If you haven’t noticed it, Mike Ford had been trying to lighten the front page a bit on Sunday’s with a humorous story. Mike is on the road this week helping his parents relocate so he was sniveling on the email list yesterday asking for someone to keep the home fires lit, of LAF, as they say these days.
There were no volunteers, so Jenn Van Laar texted me early this morning to ask me to do one. Unfortunately, my wife used my phone first…try explaining getting an early morning (Eastern) text from a woman your wife doesn’t know.
I don’t think you can really be a combat arms officer or career combat arms NCO and not amass a repertoire of funny–or off color–stories.
And, to a great extent, those are the things you remember. You forget the mindless bullsh**. You forget (most of) the arrogant and incompetent senior officers you had to deal with. You forget sitting in an arroyo at 2 a.m. in a driving 40-degree rainstorm waiting for your LD time and shivering, as my boss would say, like an old dog sh***ing peach seeds.
You remember the funny stuff and the camaraderie and the satisfaction of doing a hard job well. When our first daughter was very young, I remarked to my wife, a mechanical engineer, that I’d like our kids to at least pass through the military.
She wasn’t all that happy about the idea. She said, “Just promise me you won’t push them into it.” I told her, “Sweetie, I have a lot more funny Army stories than you have funny engineering stories, by they time they get old enough, they’ll want to go.” My eldest is a college sophomore enrolled in Air Force (hack, spit) ROTC. One down, two to go.
The highlight of any young infantry officer’s life is company command. There is nothing in the world like it. You are a warlord. You are the the Biblical Centurion–“I say unto one, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it.” Sometimes the raw material is not exactly what one would hope.
What follows is an actual true story as opposed to a “no sh**” story which is a story that may or may not have happened and you may or may not have been involved but you tell it anyway because it is funny or gross.
I commanded a Combat Support Company in 7th Infantry Division (later the division converted to light infantry, the combat support company was disbanded and I was given the honor of taking a rifle company) and one of our main training areas was Fort Hunter Liggett (Hungry Lizard), California.
On this particular deployment–we were down range for a couple of weeks and when you’re not in your own bed it doesn’t matter if you are 5 miles or 5000 miles from home–my company’s main mission was to live fire Tube Launched, Optically Tracked, Wire Guided (aka TOW) missiles. We used an ad hoc impact area in a section of post called Stoney Valley.
As we were regular infantry, rather than mechanized, my launchers were all carried on the venerable M151A2 quarter-ton truck, known to you guys as a Jeep.
Public domain image via wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BGM-71_TOW#/media/File:TOW_fired_from_Jeep.jpg
We fired the day tables and then had a several hour lull while we waited for dark. At the time my division was a low-priority division and even though TOW night sights were available, they had not trickled down to us.
Night shoots were conducted as coordinated illumination missions with my 4.2-inch (aka four-deuce) mortar platoon (the beast weighed in at 672-pounds, the Army tells you it is “man portable over short distances,” don’t believe it).
The mortars would fire an illumination round and the TWO platoon would engage targets while that parachute flare lit up the impact area.
Here’s the Greek Army firing one. Professional armies don’t look a lot like this but you get the general picture.
It was after the evening meal and I was walking my gun line, talking to the guys and making a final check on their knowledge of the sequence of events for the night. As I neared the end of the firing line I heard some squealing and troops laughing.
These are never good things to hear. As I approached the last gun truck I could see a bunch of my troops gathered in a knot and the squealing got louder and more pronounced. I bulled my way though the growing mob and saw one of my troops holding squirming piglet and twisting its tail.
A short digression:
As you can see from the map clip, we were right across the mountains from Big Sur and not terrible far from the Hearst Castle, the palatial estate of William Randolph Hearst. Hearst, like quite a lot of other rich guys, imported exotic animals for his game preserve.
One of his import was the Eurasian boar. Unsurprisingly, they didn’t take to being penned up and escaped and found California’s climate to their liking and mated with feral pigs (the four legged variety, not those frequented the enlisted mens’ club in search of companionship) and produced a prolific and somewhat violent breed.
