vietnam war m14

Vietnam War M14 - Here's what you need to remember: Vietnam was a proving ground for the M14. Although the gun benefited from good stopping power and could penetrate dense brush and jungle terrain in Vietnam, its long overall length made it difficult to maneuver. Like the Garand, the barrel and receiver of the M14 are combined with a wooden stock. Although aesthetically pleasing, the tree did not fare well in the forests of Southeast Asia.

In general, battle rifles are built around larger caliber full power cartridges that have a longer range and higher energy capacity than those used in assault rifles, such as the 5.56x45mm cartridge from the M16 family or the AK-47 7.62x39mm cartridge. . Although battle rifles have now fallen out of favor with armies around the world, battle rifles were once standard issue. Meet America's Ultimate Battle Rifle.

Vietnam War M14

The M14 was in some ways a design perfection of the earlier M1 grenade rifle that served the United States during World War II and in Korea. While the M1 was an excellent design when it was originally introduced in the 1930s, the M1's shortcomings quickly became apparent.

My Full Vietnam Era Airsoft Kit, With My New M14 (asg)

It had a small capacity of four rounds and was reloaded using takedown clips, which was slow and time consuming. It was also a relatively long gun and heavy, about 10 pounds, or about 4.5 kilograms. The M1 cartridge is spring loaded in .30-06 caliber, powered for close combat experience in Europe or the Pacific. Although it was a significant improvement over the bolt-action rifles it replaced, the M1's firepower was hampered by being only semi-automatic.

The design of the M14 attempted to address these issues. Firing the full-sized 7.62x51mm NATO round, the tough-looking M14 could hit and was accurate out to 500 to 800 yards, depending on which optics were installed on the gun. Although slightly less powerful than the larger .30-06 cartridge, the 7.62x51mm NATO was still a powerful cartridge – very powerful.

Firing fully automatic, the M14 was essentially uncontrollable and impossible to fire accurately. It also offered no weight saving advantage, and when loaded it was practically the same as the M1, although the barrel was two inches shorter. However, loading was much faster via the 20-round box magazine.

Additionally, the M14 was supposed to be a logistical silver bullet. The Department of Defense hoped that the M14 would be able to replace the BAR rifle, the M1 grenade, and various machine guns in US service after World War II. But the M14 was far from perfect.

Vietnam M14 Sniper Scopes And Mounts

Vietnam was a proving ground for the M14. Although the gun benefited from good stopping power and could penetrate dense brush and jungle terrain in Vietnam, its long overall length made it difficult to maneuver. Like the Garand, the barrel and receiver of the M14 are combined with a wooden stock. Although aesthetically pleasing, the tree did not fare well in the forests of Southeast Asia. High humidity and frequent rains caused the wood to crack due to constant swelling and shrinkage, which negatively affected accuracy.

The battle rifle would serve as standard issue for seven years. In 1967, it was replaced by the venerable M16 rifle, America's first assault rifle. The M16 and the related M4 design serve the US Army and several other militaries around the world to this day.

. In the film, Gunner is often on camera as the film follows a unit of Marines completing training before being sent to Vietnam. This scene from the movie gives a good sense of the size of the M14 and is worth a look.

Although no longer standard issue, the M14 is still used in certain specialized roles where it is valued for its accuracy, range and stopping power. The US Marine Corps used some M14s with compatible components and improved optics as a marked rifle. A similar but improved variant of the M14, the M39 Advanced Marksman Rifle, was used in the same role and replaced the sniper rifle. The military and some special operations groups also use another derivative of the M14, the Mk 14 Advanced Combat Rifle, in a specific marksmanship role.

The M14 Was A Terrible Service Rifle: An In Depth Analysis

Fortunately or unfortunately, the M14 never saw service in major European land battles where its aim was out of place in an urban or jungle scenario. Still, its superior range and stopping power compared to the M16 assault rifle keep it relevant in some roles today—not bad for a gun that's nearly sixty years old.

