(Note: The M1903A4 depicted herein was unfired when purchased and came complete with original sling. The 82nd Airborne Division sniper is portrayed by Col. Tom Brown, USA (Ret), who spent several tours in the 82nd and in the 173rd Airborne Brigade in Vietnam. Col. Brown’s uniform and equipment are absolutely authentic for the fighting just after Normandy landings in 1944.)

The onset of World War II found the United States short of many weapons and military equipment, not the least of which was an infantry sniper rifle. Sniper rifles during World War I were converted from both M1903 and M1917 rifles, but between the wars sniping was neglected. Even after World War II began, sniping continued to be neglected and it wasn’t until January 1943 that the Army issued a directive to Remington Arms to set aside 20,000 M1903A3 receivers for conversion to sniper rifles.

There doesn’t seem to have been any formal accuracy requirements for the M1903A4; at least we couldn’t find any standards in any of the four reference books we consulted in preparing this article. According to noted martial arms historian Bruce Canfield, there was no special care taken in manufacturing the M1903A4 rifles and their accuracy was no better than standard service rifles. The trigger on our test rifle, for example, was the same as our standard Remington M1903A3 – hardly sniper grade with two stage 5.5 pound break and significant overtravel. There were other shortcomings, as well. Since no sights were fitted and the commercial Weaver telescopic sights were easily damaged, a damaged scope left the sniper with a very expensive club. Additionally, the scope was not moisture resistant, which was a real problem in the South Pacific campaigns. The Redfield “Junior” mount was nothing more than a commercial unit and the retaining screws reportedly loosened and fell out regularly, but replacements were difficult to obtain through the supply system. Moreover, the gross elevation of the Redfield mount was adjusted by inserting or removing shims. Initial windage was set by adjusting the large screws visible at the rear of the scope mount.

Whatever shortcomings it might have had, the M1903A4 was the only version of the M1903 to have been manufactured as a sniper rifle at the factory. All others were field conversions. The M1903A4 was intended as a stopgap until the M1 Garand could be redesigned as a sniper rifle, but in the end only a very few M1C sniper rifles saw action in World War II, while the M1903A4 was used in every theater of operation throughout the war.

Because there was no way of predicting whether or not a M1903A3 being manufactured as an M1903A4 would deliver acceptable accuracy, all M1903A4s were marked, “US Remington Model 03A3,” but the markings were different from standard M1903A3s in that they were offset to the left so they would not be covered by the Redfield scope mount. The idea was that if the rifle wasn’t sufficiently accurate, open sights would be installed and the rifle issued as a standard M1903A3. Thus, there are no M1903A4s marked as such as far as we have been able to determine. We should also note that every M1903A4 was made by Remington. Smith Corona, the other M1903A3 manufacturer, did not make any M1903A4s.

Like all M1903A3s, the M1903A4 may be found with any number of variations. Most had four groove barrels, but some two groove barrels were fitted as is the case with our test rifle. According to Major General Julian Hatcher, probably the foremost authority on early to mid 20th century military small arms, the two groove barrel had little, if any, negative effect on accuracy. In the case of our test rifle, we have to agree, since it has a two groove barrel and delivered very good accuracy.

M1903A4 stocks were generally the Type C full pistol grip, but many, like our test example, were fitted with the semi-pistol grip “scant grip.” About the only constants were the lack of open sights, the unusual markings, the bolt handle that was forged with a concave shape to clear the telescopic sight and the stock notched to accommodate the non-standard bolt handle.

There were two telescopic sights used, both variants of the 2.5x Weaver 330. The first scopes were marked commercially and had either tapered post or crosshair reticles. Later scopes were marked M73B1, the military designation for the Weaver 330. Our test rifle was fitted with the tapered post version of the commercial 330, although our rifle’s serial number indicates that it was in the last production batch of 6,300 M1903A4s. The final M1903A4s were manufactured in June 1944 when the M1C started being delivered in sufficient numbers to begin replacing the M1903A4.

There seems to be disagreement among the M1903 authorities on total numbers of M1903A4s manufactured. According to Bruce Canfield and Clark Campbell, the number was 28,365. On the other hand, Lt. Col. William Brophy states that 29,964 were produced. We probably will never know with certainty just how many were manufactured, except that the M1903A4 represents a tiny fraction of the 1 million plus M1903A3 type rifles produced by Remington during World War II. When Smith Corona production is added to the mix, the total M1903A3 production rises to nearly 1.5 million. So it is clear that the M1903A4 is one of the rarest production M1903s ever made representing less than 2% of total production, which has driven prices into the $3,000+ range for a good example.

The M1903A4 soldiered on after World War II, despite M1C and M1D sniper rifles that supposedly replaced it. M1903A4s were drawn from storage for the Korean War and surprisingly also saw service in Vietnam during the early stages of that conflict before other, more modern sniper rifles could be procured, making the M1903A4 the last version of the M1903 to remain in military service. Thus, the M1903A4 saw military service for over 20 years, indicating that it must have had some positive attributes. Just how good was the M1903A4 for its intended purpose?

According to Lt. Col. Brophy, the M1903A4 was “…at best a poor excuse for a sniper rifle.” The M1903A4 had no special attention given to its accuracy or its suitability for use as a sniper rifle. The Weaver scope had the benefit of being cheap and available and little else other than being simple to install. But in the context of the time, the M1903A4 wasn’t really significantly inferior to sniper rifles from other nations. The Russian PU with its 3.5x scope was really no better, nor was the German 98K. The British Number 4, Mark 1(T) wasn’t either. All were essentially bolt action service rifles that were pressed into sniper service, except for a few 98Ks that were specially made up as sniper rifles. Consequently, the M1903A4 was not better or worse than other sniper rifles of the time. When compared to sniper rifles from the Vietnam era, the M1903A4 comes off as inferior but, for its time, it did its job and from what research we have been able to discover, did it relatively well.

