I thought it was a fun topic. What is in y'alls opinion the most overrated firearm ever, and why?
My answer... and it may be controversial but I'd go with the Stg-44. While the general idea of the assault rifle (select fire, intermediate cartridge) as it was applied was quite a game changer... the gun itself was actually pretty mediocre at best. The British and US military had mostly negative things to say about captured examples that were evaluated during WW2. In particular they knocked its weight and lack of durability. They were evidently so unimpressed, they would make pretty much no serious effort to adopt an assault rifle of their own, and would not for decades... by which point it was more in response to the success of the AK. I've also heard from modern day collectors that own them, that they are indeed fairly rickety and not very reliable. The Soviets did end up liking the idea of an assault rifle but (despite common misconceptions) didn't copy the Stg-44 itself but worked out a design which borrowed elements from other successful designs and taking almost nothing directly from the actual Stg-44. So beyond it being an early, successful assault rifle there's really no reason for it to enjoy the reputation that has.
My answer... and it may be controversial but I'd go with the Stg-44. While the general idea of the assault rifle (select fire, intermediate cartridge) as it was applied was quite a game changer... the gun itself was actually pretty mediocre at best. The British and US military had mostly negative things to say about captured examples that were evaluated during WW2. In particular they knocked its weight and lack of durability. They were evidently so unimpressed, they would make pretty much no serious effort to adopt an assault rifle of their own, and would not for decades... by which point it was more in response to the success of the AK. I've also heard from modern day collectors that own them, that they are indeed fairly rickety and not very reliable. The Soviets did end up liking the idea of an assault rifle but (despite common misconceptions) didn't copy the Stg-44 itself but worked out a design which borrowed elements from other successful designs and taking almost nothing directly from the actual Stg-44. So beyond it being an early, successful assault rifle there's really no reason for it to enjoy the reputation that has.