I’d had an unpleasant experience with their relatives at Grafenwoehr, Germany and decided to share my wisdom.
“What the f*** are you f***ing morons doing?” I inquired.
“Oh, sir, this is a baby wild pig and if we make it squeal it’s mother will come.”
“Right. That’s a m*********ing baby wild boar and have you morons thought through what will happen when she gets here?”
I gave them some rather detailed instructions on where to search to find their heads and, out of an ample sense of caution, I ordered the platoon moved. We didn’t see momma pig, and we finished up the night shoot without incident. True story. No sh**.
If you want a joke, this one explains about 99% of what goes on in Washington today.
The classic M16 comic book manual (PAM 750-30), originally published in 1968 and issued to troops throughout the Vietnam War, is now being re-printed.
The widespread issue of the M16 rifle to troops in Vietnam, beginning in the mid-1960s, was fraught with problems. As reports of M16s failing in combat began to filter in, the U.S. Army scrambled to address the crisis. They found part of that solution in the most American of places—the world of comic books. The M16A1 Rifle: Operation and Preventive Maintenancewas the title of Pamphlet (PAM) 750-30. Combining comic book-like illustrations and humor with invaluable technical information and tips, the pamphlet sought to use a format with which G.I.s were familiar to teach them how to properly maintain their M16s. It would go on to become a classic part of the M16’s story and a contributor to the design’s ultimate success.
Early problems with the M16 had two sources—the propellant specified in the original technical data package for the 5.56×45 mm NATO cartridge was changed, and there was a lack of training and cleaning materials provided for proper maintenance. Operation “Bang Dong”—PFC Fred L. Greenleaf, Co “C”, 3rd Bn, 7th Inf, 199th Light Inf Bde, crosses a deep irrigation canal along with other members of the company who are enroute to a Viet Cong controlled village. The field conditions that soldiers encountered in Vietnam made daily maintenance of their M16 rifles a life or death necessity. PAM 750-30, the comic book-style M16 manual, gave tips about things like how to drain the water out of one’s rifle.
” … these troops started going overseas, that were trained with another rifle, and suddenly given this new rifle with no equipment, no training manuals or anything, just said ‘Go get ’em, fellows,’ ” Eugene Stoner said in his 1988 interview with small-arms expert Edward Ezell. ” … when you put lack of training, lack of maintenance equipment, and the new propellant, pour them into the same situation all at one time, that’s what caused the big problem.” A reprint of the classic M16 comic book manual (PAM 750-30), included with each of the rifles in Brownells’ Retro line, is as authentic as the waffle-type magazine that comes with the Brownells BRN-601 pictured.
The June 1968 report of the U.S. Army M16 Review Panel concluded, “The lack of cleaning materials and the lack of proper training contributed heavily to the high M16A1 malfunction rates experienced in Vietnam in late 1966 and early 1967.” PAM 750-30 sought to remedy this. Members of Co D, 2nd Bn, 35th Inf, 3rd Bde, 4th Inf Div, who came in on the first wave of helicopters secure the landing zone for the remainder of company during a helicopter combat assault and a one day search and destroy mission in the Quang Nagi Province, 8km west of Duc Pho, 10/26/1967.
The 1960s were a period of time that aficionados call the “Silver Age of Comic Books.” That decade saw the introduction of such characters as Daredevil, Spider Man, Iron Man, the X-Men and the Fantastic Four. Most American boys of that generation had grown up reading comic books. The average U.S. infantryman in Vietnam was in his early 20s … and still reading comics. What better way to get him to learn about maintenance than to make a manual in the form of a comic book?
A WWII poster illustrated by Will Eisner that encouraged soldiers to keep their rifles cleaned. Eisner worked on Army Motors, a monthly preventative maintenance magazine, that would later evolve into PS Magazine, The Preventive Maintenance Monthly.
The artistic talent behind PAM 750-30 was Will Eisner. No stranger to the world of comic books, Eisner had gotten his start as an author and illustrator in the earliest days of American comics in the 1930s, and was the creator of the urban crime fighting character, “The Spirit.” During World War II, Eisner was drafted into the U.S. Army, which quickly found a use for his skills in the production of training manuals. Eisner was assigned to Holabird Ordnance Depot in Baltimore where Army Motors, a preventive maintenance magazine, was being printed.