Our test M1903A4 was unfired when we discovered it in a local gun store and purchased it at a very reasonable price. Since it was new, we were advised by some that the rifle should remain in unfired condition to preserve its collector value. Nevertheless, we do not own firearms that we do not shoot and so shortly after obtaining our M1903A4, we boresighted it and headed to the range to zero it. We zeroed the rifle using Black Hills 168-grain match grade ammunition, but for this evaluation we also tested the 03A4 with Greek 1985 production military M2 Ball, duplicating the World War II 150-grain military load. We also tested Serbian Privi Partizan 180-grain ammunition, imported by Wolf. The Black Hills match delivered 1.25 minute of angle (MOA) at 100 yards (1.25 inches at 100 yards). MOA (1 inch at 100 yards) accuracy is considered acceptable for modern sniper rifles, so the 03A4 – at least our 03A4 – gives up little to modern precision rifles in terms of accuracy. Surprisingly, the Greek 150-grain ball ammunition was as accurate as the Black Hills 168-grain match; probably because the M1903A3 was designed around the M2 ball round. The Serbian Privi Partisan was about 2 MOA. The bottom line is that our M1903A4 delivered acceptable accuracy which would probably improve once the barrel was broken in by having a couple of hundred rounds fired through it.

The M1903A4 is an excellent representation of sniper rifle technology of the 1940s. As we have mentioned, sniper rifles of both our allies and enemies were not superior to the 03A4 in any meaningful way and the rifle delivers good accuracy using quality modern match or service grade ammunition. World War II snipers didn’t have access to match grade ammo like their modern day counterparts, so the Greek ball ammunition test groups are probably more in keeping with 60+ year old reality. Probably the most significant shortfall of the M1903A4 was its scope, but it must be remembered that during World War II, everything was in short supply and the Army had to get its scopes from a company that could deliver the necessary quantities within a short time. The Weaver 330 was good enough for the task at hand. All in all, the M1903A4 was satisfactory for its intended purpose and, like most soldiers and Marines of the period, served its country well.

Everyone who shot our “old soldier” was overjoyed at being able to shoot a rare piece of American military history. We probably will not shoot our M1903A4 frequently, as it is too valuable for frequent trips to the range, but rest assured that it will continue to do what it was designed to do – shoot with reasonable accuracy from time to time and deliver some enjoyment in the process.

by Charlie Cutshaw

The 97-year-old .45 Automatic Colt Pistol (ACP) cartridge refuses to die, despite having been pronounced moribund on a number of occasions, most recently when the US Military adopted the caliber 9x19mm M9 pistol. After briefly experimenting with the M9 and other 9x19mm pistols, most American special operations organizations returned to the .45 ACP. Marine Corps special operations capable expeditionary units continue to use modified M1911A1 pistols, designating them MEU-SOC (Marine Corps Expeditionary Unit – Special Operations Capable) Pistols. Then there is Heckler & Koch’s .45 ACP Mk 23 SOCOM handgun, designed specifically for special operations use. Most recently, the 9x19mm has proven to be less than satisfactory in combat in Afghanistan, where there has reportedly been a clamor for resurrecting M1911A1s or at least a .45 ACP handgun that is an effective “people stopper.”

When one thinks of a .45 ACP pistol, the venerable M1911/M1911A1 usually comes to mind. It remains a viable handgun for military, law enforcement or personal defense use. In its “commander”-size, the pistol is more adaptable to concealed carry. One problem with most standard M1911 type pistols, whatever their size, is the fact that they are not fully reliable with all types of ammunition, especially some jacketed hollow point (JHP) cartridges. The price of entry for a quality M1911 is typically quite high – usually over $1,000 for a pistol with a crisp trigger, reliable feeding and enhanced accuracy. There is, however, a very reasonably priced alternative to an expensive custom “commander”-sized M1911 – the Taurus PT945.

Taurus pistols are made in Brazil on computer numerical controlled (CNC) machinery and thus maintain a high degree of consistent tolerances and quality of manufacture. Lest the reader mistakenly believe that Brazilian manufacture is somehow of lesser quality than “Made-in-USA” firearms, the fact is that several “name” manufacturers of high quality firearms import their components from Brazil and assemble them here. The PT-945 combines the best from Taurus’ 9mm PT-92 series, along with some desirable features from the M1911. The combination is a Commander-sized “single stack” .45 ACP pistol that is worth a look by anyone desiring a reliable, high quality .45 ACP pistol. A comparison between the PT945 and Commander reveals that the two are virtually identical in every dimension. The silhouettes of the two pistols are likewise almost the same. The PT945 mimics the Commander in almost every tactile aspect. Controls are placed similarly to the M1911, but improved in size and shape.

The PT-945’s frame is alloy, with a double-action/single-action fire control mechanism. The frame-mounted safety lever has three positions. “Up” is safe and the pistol can be carried “cocked and locked” in Condition One. The middle position is “fire.” Pressing the lever fully down safely drops the hammer. I personally use a matte stainless PT945 for IDPA and concealed carry, and unlike many factory M1911A1 pistols, it reliably feeds every type of ammunition I have ever run through it, including semiwadcutter, which rarely will feed reliably through a stock M1911A1, except very expensive custom pistols that come from the factory “ramped and throated.” The Taurus’ trigger pull in the double-action mode is long, but smooth, and at an average of 9.5 to 10.5 pounds in the pistols tested, not overly heavy. Despite this, when one fires the first shot in double-action and then must switch to single action, the trigger’s position and pull weight are changed, and the firing grip must be altered somewhat, affecting accuracy and speed of the following shot. For this reason, I carry my PT945 just as I carry a M1911A1 – Condition One, “cocked and locked.” The manual of arms in this mode is identical to that of the M1911A1, so there are no changes. The PT945’s single-action trigger is two-stage with a crisp “break,” no discernable creep and a small amount of overtravel. Single-action trigger pull of the PT945s tested for this article averaged 4.5 to 5.5 pounds, which is pretty close to ideal for a combat handgun.

