C&R · IV · 247
U.S. Maxim Model 1904
Section IV: still an NFA firearm, also a curio or relic
Official wording
ATF P 5300.11 · APRIL 2025 EDITION · SECTION IV · VERBATIM · PDF P. 89 ↗
U.S. Maxim machinegun, Model 1904, cal. .30.
What this entry requires
- INFOATF states no date; production was about 1904–1908.
- INFOStill an NFA firearm; only registered examples transfer, with ATF approval (26 U.S.C. 5812, 5861).
Editorial facts · Our research
- Country
United StatesBasis: the ATF wording - Manufacturer
- Vickers, Sons & Maxim; Colt’s Patent Firearms Mfg. Co.Basis: outside reference ¹
- Type
- MachinegunBasis: the ATF wording
- Action
- Select-fire / autoBasis: the ATF wording
- Caliber
- .30Basis: the ATF wording
- Made
- 1904–1908production; ATF states no dateBasis: estimate ²
- Service
- Military
Source
- Official wording
- ATF P 5300.11, April 2025 edition · Section IV · PDF p. 89 ↗ · ATF original ↗
- Entries
- 1 line
- Verbatim check
- Checked against the PDF text before every release
- Editorial facts
- Confidence: Medium · Last revised 18 October 2026 (Evidence pass) · How we rate confidence
- References
- 1. Wikipedia, “Maxim gun” ↗, maker: U.S. Model 1904: the first 50 guns made by Vickers, Sons & Maxim in the U.K. (90 in all); Colt was selected to produce it domestically; 287 made
- 2. Wikipedia, “Maxim gun” ↗, years (estimate: partly supports it): adopted in 1904 as the Maxim Machine Gun, Caliber .30, Model of 1904; 'By the time Colt began production in 1908 (which was also the last year orders were placed)'; production end not stated
- Fact tags
- ATF the ATF wording states it.
- REF ¹ an outside reference supports it; the number points to the list of references.
- ESTIMATE an approximate or indirect reading, for example the production range of the base model.
- NO CITATION we haven’t attached a reference for this fact; it’s our editorial reading, not ATF’s.
- Source checked
- 20 October 2026: ATF’s page still lists the April 2025 edition
- Corrections
- 1 change · see below
Correction history
- Evidence passMaker: Colt’s Patent Firearms Mfg. Co. → Vickers, Sons & Maxim; Colt’s Patent Firearms Mfg. Co.. The Maxim gun article says 90 of the 287 M1904s were made by Vickers, Sons & Maxim
Historical context
Image: Wikimedia Commons, “111-SC-24660 - NARA - 55208931.jpg” by Unknown authorUnknown author or not provided, Public domain. Retrieved October 2026.
Summary: Wikipedia, “Maxim gun”. Text CC BY-SA 4.0.
FROM WIKIPEDIA
The Maxim gun is a recoil-operated machine gun invented in 1884 by Hiram Maxim. It was the first fully automatic machine gun.