“Together with the people there … I helped develop its format. I began doing cartoons—and we began fashioning a magazine that had the ability to talk to the G.I.s in their language,” Eisner said in a 1978 interview in Comics Journal. “So I began to use comics as a teaching tool, and when I got to Washington, they assigned me to the business of teaching—or selling—preventive maintenance. Preventive maintenance required voluntary cooperation on the part of the readers—the G.I.s. The military was faced with the problem of getting voluntary performance from its troops, so I proposed that one teaching tool that would be very viable would be comics—and they allowed me to try it.” A World War II poster illustrated by Will Eisner that encouraged soldiers to keep their rifles cleaned. Eisner worked on “Army Motors,” a monthly preventative maintenance magazine, that would later evolve into “PS Magazine, The Preventive Maintenance Monthly.”
Following the war, Eisner established American Visuals Corporation (AVC), a business focusing on what he called “the commercial application of comics.” When the Korean War started, the Army asked AVC to make a successor to Army Motors. Called PS Magazine, The Preventive Maintenance Monthly, Eisner and AVC would produce it for the U.S. Army from 1951 to 1972. An archive of all of Eisner’s issues of PS Magazine is available online through the Virginia Commonwealth University Library. An article on using the M60 machine gun in helicopters from Issue 172 in 1967 of “PS Magazine, The Preventive Maintenance Monthly,” a series of U.S. Army technical bulletins that used comic book-style illustrations by Will Eisner from 1951 to 1972.
“WE HAVE THE WORLD’S BEST EQUIPMENT … Take care of it,” PS Magazine declared. It covered topics that ranged from adjusting the headspace on 155 mm howitzers to sample checking aircraft oil. As a “post script” to official Army technical manuals it also gave tips on making field expedient fixes or constructing improvised tools. Many of the articles focused on small arms care, with titles like “Don’t Double Cross Your BAR” and “Winterize Your Shooter When You Anti-Freeze Your Scooter.” A 1965 issue (#150) introduced maintenance for the rifle the magazine called the “Sweet 16.” “There ‘re not too many 5.56×45 mm NATO M16 and XM16E1 rifles around as yet,” it stated. “But they’re where they do the most good.” A reprint of the classic M16 comic book manual (PAM 750-30) is included with retro-style AR-15 rifles from companies like Troy Industries and Brownells (the Brownells BRN-601 pictures).
PFC John Henson (Columbia, South Carolina) of the 1st Battalion, 327th Infantry, 101st Airborne Division, cleans his XM16E1 rifle while on an operation 30 miles west of Kontum, Vietnam, 12 July 1966.
In 1968, in response to the problems the M16 was having in Vietnam, Eisner was called upon to produce a standalone maintenance manual specifically for the M16. The result was PAM 750-30. Like PS Magazine of that time period, the modern reader will find the illustrations and innuendo used in the manual hardly PC. It started out with detailed instructions for disassembly and reassembly (“How to Strip Your Baby”), then on to immediate action drills in case of a stoppage (“What to Do in a Jam”) and on to detailed instructions on everything from magazine maintenance (“Putting Maggie Together”) to clearing out a water logged M16 (“Drain Before Shooting”). The result was invaluable information presented in a format that appealed to the 20-something 1960s male. Was Eisner’s comic book M16 manual a success? Over 50 years later the M16 design still soldiers on in the U.S. military.
A reprint of the classic M16 comic book manual (PAM 750-30) is included with retro-style AR-15 rifles from companies like Troy Industries and Brownells (the Brownells BRN-601 pictures).
After his work with PS Magazine ended in 1972, Eisner returned to the world of traditional comics. He continued to write and illustrate comic books, helped establish the modern graphic novel genre, and served as a teacher and comic book historian until his death in 2005. His M16 comic book manual ranks up there with “The Spirit” as one of his most lasting and well-known achievements. An entire generation of American G.I.s were familiar with it and, recently, it has been introduced to a whole new generation of M16/AR-15 users. Long out of copyright, the manual has been placed back in print, with manufacturers like Brownells and Troy Industries supplying one with each of the retro-style rifles that they sell.