As to overall “feel,” the Taurus engineers mimicked that of the M1911A1 to the greatest extent possible. The PT945 grip-to-frame angle is identical to the M1911A1, but there is no grip safety. Both the front and back grip straps are serrated along their entire length for enhanced grip. The PT945’s butt is rounded, which makes it less likely to “print” when being carried concealed. The magazine-well is beveled to facilitate reloading. Controls such as safety, slide release and magazine release are positioned in essentially the same location as those of the M1911A1. The safety is ambidextrous, but doesn’t “bite” the knuckle of the trigger finger like some M1911 ambidextrous safeties. Again, if one is familiar with the M1911, there is nothing new to learn. The M1911 shooter can pick up a Taurus PT945 and head to the range knowing that the manual of arms for his new pistol is identical to his old favorite. The PT945 sits relatively low in the hand, and points in an almost identical manner as any M1911A1 variant. The PT945’s backstrap contour is slightly different than the M1911 or M1911A1, but this did not affect accuracy or the pistol’s natural pointing capabilities.

The PT945 slide is steel and has no barrel bushing. The extractor also serves as a loaded chamber indicator; when a round is chambered, it protrudes slightly revealing a small red notch and stands just above the slide’s surface to provide a tactile indication. This doesn’t eliminate the need to physically clear the pistol in accordance with good gun-handling practice, but it does provide an instant indication. Sights are combat-type with a square-notch rear sight with small white dots and a blade-type front sight with a larger single white dot. Trijicon(tm) tritium sights are available as an option.

The PT945 is unique in the variety of finishes available. Many pistol makers offer various finishes, but Taurus’ variety exceeds that of any other manufacturer. PT945s are available from “plain vanilla” blue with rubber grips to “fancy” in either blue or polished stainless with gold-plated controls and rosewood or mother of pearl grips. While some may denigrate fancy grips and gold plating, we should recall that no less an American hero than George S. Patton, Jr. carried fancy pistols, as have many other very serious and deadly handgunners. My personal carry/IDPA PT945 is stainless with hard rubber grips.

Besides the special finishes, which are esthetic enhancements, Taurus also offers functional options, one being barrel porting. This option reduces felt recoil and muzzle flip, but if one plans to use their PT945 in IDPA competition, it must be noted that ported barrels are forbidden. Also, I find cleaning the inside of the ported barrel PT945’s slide is a real chore.

The PT945’s method of operation is the Browning short recoil system with the barrel’s locking block engaging the ejection port. This system improves the basic Browning system by reducing the number of engagement surfaces. The very large ejection port extends halfway down the right side of the slide and wraps over the top left of the slide. There is no barrel link, but a cam lug similar to that of the Browning M1935 on the bottom of the barrel forces it into and out of battery. The slide locks to the rear after the final shot and the magazines drop free when the release if pressed.

I stated earlier that the PT945 is more reliable “out-of-the-box” than any standard grade M1911A1 I have experienced. As mentioned, I have been unable to find a .45 ACP cartridge that would not cycle through any of the PT945s tested for this article. This is attributable to the polished feed ramp that is actually machined into the barrel. When the barrel moves slightly to the rear and drops down after the spent case is ejected, the ramp is positioned into a notch in the frame. At the same time, the magazine positions the next cartridge high on the feed ramp, almost in a direct line with the chamber. This is a decided improvement over the M1911A1, in which the round first hits the feed ramp in the frame, and then bounces up into the chamber. The next M1911 critical point is the chamber throat, which also should be polished to ensure reliable feeding. After the cartridge bounces off the frame’s feed ramp, it caroms up into chamber throat, where the nose impacts it at an angle. If the throat is unpolished, the cartridge may again come to a full stop, causing a severe stoppage. Most high quality 1911-type handguns today have taken steps to eliminate this problem, but the potential is still there, and the author has experienced it in several current standard-grade production pistols

I found the PT945 to point naturally and to be easy to control, even with +P ammunition. At an overall average of 2.9 inches at 15 yards, accuracy for the eight pistols tested was about what one would expect from a stock .45 ACP pistol. Since the test results for all pistols would create a very busy chart, I have reduced the accuracy to averages for each type of ammunition fired. Accuracy results can be found at Table 1. Aside from the variety of pistols available, Taurus has two additional features that they pioneered. One is the Taurus Security System(tm). Taurus’ system is integral to the pistol and requires no external locks, cables or other equipment, except a key. The second unique Taurus feature is the company’s Unlimited Lifetime Repair Policy(tm). If a Taurus pistol ever breaks for any reason due to a manufacturing defect, the company will repair it at no cost. This warranty is transferable from one owner to another without registration, but does not include sights, accessories, cosmetic defects after one year, or damage caused by customer abuse, such as high-pressure reloads.

The sole complaint I have regarding the PT945, or for that matter, any Taurus pistol is that there is only a single magazine included in the purchase price. I believe that any pistol that might be used for self-defense should be provided with at least one spare magazine.

PT945 takedown is actually simpler than a M1911 type pistol. Clear the pistol and remove the magazine. Move the slide forward into battery. Press in on the locking button on the right side of the slide and rotate the takedown lever clockwise. (The takedown lever will not rotate with the slide to the rear.) It will automatically lock into the down (disengaged) position and the slide will move slightly forward on the frame. The slide can then be removed from the frame by pulling it forward. Lay the slide upside down on a table or bench. Press forward on the full-length recoil spring guide rod and separate it upwards and to the rear from the slide assembly. Lift the barrel out of the slide. This completes field stripping and no further disassembly is necessary or recommended. Reassembly is generally the reverse of disassembly, except when the slide is mated to the frame, the takedown lever will automatically snap back into the locked position. Move the slide back and forth a few times to confirm that the slide is locked to the frame.

To sum up, Taurus’ PT945 offers a lot for the price. Suggested retail runs from $560 to $655, depending on options. The PT945 offers a reliable, quality pistol for competition or self defense at a very competitive price.