Caleb Larson holds a master's degree in public policy from the Willy Brandt School of Public Policy. He lives in Berlin and writes on US and Russian foreign and defense policy, German politics and culture, he has written extensively on the M14, mostly on rifle development and surprisingly little on its use in combat. The M14's selective fire life was relatively short, but those who fired it in anger during the Vietnam War will never forget the American military's black and steel rifle.

A 1st Infantry Division M14 gunner with two 20-round magazines bolted together, near Ben Hawa, October 1965.

I recently spoke with an old friend who has had considerable experience "in the country" and with a wide range of US infantry weapons. Captain Dale Die joined the United States Marine Corps in January 1964. He served in Vietnam from 1965 and 1967 to 1970, surviving 31 major combat operations. He hailed from Southeast Asia with numerous decorations, including a Bronze Star for bravery and three Purple Heart medals for combat wounds.

M14 Ebr: The Most Beautiful Battle Rifle In The World

He spent 13 years as a Marine, rising to the rank of master sergeant. He was selected to attend officer candidate school and was commissioned as a combat officer in 1976. He later changed his commission and became a captain when he was sent to Beirut with a multinational peacekeeping force in 1982-83.

When I asked him about the M14, Captain Dye commented, “The M14 was a rifle and many Marines carried it enthusiastically at the beginning of the Vietnam War. I vividly remember those guys trying to hide their beloved M14 when word got around that we would be releasing the M16.

Despite the best efforts of some commands, most Marines continued to carry the M14 for some time after the switch was ordered. There was a certain trust factor to this gun. Or maybe it's some kind of Marine Corps "mojo" but it sure looks like it's carrying a weapon that looks, feels, and shoots like a "real" gun.

A group of 89th MPs stand guard at Tan Son Nhat Hospital during the Tate Offensive on February 9, 1968.

Vietnam Era M14 Sniper Clone

There is absolutely no difference in weight between the US Army M14 and M16. The M14 (loaded) weighs 10.7 pounds. Its 7.62 NATO ammo weighs more than the 5.56mm M16. The M16 (loaded) weighs a very Grant-friendly 7.5 pounds. In many ways, Vietnam-era soldiers' initial affinity for the later M16 is similar to World War II military units' love of the M1 carbine (5.8 pounds, loaded) over the standard M1 grenade rifle (11.5 pounds, loaded).

A Marine supports his M14 with a magazine base during the Battle of Hue in February 1968.

Many worlds collided when the US Army switched from the M14 rifle to the M16 rifle. At the time of their creation, the concept of weapons was different. Both were built on the same foundations, but were very different from each other - as was their ammunition. Military generations have changed, and this fact is dramatically illustrated by the differences between the M14 and the M16. Walnut and steel versus aluminum and plastic; .30 vs. .22 caliber.

Taste and confidence in guns is clearly a generational issue. My father was an infantry sergeant in WWII. When he looked at the M16, he thought it wasn't a "proper" rifle. My grandfather, an infantryman in World War I, would probably have viewed the M1 Garand with suspicion, finding it inappropriate and brutal compared to his M1903 Springfield rifle. My brothers and I considered rifles like the M16 perfectly normal and really appreciated the semi-automatic variants of the AR-15 designed for the civilian market.

Vietnam Era Gear

The war seems to have had a "twilight effect" on the perception of small arms. In that light, many of the combat lessons learned in Vietnam about the M14's capabilities were ignored. Since the turn of the millennium, our military has been "rediscovering" the powerful capabilities of the M14, much to the dismay of America's enemies.

The M14 still serves in a special role today. This photo was taken in June 2012 during Operation Southern Offensive II in southern Afghanistan. Image: Photo credit: Sgt. Brendan Mackay

In addition to select M4 carbines and M16 rifles serving on the battlefield, the US Army also serves the M14. Elements of the US Special Operations Command use the Mk14 Advanced Battle Rifle (EBR) as their designated marksman rifle, and the US Army in Afghanistan deploys two M14 EBR-RI rifles per infantry platoon.

While the M14 still serves as the US Army's rifle, civilian shooters can use it thanks to Geneseo, IL-based Springfield Armory, which offers a semi-automatic, civilian-legal version of the rifle.

Vietnam War Us M1956 M14 Universal Long Pack Pouch High Quality Replica

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