Though its style and language are dated, the technical advice and tips given in PAM 750-30 are still some of the best preventive maintenance information you can get on the M16/AR-15 series of rifles. The comic book manual was a uniquely American solution to a serious crisis and contributed a small part to the success of the design now considered “America’s Rifle.”
By Michael O’Donnell
It was philosopher and theologian Plato who once said, “A hero is born among a hundred, a wise man is found among a thousand, but an accomplished one might not be found even among a hundred thousand men.†We all know heroes of the past, Alvin York of World War I and Audie Murphy of World War II, but what about the heroes of Vietnam? Among the veterans of Vietnam, there are countless stories of valor, yet they have been largely ignored or forgotten over time. For the 543,400 Americans on the ground at the height of the Vietnam War, the 58,226 who were killed or missing in action, the 211,529 who were wounded, and the 4 million total who served in the Vietnam “theater,†there was one who stood out among all the rest. His name is Staff Sergeant Joe Ronnie Hooper, and not only was he a hero in the Vietnam War; he is also the most decorated soldier in American international combat, even eclipsing both York and Murphy.
Joe Ronnie Hooper was born on August 8th, 1938 in Piedmont, South Carolina. His family moved when he was a child to Moses Lake, Washington, where he attended high school. Hooper grew up a tough kid who knew how to scrap and take care of himself, and would even on some occasions go looking for a fight. This mentality would find itself of use when Hooper enlisted in the Navy at the age of 17 in the summer of 1955. There he served until 1961 when he left for the Army. Joe served multiple tours of duty in Vietnam, one from 1966-67 and another from 1967-68, with D company, 2nd Battalion, 501st Airborne Infantry, 101st Airborne Division. He would return to action in 1969 with special permission from the president. It was while serving in Vietnam that Hooper proved why he would later become the most decorated American soldier of all time.
One of the most noteworthy of all of Hooper’s battles took place on February 21st, 1968, in Hue, South Vietnam. For his actions on this day, Hooper would receive the military’s highest award for valor: the Medal of Honor.
It was dawn on the morning of the 21st. The sun rose over the fields of Hue and painted the sky red, an eerie sight during these bloody days of the Tet Offensive. D Company, 2/501st Infantry, 101st Airborne Division”the Delta Raiders”were assaulting a strong enemy position when they began to receive heavy fire from the Viet Cong.
Rockets blazed through the jungle, and the sound of machine guns and other automatic weapons filled the air. Company D’s advance on the enemy was halted by their squad leader, then”Sgt. Hooper, in front of a stream approximately 20 feet-wide.
Hooper gathered a few of his men and dashed across the stream, up into the face of the enemy fire. Although the enemy was firing from a protected bunker on the opposite side of the stream, it was quickly taken by Sgt. Hooper and the men that fearlessly followed him.
Soon, the rest of Company D began to follow Sgt. Hooper’s example, taking the fight to the enemy. A couple of men were wounded, leaving them exposed to the wrath of enemy fire. Without a second thought, Sgt. Hooper braved the crossfire and went out after his wounded brothers.
Hooper helped one man back to safety, then returned for the second man. He got to the wounded soldier, but in the process was wounded himself. Still, he brought the man to safety, saving him from certain death.
Returning to the fight, Hooper found SSG Thomas pinned down by enemy fire. Trying to decipher where the shots were coming from, Hooper called through the rattle of gunfire and explosions to SP4 Mount, who was up ahead, to see if there was room to maneuver between two small houses in the direction of the fire. Joe Ronnie Hooper (August 8, 1938 – May 6, 1979) was an American who served in both the United States Navy and United States Army where he finished his career there as a captain. He was awarded the Medal of Honor while serving as an army staff sergeant on February 21, 1968 during the Vietnam War. He was one of the most decorated U.S. soldiers of the war and was wounded in action eight times.