If there is any downside to the PT945 or any other Taurus pistol, it is the lack of carry gear for it. Holsters intended for other pistols can be used with Taurus products, but they generally do not fit well, and few manufacturers offer custom-made holsters for Taurus pistols. This is about to change, however. A small specialist company, Ready Tactical Products of Decatur, Alabama has begun manufacture of holsters and magazine carriers for all Taurus pistols. The holsters are made of high grade Kydex and are of extremely high quality, but are priced very competitively. All Ready Tactical holsters are adjustable for tension. In addition, Ready Tactical offers its very innovative “Claw”® magazine carriers that positively retain magazines without the use of snaps or flaps.

Sources:

Taurus International Manufacturing, Inc.
16175 NW 49th Avenue
Miami, FL 33014
Tel: (305) 624-1115
Fax: (305) 623-7506
www.taurususa.com

Black Hills Ammunition
PO Box 3090
Rapid City, SD 57709-3090
Tel: (605) 348-5150
Fax: (605) 348-9827
E-mail: bhammo@rapidnet.net

International Cartridge Corporation
RR#2, Box 300
Reynoldsville, PA 15851
Tel: (814) 653 0390
Fax: (814) 938-6821
www.internationalcartridge.com

Remington Arms Company
870 Remington Dr.
Madison, NC 27025
Tel: (800) 243-9700
Fax: (336) 548-7801
www.remington.com

Ready Tactical Products
1604 Saginaw Lane, SW
Decatur, AL 35603
Tel: (256) 350-4247
Email: const@swbell.net

Trijicon, Inc
49385 Shafer Ave.
PO Box 930059
Wixom, MI 48393
Tel: (248) 960-7700
Fax: (248) 960-7725
www.trijicon-inc.com

By Charlie Cutshaw

“Welcome to Saigon and Tan Son Nhut Air Base. We will reach the terminal area in a few minutes. Before you leave your seat, please pull down the window shade, so the interior of the aircraft doesn’t overheat while we are on the ground.” Well, I thought as the plane taxied towards the terminal, THAT is an indication of how hot it gets here. What I was unprepared for was just how hot it really was when I stepped out of the cool interior of the 707 into the January Saigon heat. It felt like a steam bath. We had just spent 19 hours on the plane flying from Hawaii with a short two-hour stopover in Manila for refueling. My khakis, already rumpled from so many hours on a cramped aircraft, immediately began to wilt into a damp mass of wrinkles as we walked to the buses for transportation to MACV Headquarters. I noted that the buses lacked air conditioning, but had wire mesh over the open windows to prevent grenades from being thrown through them. Welcome to the war.

I was a former infantry officer, transferred against my will into ordnance when I applied for a regular army commission. I’d hated ordnance from the start and considered the vast majority of ordnance officers to be little more than bureaucrats in uniform. The sole exception was the explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) branch of ordnance, all of whose personnel generally had an outlook like mine. I was to again be disappointed when my application for EOD was turned down due to my rare form of color blindness – both blue green and to some extent red – orange. Although disappointed, I understood that it would probably be a matter of cosmic proportions to cut the red wire instead of the green one. I thus wound up first in nuclear weapons and then, when orders for Vietnam came down, conventional ammunition. Due to my extensive level of training in “nukes” I had travel and assignment restrictions while I was operations officer and later commander of a nuclear weapons company in Germany. These were immediately waived when the need for more fresh meat for the Vietnam grinder was necessary.

When I returned from Germany in mid-1968 I’d been sent to Fort Lee, Virginia for a two month long course in military logistics and then two more weeks studying state of the art computers. This was to prepare me for my ultimate assignment at MACV HQ as a logistics management officer. I had visions of working in air-conditioned comfort rather than sweating in the field. Alas, it was not to be. I made the mistake of contracting pneumonia while on leave prior to my departure for “The Promised Land.” This gross error landed me in Redstone Arsenal Military Hospital for nearly six weeks and then another month of convalescent leave in addition to my authorized 30-day leave enroute to Vietnam. I was told that the pneumonia had almost killed me. The net result was my chances for pulling my tour in Vietnam as a “Saigon Warrior” falling to zero.

Upon my arrival at MACV HQ for in-processing, I was channeled over to a Warrant Officer in charge of officer personnel assignments, who briefly examined my records and then said, well Dai-Uy (Vietnamese for captain.), guess you’re going “up country.” That meant that I was headed north, up into II or III Corps Tactical Zones (CTZ) as an advisor. (Saigon was in IV CTZ.) The warrant told me that there was an ammo advisor slot open on Advisory Team 8, based in Qui Nhon. I asked about the logistics assignment I’d been promised, but he just shrugged – they’d already filled that one with some other warm body. So I was off to the “real” war. I drew my gear — jungle fatigues, boonie hat, field equipment and finally, my M16A1. As I signed the receipt for the rifle, the young Specialist 5 (SP5) behind the counter handed me the rifle and said, “Don’t bet the farm on this thing, Dai-Uy.” “Yeah, I already heard back in CONUS,” I replied.

I spent the night on a cot in an officer barracks and the next morning hopped a C-130 headed for Qui Nhon. Qui Nhon is a seacoast city and at the time I arrived in late January 1969 was one of the Army’s major Vietnam ports. Yes, Army. The Army Transportation Corps runs port facilities. Vast quantities of war materials passed through Qui Nhon each day, destined for US, Vietnamese and Korean combat units which included the US 4th Infantry Division based in Pleiku, the 173rd Airborne Brigade at An Khe, the Vietnamese (RVN) 22nd Infantry Division and 46th Regiment. Also operating in our area of operations (AO) in the II CTZ was the Korean (ROK) “Tiger” Division. The latter division was one of the toughest and most capable in Vietnam and along with its sister “Capital Division” in III CTZ, had a reputation for sheer brutality and ruthlessness that made LT Calley’s atrocities pale to insignificance in comparison. If the Koreans drew fire from a village, the village was destroyed – as simple as that. Every man, woman and child was killed and the village burned to the ground. I witnessed the results of a couple of ROK massacres and it was pretty grim, but their operations were the essence of guerrilla war – no quarter given or asked. Of course, the media never reported this. If the US reporters had “blown the whistle on the ROKs, whoever did it would have been a “casualty” the next time they accompanied the ROKs in the field. NOBODY gave the ROKs any crap!

