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vietnam war marines gear


corentinepunkgirl

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The first marines into Vietnam carried the M14, both semi and full auto versions. The full auto was intended to replace the BAR. They were wearing plain green (not camo) uniforms. And were using almost the exact same field gear carried during WWII & Korea. They changed to the Army style Alice gear and H harness later.

The Marine corps originally rejected the M16 as not suitable for their use, but Robert McNamara , Secretary of Defense and total idiot, forced them to accept it. The original M16 as used ( Not the A2) was prone to jamming and was likely responsible for getting people killed in combat. It was issued without a cleaning kit and we were told there was no need to clean it, which was a huge selling point for the Army - and an outright lie. Later versions were much improved and were more reliable and came with a cleaning kit. The M16 was never as reliable or as accurate as the older but much heavier M14.

 

Source: I served in the USMC between 1967 and 1971. (Yes, I really am that old) Some of my friends were involved with the Marine Corps acceptance tests for the M16. At various times I carried an M14, .45 pistol and an M97 shotgun that was probably older than me. I never carried an M16 though as at the time I was stateside and all M16s were going to Vietnam.

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