A little Vietnam motivation..

Great rifle well past it's prime
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As a infantry weapon I agree...................as a target rifle I was going to disagree until I got to thinking about it. At Perry and other large matches they are getting as rear as hen's teeth. Like an infantry weapon its been replaced by the ARs.

Like vintage military rifles, they had to create its own match so us old dudes can shoot them.
 
I just can't wrap my head behind the concept of "one rifle, one cartridge" for everybody.

Pops qualified on an M-14, but used a variety of weapons in SEA. The only time I ever saw an M-14 was the Color Guard at basic and some dudes in North Face jackets in the sandbox.
 
I just can't wrap my head behind the concept of "one rifle, one cartridge" for everybody.
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They've done a pretty decent job of one cartridge with the M16/M4, M249 SAW, and the MK12's/SAM-R's. Individually they use their own variety of ammunition in various forms of feeding, but they are all interchangable. For the most part, if you have a task that requires something different, it's not too hard to get. Originally my platoon was supposed to be issued A4's, but with all the gear we carried and the job we had to do, we were issued M4's and M9's, with the Squad/Team leaders getting the M203 attachment.
 
That night, a 600 pound kitty cat (tiger) came prowling into the perimeter, and I was suddenly very nostalgic about having my M-14 back!
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This guy was killed with one shot from a M16a1 w/M195 ball.

Recondo%20Tiger.JPG


I just can't wrap my head behind the concept of "one rifle, one cartridge" for everybody.
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Apparently you never had to deal with the headaches of Company Trains.
 
See, I wasn't in Vietnam. I'm not old enough. I was born in '83. So, I missed Iraq the first time. But, I was quick to hop on the bandwagon the second time around. We all trained with the M16 A1 in BCT/AIT. I liked it quite a bit. It was a light, accurate weapon that had a solid stock on it that was nearly perfect for a smack to the face. I don't think mine ever had an FTE or FTF after I learned how to use it (I had never loaded/fired a weapon before the Army.) When I was assigned to my platoo, 2nd armored cav, I was issued an M4 and honestly, it took me forever to get used to the reduced size.
 
Wow an AK47 superdupergun

This post reminded me of one started about one year ago. In that post it was mentioned that US soldiers procured and preferred carrying an AK 47 instead of an M16. After a few back and forths the poster admitted that this fact may not indeed be correct.

Poor old M16 is derided and defamed mostly by those without the Republic of Vietnam infantry experience. M16 was not perfect but it was fine for the situation and location. Enjoyed shooting the M14 in training. Loved the AK 47 when aimed at me in RVN because it is sloppy and inaccurate.
 
it was mentioned that US soldiers procured and preferred carrying an AK 47 instead of an M16.
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We had a guy pick one up (AK that is), not to carry but to play with, cost him his and the guy next to him's life from friendly fire.

Nothing in the worlds sounds like an AK but an AK, if you're in the jungle and open up with one, chances are somebody is going to think you're a bad guy.

That's what happened. That's why I don't buy the "ditched the M16 for an AK BS.
 
That's pretty nifty about the tiger. I read a similar account to that somewhere, but I just can't remember where.

You're correct, Captain Stuart. Never had to fool with that.

However, I've always wondered how the U.S. Army could supply five different ammunition types during WWII but now it would be a problem?
 
I've always wondered how the U.S. Army could supply five different ammunition types during WWII but now it would be a problem?
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Ever wonder why after WWII they limited the "different" rounds and went to the NATO ideal of everyone using the same ammo?

It was a problem then, but even still WWII was a different type of warfare, you had "lines" and when a supply route was cleared, it stayed clear (for the most part). The company trains followed behind the Manover Units and supply was close at hand.

Different in Vietnam where you were dropped into Indian Country. You were supplied once a week or so. Easier when air crews didn't have to go all over the place looking for different types of ammo depending on who had what in the infantry unit you're supporting.

Supply, regardless is the biggest pain a commander has to deal with in the field. Easier when soldiers used cap and ball rifles. They had their own bullet molds and all you had to do was supply the lead.
 
Understood, sir, understood.

It's funny, while reading your post I could just hear some of my instructors from WLC preaching about how "professionals worry about logisitics."
 
I thought Vietnam was going to be my war as well, though I never served. When I graduated high school in '74 I was 1H as there wasn't a draft, though the fed reserved the right to start it back up if they so desired. Very soon, as things heated back up with Nixon pulling our guys out, the south very PO'd, and the north taking every advantage, we were ordered by Selective Service to go back for reclassification. As I left there with my new 1A, I went home and told my girlfriend I was Vietnam bound. We worried a bit, but I was prepared and just got on with my life. Saigon fell less than a year later, I got married in October of 75 and things got quieter and quieter in Vietnam. I think I tossed my draft card out in 1985 or so, but I've always had close relationships with Veterans of Vietnam. A good friend of mine, a squad leader, always said I'd have "fit right in.":D
 
It's funny, while reading your post I could just hear some of my instructors from WLC preaching about how "professionals worry about logisitics."
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I never understood why logistics had to be and is such a complex task. The main thing that I concluded was everyone with some sort of rank had to have some sort of say in it. I can't tell you how much of a PITA it was at times just to have a triwall (I forget the dimensions, something around a 3ft cubed box) sent out or brought in. I will say this though, I had the privledge of doing an all mobile op and realized what a nightmare that could be for the logistics guys on a company+ op. It's pretty awesome watching your beans, bullets, and bandaids get tossed out of the back of a C130..

With that said, on our last deployment my 3 man team went out with enough ammo of different variety to last us a good while. Occasionally, time is priority so thats not always an easy task, but we were fortunate to have enough time to plan accordingly.

-Max
 
Logistics aside, I think it has to do more with convenience. If everyone uses 5.56, then the rounds come from one or two sources and are much easier to account for. Whether it's the best round for the job? Couldn't say, but it was easier to get there! ...Heh.
 
Oh, guys; waves of nostalgia!!! I carried the M-14 thru basic (the reason I shot Expert) and AIT. We got the M-16 the last couple of months in OCS at Benning. It sure was lighter.;);) No personality, tho, just a lump of plastic. I would have perferred my old .30 carbine I had to leave at home. It never quit when it got a little too much sand in it!!
 
I was in a transportation outfit , and most of us had M-14s ! Of course hauling one around in a truck with a hundred pounds of ammo , and carrying one in your hands in the bush are two very different things !
 
i carried m-1 carbines,m-14,s and matti matel,s and they all did the job at the time. the carbine while driving a jeep,a m-16 when humping in the bush and the m-14 on a fire base. but i alway had a soft spot for the m-14. and shoot this one quite a bit. eastbank.
 
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Ahhh my sweetheart M14...probably owe my life to that baby in the Nam (68-69).

Funny though....a couple of years ago I was at a local range and had emptied all of my ar15 magazines and sat down to refill them.......all of a sudden I had this startling thought....how much more relaxing it was to fill those AR15 mags than fillling those M14 mags when you were under fire....different sense of urgency when your life is on the line.
 
Palmetto

No one I know during my US Army infantry service has ever described shooting an M14 in auto mode as a hoot. It is difficult to control due to light weight and ergonomics. The barrel is pointing too high after the 1st or 2nd round for any degree of effectiveness. During my era we qualified (more like disqualified) shooting M14 auto in AIT.

M60, M2, M16 auto were all a hoot to shoot, but not the M14 auto. On the other hand, M14 in semi auto is a can't miss firearm.
 
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