Qui Nhon would have been a beautiful city in peacetime, but the war had taken its toll. When I arrived, Qui Nhon was still showing the effects of war and in fact was never repaired during my tour of duty. It had been a major target during Tet ’68 and many of the buildings had yet to be repaired when I arrived nearly a year later. The city was also overrun with refugees from the countryside, where American, Korean, and RVN forces operated and battled it out against Viet Cong (VC) and North Vietnamese over who was to ultimately possess the “turf” in question. As a result, many villages had been destroyed or their inhabitants relocated. The abject poverty and crude hovels in which these people lived has to be seen to be understood. What passed for peasant houses in the wartime destruction generally consisted of hovels made from the detritus of war — corrugated steel sheets, plastic, pierced steel planking (PSP), scrap plywood and just about anything else that could be scrounged or stolen. There were few toilet facilities for the lowest classes. Most of the refugees relieved themselves into the surf at “Shit Beach,” so-called by the Americans because that was what the Vietnamese peasants did there in full public view from the heavily traveled road that ran nearby. Children stood alongside the streets and roads used most by the American Military, waiting for the inevitable traffic backup that would give them a chance to beg for food and small change from Americans. No Oriental gave these kids the time of day – only the American GIs gave them handouts. Dozens of peasants also waited at the American trash dump just outside town. They literally fought over the garbage thrown off the back of American trucks. Americans particularly didn’t like to stop in heavily crowded areas of town, because one never knew when a VC would toss a grenade into the jeep or truck you were driving. Of course, one never left a vehicle unattended – not if one wished to see the next day. Unattended vehicles of any type were fair game for VC. The usual method of sabotage was a grenade of some sort, rigged in any one of several ways to explode when the vehicle was moved. Another method was a grenade with the pin pulled, the safety lever taped over and dropped in the gas tank. The gas would eventually dissolve the tape and release the lever, but the vehicle might be unattended when the explosion occurred. You just never knew…. As one wag pointed out, just doing nothing could get you killed.

Within a day or so of my arrival, I ran into an old infantry special forces friend who was headed home, but who still had his “Swedish K” (Carl Gustav) 9mm Submachine gun. The Swedish K was widely used in RVN by CIA types and by Special Forces. Usually, accountability for these very desirable weapons had long ago been lost and they were sold or passed on to someone else by departing operators. In my case, I bought the weapon from my old bud for the princely sum of $50. The price included ten magazines and a couple thousand rounds of ammo. Since I was in the ammo business, 9mm ammo was not a problem. Unlike the M16A1, the Swedish K was utterly reliable and very effective for short-range engagements. I later scrounged an M79 to use as my personal artillery for those rare instances when things went really bad. I also had a World War II vintage M1911A1. By the time I’d been “in country” for a couple of weeks, I was satisfied about my personal defense weaponry. When I processed out of Saigon a year after my arrival, I turned in my M16 unfired. It sat in a locker in my “hootch” for my entire tour.

Unlike the US “regular” troops in line units such as the 4th Infantry Division and 173rd Airborne Brigade, advisors, like special forces, generally armed themselves with whatever they pleased and were allowed a lot of latitude in uniform and equipment. Members of our advisory team carried a surprising variety of small arms. I had the only Swedish K on the team, but other submachine guns that team members chose included weapons ranging from German MP40s, French MAT-49s, US M3/M3A1 “Grease Guns,” and the occasional M1 Thompson. About half way through my tour, I swapped my Swedish K for one of the latter so that my pistol and “long gun” ammo matched. The Thompson was less popular than other weapons due to its weight, but that didn’t much bother me. (I’m 6’2” and was pretty “lean and mean” at the time.) There were several M2 carbines on the team, some with folding paratrooper stocks. Several of us, myself included, also had AK-47s or Chinese Type 56 assault rifles that we had taken from dead or wounded VC. We never used them operationally, as the AK has a distinct sound that tends to attract unwanted hostile attention from friendly forces, but we did shoot the weapons in our spare time to get a “feel” for them. Most of us were very favorably impressed with the AK’s reliability and ruggedness.

The reader will note that virtually nobody on these teams used his M16. We had a choice, and exercised it. Although the ammunition problem that led to the M16A1’s notorious lack of reliability had been solved by 1969, the rifle still had a universal bad name and few had any confidence in it. Some of the advisors who never got out into the field kept their M16s and armed themselves with the rifle during alerts, but none of us who traveled into “Indian country” used an M16 to the best of my recollection. The M16 took a lot of maintenance to keep it operating and most of us didn’t want to be bothered with it. My weapons never failed me, and all I gave them was a wipe-down and very light coat of oil on the working parts about three times a week. Northern II Corps, especially up in the Central Highlands was very dusty and oil becomes a “dust magnet” under such conditions.

My Vietnamese counterpart was commander of the ARVN 524th General Support Ammunition Depot, located just outside Qui Nhon. Adjacent was the ARVN 55th Base Depot. The 55th was the main depot through which all ammunition in Northern II Corps passed. There were three general support depots – one in Qui Nhon, one south of Qui Nhon in Tuy Hoa, and another in Pleiku up in the highlands. Each of the three depots was supposed to have an American captain as advisor, but there were only two captains, so the smallest depot, Tuy Hoa, had a sergeant. The advisor for the 55th was a US major, my boss, who was “Senior Ammunition Advisor” for the region. My ARVN counterpart, Major Nguyen Than Thanh, turned out to be one of the most competent and aggressive officers with whom I have ever had the pleasure to serve. Thanh was also a former infantry officer and we hit it off immediately. Unlike the other depot commanders, Thanh gathered his own intel on VC activities, found out when his depot was likely to be hit and then laid ambushes on the probable avenues of approach. We ran many such operations against the VC while I was with Thanh and killed enough of the enemy that I used to wonder why they just didn’t give it up. They never got through to our ammo depot as long as Thanh was in command. He would lay the dead bodies out alongside the road that ran by the depot gate the morning after and then wait to see who came to claim them. Needless to say, those who wanted to take the body for burial got a pretty thorough grilling. Proper burial is very important in the Vietnamese culture and even though the families of the dead VC knew that they were going to get a hard time, they inevitably came for the bodies. By the same token, the VC kept trying to hit us, almost certainly knowing that we were going to be waiting for them, but they always were driven off with severe casualties. Thanh was very aggressive in his pursuit of the VC.