Hooper enlisted in the United States Army in May 1960 as a private first class, and attended Basic Training at Fort Ord, California. After graduation, he volunteered for Airborne School at Fort Benning, Georgia and then was assigned to Company C, 1st Airborne Battle Group, 325th Infantry,[1]82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, North Carolina and was promoted to corporal during his assignment. He then served a tour of duty in South Korea with the 20th Infantry in October 1961 and shortly after arriving he was promoted to sergeant and was made a squad leader. He left Korea in November 1963 and was assigned to the 2nd Armored Division at Fort Hood, Texas for a year as a squad leader and then became a squad leader with Company D, 2nd Battalion (Airborne), 502nd Infantry, 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, Kentucky. He was promoted to staff sergeant in September 1966 and volunteered for service in South Vietnam. Instead he was assigned as a platoon sergeant in Panama with the 3rd Battalion (Airborne), 508th Infantry, first with HQ Company and later with Company B.
Hooper couldn’t stay out of trouble and suffered several Article 15 hearings, being reduced to the rank of corporal in July 1967. He was promoted once again to sergeant in October 1967, and was assigned to Company D, 2nd Battalion (Airborne), 501st Infantry, 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell and deployed with the division to Vietnam in December as a squad leader. During his tour of duty with Delta Company (Delta Raiders), 2nd Battalion (Airborne), 501st Airborne Infantry, 101st Airborne Division, he was recommended for the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions on February 21, 1968 outside of Hue.
He returned from Vietnam and was discharged in June 1968. He reenlisted in the Army the following September, and served as a public relations specialist. On March 7, 1969, he was presented the Medal of Honor by President Richard Nixon during a ceremony in the White House. From July 1969 to August 1970, he served as a platoon sergeant with the 3rd Battalion, 5th Infantry in Panama. He managed to finagle a second tour in Vietnam; from April to June 1970, he served as a pathfinder with the 101st Aviation Group, 101st Airborne Division (Airmobile), and from June to December 1970, he served as a platoon sergeant with Company A, 2nd Battalion, 327th Infantry, 101st Airborne Division (Airmobile). In December 1970, he received a direct commission to second lieutenant and served as a platoon leader with Company A, 2nd Battalion, 501st Infantry, 101st Airborne Division (Airmobile) until April 1971.
Upon his return to the United States, he attended the Infantry Officer Basic Course at Fort Benning and was then assigned as an instructor at Fort Polk, Louisiana. Despite wanting to serve twenty years in the Army, Hooper was made to retire in February 1974 as a first lieutenant, mainly because he had only completed a handful of college courses beyond his GED. As soon as he was released from active duty, he joined a unit of the Army Reserve’s 12th Special Forces Group (Airborne) in Washington as a Company Executive Officer. In February 1976, he transferred to the 104th Division (Training), also based in Washington. He was promoted to captain in March 1977. He attended drills only intermittently and was separated from the service in September 1978.
For his service in Vietnam, the U.S. Army also awarded Hooper two Silver Stars, six Bronze Stars, eight Purple Hearts, the Presidential Unit Citation, the Vietnam Service Medal with six campaign stars, and the Combat Infantryman Badge. He is credited with 115 enemy killed in ground combat, 22 of which occurred on February 21, 1968. He became one of the most decorated soldiers in the Vietnam War, and was one of three soldiers who were wounded in action eight times in the war.
Rumors persist that he became distressed by the anti-war politics of the time and took to excessive drinking which contributed to his death.[2] He died of a cerebral hemorrhage in Louisville, Kentucky on May 6, 1979, at the age of 40.
Hooper is buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Section 46, adjacent to the Memorial Amphitheater.
Rank and organization: Staff Sergeant, U.S. Army, Company D, 2d Battalion (Airborne), 501st Infantry, 101st Airborne Division. Place and date: Near Hue, Republic of Vietnam, February 21, 1968. Entered service at: Los Angeles, Calif. Born: August 8, 1938, Piedmont, S.C.
