JEWELLLW@VM.CC.PURDUE.EDU (Larry W. Jewell) (01/27/91)
From: "Larry W. Jewell" <JEWELLLW@VM.CC.PURDUE.EDU>
During the U.S. phase of the Coalition media briefing 25 Jan. Maj. Gen.
Johnson mentioned Marine sniper units were deployed in the area.
What's the standard weapon issued for this type of work?
Anyone got spec.'s?
Also, how effective was sniper work in the "Nam? I've read about the
sniper duels at Stalingrad, but I've seen very little about later work.
Were one man, two man, or larger team the norms, and how were they armed.
Info on both (all three?) sides would be appreciated.
Larry W. Jewell ****************************************************
*If you attack expecting to prevail, to it in full *
*strength, because a surplus of victory never *
*caused any conqueror one pang of remorse. *
************************* XENOPHON******************
JEWELLLW@VM.CC.PURDUE.EDU *********jgd@Dixie.Com (John G. DeArmond) (02/04/91)
From: jgd@Dixie.Com (John G. DeArmond) JEWELLLW@VM.CC.PURDUE.EDU (Larry W. Jewell) writes: >From: "Larry W. Jewell" <JEWELLLW@VM.CC.PURDUE.EDU> >During the U.S. phase of the Coalition media briefing 25 Jan. Maj. Gen. >Johnson mentioned Marine sniper units were deployed in the area. >What's the standard weapon issued for this type of work? >Anyone got spec.'s? Remington makes a sniper varient of its Remington 700 bolt action rifle in .308. It is actually a "system" (in pentagonese) consisting of the rifle, a scope, a air-droppable case and accessories. It is available minus the air-drop case to the public. (If you got the bux :-) A more interesting sniper rifle is a militarized version of the McMillian bolt action match rifle in .50 cal BMC. This gun, which weighs over 40 lbs is capable of man-sized groups at over 5000 yards. I've had the pleasure to shoot this rifle. Very impressive. A friend of mine owns a textile plant that was commissioned several years ago by the DOD to make ballistic nylon carrying cases for these rifles. Judging by the size of the order, there are a LOT of these rifles about. This gun is also available from McMillian for a price (as of last year) of $4000. To put the capability of the McMillian rifle in perspective, my friend who owns the rifle demonstrated that from an informal benchrest, he could shoot 6" groups at 1000 yds. And he does not consider himself to be an expert shot. I could not find my details on the load involved, but I remember that the bullet was a 700 gr solid machined brass projectile. The reloading press he has stands on the floor and is operated with both hands during resizing. John John -- John De Armond, WD4OQC | "Purveyors of speed to the Trade" (tm) Rapid Deployment System, Inc. | Home of the Nidgets (tm) Marietta, Ga | {emory,uunet}!rsiatl!jgd |"Politically InCorrect.. And damn proud of it
andrew@jhereg.osa.com (Andrew C. Esh) (02/07/91)
From: andrew@jhereg.osa.com (Andrew C. Esh) In article <1991Feb4.065014.21374@cbnews.att.com> bcstec!shuksan!major@uunet.UU.NET (Mike Schmitt) writes: > > I'll let a Marine answer about marines - but I believe in Vietnam > they used the old M1 Garand and/or the M14. I'm not sure if the M1 is the one, but I do know it was a 30-06. 1000yd effective range. I can get on this and its Soviet-made counterpart if there is interest. Use Email. > When going through training with the .50 MG at Ft Benning - our Instructor > said that, in fact, the .50 MG would be a great sniper weapon due to its > stability and accuracy - - any takers? (Yes, sir - dime and a dogtag.) In Viet Nam, Sergeant Carlos Hathcock recorded a kill at 2500 yards with a M60 which he had mounted his standard issue sniper scope on. For more reading, see: New York Times, Sunday, February 3rd, front page article on snipers in the Gulf War. "93 Confirmed Kills", Carlos Hathcock (+others?), USMC sniper in Viet Nam. I got this one in paperback with the Title "One shot, One Kill" at Barnes & Noble here in Mpls. In the above mentioned article, this book is referred to as the favorite among the "Hogs" (USMC Snipers) in SA. andrew
doylemw@CCVAX.CCS.CSUS.EDU (MIKE DOYLE) (02/08/91)
From: doylemw@CCVAX.CCS.CSUS.EDU (MIKE DOYLE) I was a U.S.M.C. Scout-Sniper in the Nam. (3rd Marine Division Sniper out of Quang Tri...then 1st Marine Division Sniper out of Hill 55...a couple clicks out of DaNang) My SWS was a Remington 700 (.308) with a Redfield 3-by-9 scope...the 700 had the thick barrel, the stock came in either wood or a compsite material...we got match rounds from the Kansas City Armory. We were two man teams my back-up man carried an M-14...I carried the bolt-gun, a Smith & Wesson .38 with regular rounds and 2 flare rounds, and a sawed off shot-gun (Eagle?), for close in work. You were expected to get kills up to a click away. (I anticipate the 1 mile kill record will be surpassed in the flat topology of the Gulf region)
smpod@venus.lerc.nasa.gov (Stefan) (02/09/91)
From: smpod@venus.lerc.nasa.gov (Stefan) In article <1991Feb4.065014.21374@cbnews.att.com>, bcstec!shuksan!major@uunet.UU.NET (Mike Schmitt) writes... > (From Chris Morton via Steve Podleski) > I'll let a Marine answer about marines - but I believe in Vietnam > they used the old M1 Garand and/or the M14. The Army went from a variety of sniper weapons, including the M-1C and D, to scoped stock M-14s, to accurized M-14s, to the M-21, which is a "serious" sniping version of the M-14. I believe the current Army weapon is the M-24. It's a highly customized bolt gun. I think it's based on the Remington 700. The Marines also went through a series of rifles, including 03-A4 Springfields M-1s, Winchester model 70s, and finally to the current weapon the M-40A1, which is another offshoot of the Remington 700. It's much less radical than the M-24. > When going through training with the .50 MG at Ft Benning - our Instructor > said that, in fact, the .50 MG would be a great sniper weapon due to its > stability and accuracy - - any takers? (Yes, sir - dime and a dogtag.) > If you read the book "Marine Sniper", which is about the greatest US sniper, Gunnery Sgt. Carlos Hathcock, you'll find out that he made the longest range confirmed kill. He used an M-2HB with a Unertal or Redfield scope. It's great book, I highly recommend it.