The same cannot be said for the commander of the 55th Base Depot, which got hit during Tet 1969. The 55th started exploding at about midnight and kept on exploding for nearly 12 hours. The “next door” 524th went unscathed, except for a lot of unexploded ordnance lying about and holes in the corrugated steel sheet roofs that protected some of the sensitive ammo from the sun. Thanh had the place cleaned out and back into full operation within a week. Not so the 55th, which was being cleared at an agonizing slow pace. About six weeks after Tet, my boss took some fragments in his gluteus maximus (in the butt) and was medevaced to Japan. He told me as he was put onto the medevac chopper that he would not be back and that I was now senior ammo advisor. Swell…. The 524th was running fine, but was falling behind because of the lackadaisical commander of the 55th. Not only was the 524th having to do its work, but that of the 55th, as well. It was clear that my first order of business as senior advisor was to get the 55th up and running again. There were other problems, as well.

EOD operations are part of the ammunition branch of ordnance and EOD advisors came under my purview in our AO. I got hold of Tom, my senior EOD advisor, a Master Sergeant who had been in RVN since 1963, and we went out to survey the area. The ARVN EOD troops were supervising peasant laborers who were throwing unexploded, fuzed mortar bombs and 105mm shells up into the backs of trucks to be moved for demolition. After watching this for several minutes, we both just turned away in dismay and decided to think things through as to how to get the job done more efficiently and safely. We had no sooner turned the corner out of the 55th, than we herd the unmistakable “whumph” of a mortar round exploding. We went back to find one of the ARVN EOD NCOs lying on the ground minus his right arm, his right leg above the knee and his left leg below the knee. An 81mm mortar bomb had gone off in his hand. Amazingly, he was still conscious. The other ARVNs just stood there looking at him in stunned silence. Tom and I got the wounded ARVN some emergency first aid and the nearby 524th, efficient as ever, called in an ARVN medevac chopper to pick him up. He eventually died. The upshot was that clearing operations came to a standstill, as nobody would touch a single round of artillery or mortar ammunition. The lack of ammunition was beginning to affect the prosecution of the war in II CTZ, as most all ammunition, US included, passed through the 55th. My new boss, a crusty full colonel, made it clear that he was holding me personally responsible for clearing up the mess out there and getting the ARVNs off the dime.

I called in all my EOD advisors for an emergency meeting to discuss the problem, and in good NCO fashion, one of them came up with what sounded like the best solution. We Americans would all go out and start clearing the 55th. The ARVNs would see us, would lose beaucoup “face” because we were doing their job for them and would eventually come back to work. It took us about a week, but the ploy worked and once we showed the ARVN soldiers and the laborers how to safely handle much of the unexploded ordnance, things proceeded quickly. Some of the unexploded rounds, however, were so sensitive that we simply blew them in place. We got the 55th back in operation within about a month.

But that was not the end of our problems. Ammo is consumed in vast quantities in combat and any ammo unit worth its salt is not going to wait to be asked, but is going to “push” the needed ammo forward to the troops. This unfortunately means going out very close to the “pointy end of the stick” where the grunts live and die. The ARVN solution to forward delivery and offloading of ammunition was to drop the tailgate of the truck, get it up to about 20 mph in reverse and then hit the brakes, causing the entire load to slide off into a huge heap so they could “Di-Di” (get the hell away from there) as quickly as possible. Not only was this cowardly, but worse, damaged the ammunition. The ARVN drivers would not do this if the American advisors were present, though, so shortly after I became senior ammo advisor, I made it a policy that one of the officers, myself included, would be present at every forward ammo delivery. My guys had no problem with the policy, as they understood why it was necessary. The Boss wasn’t especially pleased at first, but saw that it was necessary and went along with it. At the beginning, though, he insisted that we travel with convoys. Not a good idea, I told him and explained why. He was unmoved, however, so we tried it. It didn’t take too long to convince him of the folly of convoy travel, and we soon went back to traveling alone. (See below.) There were a couple of craven officers on my team who railed at me for unnecessarily exposing my personnel to combat. My response was to ask them why the hell they were in the Army. We called these cowards “REMFs,” which stood for “Rear Echelon Mother —ers.” There was one ordnance (maintenance) major who was particularly obnoxious. I finally shut him up by telling him that if he weren’t such a “no balls” REMF, he’d accompany one of us out in the field sometime and see what the war was all about. He shut up, but never volunteered to go out on an ammo delivery mission.

Lest the reader think me rash or even somewhat heroic, I am far from it. Like most soldiers in Vietnam, I did what I had to do to get the mission accomplished. Also like most soldiers, I didn’t think too much about it at the time; we did what we thought to be the right thing under the circumstances. In Vietnam, traveling alone in an unmarked jeep with ARVN bumper numbers was just good sense. There was a price on the heads of advisors and groups of soldiers invited unwanted attention from the VC, so we almost always traveled alone – just like any other ARVN. At first blush, traveling with convoys (safety in numbers) may seem like a good idea, but convoys were a major VC target. The VC especially liked to hit convoys where QL (Hwy) 19 wound through the An Khe Pass and further up towards Pleiku at the Mang Yang Pass. The ravines at the bottom of these passes were littered with hundreds of trucks and other vehicles that didn’t make it. When a vehicle was hit, the only thing to do was push it off the road so others could pass. On one side of the road was a vertical cliff rising perhaps 200 feet. On the other was a sheer drop of approximately the same distance. No place to go but down.

