Czechoslovak Brno arms factory was built . Since CZ - Praha was a relatively small factory with limited industrial capabilities , it was decided to transfer the production of the new automatic weapon to the more advanced Zbrojovka Brno , or ZB in short . This transfer resulted in a long series of court trials over royalties , between the owners of the design ( CZ - Praha ) and the manufacturer ( ZB ) . Designer Václav Holek was charged by the Czechoslovak army with producing a new light machine gun . He was assisted by his brother Emmanuel , as well as two expatriate Poles : Marek and Podrabsky . Holek was a genius as a firearms designer ; he quickly began work on the prototype on the Praha II and within a year the quartet had created an automatic light machine gun that was later known as the ZB . Before long , the Holek brothers abandoned the belt feed in favor of a top - feeding box magazine and the resulting weapon , known as the Praha I - 23 , was selected . Despite the past legal troubles , manufacture of the new weapon had commenced at the ZB factory by late 1926 , and it became the standard light machine gun of the Czechoslovak Army by 1928 . Design . The ZB26 was a gas - operated , air - cooled , selectively fired , machine gun . It has a finned , quick - detachable barrel and fires from an open bolt . Its action is powered by a long - stroke gas piston , located below the barrel . The gas block is mounted at the muzzle end of the barrel and also serves as the front sight base . The action is locked by tipping the rear of the bolt ( breechblock ) upwards , and into a locking recess in the receiver . The return spring is located in the butt of the weapon , and is connected to the bolt carrier / gas piston via a long rod ; additionally , there is a short spring buffer located around the return spring at the juncture of the receiver and butt , which softensthe impact of the bolt group at the end of its rearward stroke . Thecharging handle is located at the right side of receiver and does not reciprocate when the gun is fired . The ammunition feed is from top - mounted box magazines made from sheet steel and hold only 20 rounds in a two - row configuration . The magazine housing has a sliding dust cover which is slid forward to load the gun . Spent cartridges are ejected downwards . The ejection port is normally closed with its own dust cover which opens automatically once the trigger is pressed . The trigger unit permits both single shots and automatic fire , selectable through a safety / fire mode selector lever situated at the left side of the pistol grip . The gun fires from an open bolt and the spring - loaded firing pin is operated by a projection on the bolt carrier , once the bolt is fully in battery and locked . Because of the overhead magazine , the sight line is offset to the left , and the front sight is mounted on a base which protrudes upward and to the left from the gas block . The rear sight is attached to the left side of receiver , and has a range adjustment mechanism controlled by a knurled - rotating knob . Standard furniture consists of an integral folding bipod , which is attached to the gas cylinder tube , and a wooden butt with a spring - buffered buttplate and a folding shoulder rest plate . Although the ZB - 26 was intended for the light machine gun role , it was also offered with a sustained - fire tripod , and provided with a sufficient supply of full magazines and spare barrels it could serve ( to some extent ) as a medium machine gun . The same tripod was also adaptable for the anti - aircraft role . Deployment and service . The ZB - 26 saw service with the Czechoslovak infantry , as well as being the primary or secondary armament on many later model Škoda armored vehicles . It is believed that the ZB factory turned more than 120 , 000 ZB - 26 guns between 1926 and 1939 in avariety of calibers ( the most popular being its original 7 . 92×57mm Mauser ) . It was exported to twenty - four European , South American and Asian countries , both in its original form and in the slightly improved ZB - 30 version . Large batches of ZB light machine guns went to Bolivia , Bulgaria , China , Romania , Turkey and Yugoslavia . Exports continued up until 1939 , when Nazi Germany under Adolf Hitler took over Czechoslovakia . The Wehrmacht soon adopted the ZB - 26 after the occupation of Czechoslovakia , renaming it the MG 26 ( t ) ; it was used in the same role as the MG 34 , as a light machine gun . In the opening phases of World War II , the ZB - 26 in 7 . 92 mm Mauser caliber was used in large numbers by elements of the elite German Waffen - SS , who at first did not have full access to standard Wehrmacht supply channels . In its most famous incarnation , the ZB - 26 was modified by ZB and British technicians , entering service as the famous Bren gun . Many more countries imported or produced the design under license , including China , Yugoslavia , and Lithuania . Chinese Nationalist forces used the ZB - 26 chambered for the 8×57mm Mauser round in their struggle with Communist Chinese and later Imperial Japanese forces . Likewise , the Chinese Red Army ( as with any other captured weapon ) turned the Nationalists ' ZB - 26 machine guns against them and the Japanese . According to Brno , from 1927 to 1939 , a total of 30 , 249 ZB - 26 were exported to China . During this time due to high demand , Chinese small - arms factories — state - owned as well as those controlled by various warlords — were producing the ZB - 26 . During the Korean War , Chinese Communist forces employed the ZB - 26 against UN forces , and PVA ZB gunners developed a well - deserved reputation for long - range marksmanship . During the First Indochina War with French and later South Vietnamese forces , the ZB - 26 was found in the hands of both North Vietnamese Army and Viet Minh guerrillas . Variants . More designations appear depending on the adopting army , though generally the gun retains its ' ZB 26 ' initials in one form or another . Although the ZB 26 had few variants , some weapons were closely based on it :