In my mind the Transportation Corps drivers and their security are among the unsung heroes of the Vietnam war. Much has been written of long range reconnaissance patrols (LRRPS), SOG, Delta, green berets and other elite units, but the truck drivers faced a dedicated enemy bent on their destruction virtually every time they hit the road from Qui Nhon to Pleiku and from Pleiku to Kontum and points north. The “gun trucks” that these units used for convoy security are themselves a testimonial to the ingenuity of the American GI. Moreover, those guys drove that road two or three times a week, knowing full well that they were probably going to get hit with no place to hide. And those 2 1/2 and five ton trucks make very large targets. The first and only time I ever traveled with a convoy per my orders, it got hit and I swore that if I got out of that mess, I’d never do it again! Later, the Boss had a similar experience while traveling with a convoy and learned the hard way why that was a very bad idea. But those young GIs who drove the trucks had no choice; it was their job day in and day out they were very close to sitting ducks as the trucks ground their way up the switchbacks in the passes.

As I look back over this narrative, I note that I have rambled a bit and perhaps have gone on for far too long, but it turned out to be one of things where one experience led to another thought process. In truth, I could tell many other tales of “my war.” I could talk about the Leper Colony, “12 Mile Island” just offshore from Qui Nhon that had one of the most beautiful reefs and crystal clear water I have ever seen. I might relate my experiences with a 12-man Australian Special Forces team up in the highlands that received an entire CONEX container of Victoria Bitter Beer each month. (Not even the Aussies could drink that much!) I could tell you about our work with the Montagnards (“Yards” as we called them, who were collectively some of the bravest people I ever saw.) There was the local Qui Nhon CIA Station Chief, who had been an advisor to Ho Chi Minh during World War II. Another memory is the hitchhiking LRRP sergeant I picked up at Kontum one day who told me that I was “… crazy” to be driving up and down the roads by myself. Then there was the local SEAL detachment that scrounged CS powder from us to make coastal caves unusable by the VC. Those guys pulled my bacon out of a very nasty situation with the local Vietnamese cops one time. There was the New Zealand Surgical Team that saved many lives. I now realize that there was so much to tell about and so little space in which to do it. Maybe some day I’ll write a book…

I saw a lot of Northern II Corps during my tour, most of it on the ground, because my duty demanded it. I ranged down the coast as far south as Tuy Hoa and into the Central Highlands as far north as the Tri-Border Area where Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia come together. In writing this I have come to realize that my tour in Vietnam was an unusual, rewarding and perhaps interesting one because I was able to do and see so much that many others missed. I was never in a pitched battle, although I was caught in and initiated a couple of ambushes. Snipers also shot me at on a few occasions. Despite this, I do not consider myself to be a true combat veteran. There are too many real combat veterans out there for me to claim that honor. But I believe that I saw a side of the Vietnam War that few had the privilege of observing. In closing, I hope that this little narrative was an enjoyable “read” and that it conveys the flavor of what it was like to be an ammunition advisor in Vietnam so many years ago. I look at the calendar and realize that it now is over 30 years in the past, but to me and many others, Vietnam was the defining moment of our lives and even now seems as if it were just yesterday.

Needless to say, authenticity has its down side. One does not wish to appear in public with this rifle in hand, unless one wishes to attract a great deal of unwanted attention from the local gendarmerie. In fact, the police have shot people for a lot less, so caveat emptor if you buy one of these Kalashnikov souvenirs. The owner’s manual that accompanies the rifle even has a warning statement, as follows: “IMPORTANT. EXPOSED CARRYING AND IMITATIONS OF USING THIS RIFLE AS A COMBAT WEAPON MAY DELUDE OFFICIALS OF THE LAW-ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES OR CIVILIANS AND GIVE THEM REASON TO USE A FIREARM OR OTHER MEANS OF SELF DEFENCE AGAINST YOU.” (The caps are theirs, not ours.) At any rate, Izhmash came up with an ideal souvenir that violates no laws, yet actually shoots after a fashion (see below) and has the authentic Kalashnikov imprimatur.

How authentic is the Junkers? It is so authentic that a Russian friend tells us that the Junkers is used for training older schoolchildren in the basics of the AK. Look at the close up photos of the receiver. The Junkers has the full Izhmash factory markings, except that the right side of the receiver it is marked “Junker – Kalashnikov USA -Port St. Lucie, FL, USA.” The rifle even has a nonfunctioning magazine that can be inserted and removed exactly as with the original. The likewise nonfunctioning selector moves to its appropriate positions on the receiver. In fact, the receiver cover, “recoil spring,” “bolt carrier,” and “gas tube” are disassembled exactly as with the real rifle. In fact, these components must be removed to load the magazine with BBs. The Junker even weighs seven pounds — about the same as an actual AK-74. Once the receiver cover, recoil spring and bolt carrier are removed, however, things are quite different. Nestled inside the receiver is a pistol, which can be removed and fired independently of the rifle. The muzzle of the pistol interfaces with a BB “Guide Tube” beneath the “barrel” in the same location as the actual rifle’s cleaning rod. What appears to be the barrel seems to be an actual 5.45mm barrel that has no chamber and has had three large holes drilled horizontally near the breech end to ensure that the air rifle is not somehow transformed into a real rifle. The “barrel” is actually rifled and one can only hope that the barrels used to fabricate “Junkers” air rifles are rejects. The muzzle brake is removable as with the actual rifle. The guide tube, however, has no rifling at all. It is merely a steel tube with a boss at the muzzle end for attaching it to the sight base. Fit and finish of components is typical Kalashnikov, rough but serviceable.

The Junkers/MP651K pistol/revolver is supplied with two eight shot cylinders, one for use with BBs and one for 4.5mm lead pellets. The BB cylinder, installed at the factory, has a small ledge in each chamber to prevent BBs from double feeding and causing a stoppage. The cylinder for 4.5mm pellets is bored straight through. If one removes the pistol, uses it for pellets and then forgets and replaces it into the rifle with the pellet cylinder in place, BBs from the tubular magazine will “double feed,” causing a stoppage that requires the pistol to be again removed from the rifle to clear. The Junkers is also provided with a comprehensive accessory kit that includes a cleaning rod, tools, a rear sight for the pistol and spare “O” rings and gaskets for the gas system. A small tubular container that fits inside the buttstock receptacle houses a screwdriver and punch. These are inserted into slots in the tube’s side for use.

The rifle obviously is not intended for use as such on a regular basis. Loading requires removal of the receiver cover, recoil spring and bolt carrier. This allows access to the pistol’s 23 shot tubular magazine that feeds BBs to an eight shot revolving cylinder. We found with our rifle that loading more than 18 BBs made the trigger mechanism very stiff to operate because of BB pressure against the pistol’s cylinder. Once the rifle is loaded, it may be fired without replacing the receiver components, but what fun is that? In practice, we always loaded the rifle with 18 rounds and kept a round count or waited until the slight difference in shot noise indicated that there was no BB exiting the guide tube. Accuracy? Not very good. Our Junkers consistently shot very low and to the left and our Daisy Red Ryder BB gun gets better shot groups. Our Junkers seemed unable to “print” any shot groups worthy of the name, shooting to a different point of impact with each shot. Adjusting the sight for elevation made little difference in the point of impact of the BBs. In fact, the rifle is pretty much useless as such; attributable to the interface of the MP651K pistol’s muzzle to the guide tube and the fact that the guide tube has a slight downward cant at the muzzle end. These could be corrected by some judicious machining, but unless one were to change the entire guide tube, it would make little difference. The most serious blow to Junkers accuracy is the guide tube’s inside diameter of approximately 0.275 inch, which ensures that the 0.17-inch BB will ricochet its way down the tube and exit the muzzle at a slightly different angle with each shot. It is abundantly clear that this rifle was not intended for competitive air rifle shooting. We were able to consistently hit a gallon milk jug at 25 feet with the rifle, but that is about as good as accuracy gets. In contrast, when backyard shooting with our Daisy, we can successfully engage bottle caps at the same range.

As mentioned, though, the Junkers can also be used as a pistol, so we were curious as to the pistol’s accuracy once it was separated from the rifle component of the system. Removing the pistol is a rather involved process, as follows:

• Engage the safety!
• Remove the receiver cover.
• Withdraw the recoil spring.
• Remove the bolt carrier and unload the magazine (The cylinder cannot be unloaded except by firing the pistol.)
• Remove the “gas tube.” (The takedown lever was very stiff and required pliers to rotate)
• Lift the forearm retaining lever, slide the clamp forward, and remove the forearm.
• Undo the retaining screw beneath the sight block and remove the guide tube.
• Remove the plastic pistol grip.
• Remove the buttstock screw and buttstock.
• Remove the “selector” by pivoting it vertically and then working it out to the right.
• Tilt the pistol back by pulling down on the grip frame so the muzzle is upward. Work the pistol out of the receiver from the top.
• Reassembly is the reverse of the foregoing, except that the magazine catch spring has to be pressed back out of the way with a small screwdriver or similar tool so the trigger guard will fit back in the housing. Also, the catch spring is guaranteed to scar the finish of the trigger guard! (There is nothing about this in the instructions.) Moreover, you have to hold your mouth just right to get the pistol positioned properly so the guide tube will interface.

Once the pistol has been removed from the rifle’s receiver, it can be fired accurately using BBs after installing the rear sight provided in the accessory kit. The sight simply slides into place and is fixed with a small lock screw. The MP651K has a rifled steel barrel nearly six inches in length. To change from BBs to pellets, the pellet cylinder must be inserted, a task which can be accomplished in a one or two seconds by simply pressing the release latch and lifting out the BB cylinder. The pellet cylinder is loaded from the rear and will not feed pellets from the pistol’s tubular BB magazine. Thus, the pellet cylinder must be removed for reloading after every eight shots. This is, as stated, not difficult. When used with 4.5mm lead pellets, the MP651K pistol is extremely accurate. We were able to achieve one inch groups from the offhand position with it at 15 feet in our informal evaluation. But of course, how often one will use the Junkers as a pistol is highly questionable, given that getting at the pistol requires nearly total disassembly of the rifle and about 10 minutes’ time. Moreover, the components do not separate or reassemble easily. Disassembly and reassembly resulted in several unavoidable scrapes and scratches on the surface of both the pistol and rifle in the receiver area. The owner of a Junkers will not use his air gun in the pistol role very often.

Based on the foregoing, one would logically conclude that we didn’t like the Junkers. WRONG! With this rifle, logic goes out the window! The Junkers is a real Kalashnikov, straight from Izhmash and we love it! We’d love it even if it didn’t shoot, because it is just SO damn politically incorrect! If Diane Feinslime, Teddy (the lecher blimp) Kennedy, Algore, HILLARY!, Traitor Bill, or Chuckie Schumer were to see this air rifle, they would all enter into apoplectic fits! (The CHILDREN, y’know!) In fact, we consider it to be only a matter of time before the Junkers is banned simply because of its appearance. The Junkers transcends being evaluated as an air rifle, or as anything other than what it is — a true Kalashnikov memento that happens to be a Kalashnikov memento that actually shoots, is legal to own (for now), and can be sent right to your door via UPS or FedEx. Moreover, the engineering that went into adapting the AK receiver so that an MP651K pistol would fit inside and work is fascinating in itself. In the final analysis, everyone who is enamored with the basic AK design should want a Junkers air rifle. Sure, you can have “the real thing, but the “real AKs” available in this country are not made by Izhmash. I’m personally not a great fan of AKs, and don’t own and have no desire to own any of “the real ones,” as I had enough of them in Vietnam. But the Junkers is different. I love it! Order yours from:

Kalashnikov USA
Department SAR
1019 Holbrook Ct, B-3
Port St Lucie, FL 34952
Tel: (561) 337-3398
Fax: (561) 337-0258
www.weapons-russian.com