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. Staff Sergeant (then Sgt.) Hooper, U.S. Army, distinguished himself while serving as squad leader with Company D. Company D was assaulting a heavily defended enemy position along a river bank when it encountered a withering hail of fire from rockets, machine guns and automatic weapons. S/Sgt. Hooper rallied several men and stormed across the river, overrunning several bunkers on the opposite shore. Thus inspired, the rest of the company moved to the attack. With utter disregard for his own safety, he moved out under the intense fire again and pulled back the wounded, moving them to safety. During this act S/Sgt. Hooper was seriously wounded, but he refused medical aid and returned to his men. With the relentless enemy fire disrupting the attack, he single-handedly stormed 3 enemy bunkers, destroying them with hand grenade and rifle fire, and shot 2 enemy soldiers who had attacked and wounded the Chaplain. Leading his men forward in a sweep of the area, S/Sgt. Hooper destroyed 3 buildings housing enemy riflemen. At this point he was attacked by a North Vietnamese officer whom he fatally wounded with his bayonet. Finding his men under heavy fire from a house to the front, he proceeded alone to the building, killing its occupants with rifle fire and grenades. By now his initial body wound had been compounded by grenade fragments, yet despite the multiple wounds and loss of blood, he continued to lead his men against the intense enemy fire. As his squad reached the final line of enemy resistance, it received devastating fire from 4 bunkers in line on its left flank. S/Sgt. Hooper gathered several hand grenades and raced down a small trench which ran the length of the bunker line, tossing grenades into each bunker as he passed by, killing all but 2 of the occupants. With these positions destroyed, he concentrated on the last bunkers facing his men, destroying the first with an incendiary grenade and neutralizing 2 more by rifle fire. He then raced across an open field, still under enemy fire, to rescue a wounded man who was trapped in a trench. Upon reaching the man, he was faced by an armed enemy soldier whom he killed with a pistol. Moving his comrade to safety and returning to his men, he neutralized the final pocket of enemy resistance by fatally wounding 3 North Vietnamese officers with rifle fire. S/Sgt. Hooper then established a final line and reorganized his men, not accepting treatment until this was accomplished and not consenting to evacuation until the following morning. His supreme valor, inspiring leadership and heroic self-sacrifice were directly responsible for the company’s success and provided a lasting example in personal courage for every man on the field. S/Sgt. Hooper’s actions were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself and the U.S. Army.[3]
Private comes out of the box at at NTC with necklace of Donovian ears
FORT IRWIN, Calif. — Pfc. Amanda Richards surprised peers and superiors alike when she emerged from six weeks “in the box” at the National Training Center with an eerie hollowness in her eyes and a necklace of Donovian ears, sources confirmed today.
“Here at the National Training Center, we provide America’s soldiers with the highest quality, most realistic training available,” said Brig. Gen. Geoffrey Broadway, NTC Commander. “As they use the newest technologies to face the intense challenges of the profession of arms, they emerge as better fighters, better teams, and better prepared for complex…what the fuck? She did what? God almighty. How did she even do that? God help us all.”
National Training Center Rotations are designed to place soldiers in austere environment where they can develop new techniques, tactics, and procedures, while honing strengths and identifying weaknesses. Soldiers assigned to play opposing forces, or OPFOR, use tactics of notional countries such as Atropia or Donovia.
In the case of Pfc. Richards, who previously expressed little interest in basic soldier skills, the NTC experiment revealed she had always been three weeks of intensity away from being an elite killing machine, and six weeks of intensity away from being a war criminal, according to defense officials.
“We encourage the most realistic scenarios possible at the National Training Center,” Broadway added. “But not like that. Fuck me. Those men had families. The more you sweat in peace the less you bleed in war, but, for the love of God, we don’t mean real blood.”
Richards, a dental hygienist assigned to Charlie Company, 3834th Combat Hospital, was nervous about “time in the box,” but came to thrive in the intense environment.
“On day one at the RUBA, Amanda couldn’t shut up about not having her cell phone,” said Spc. Kelsey Appleton, Richards’ former roommate. “She’d been texting a guy who had a car and we were all pretty upset about the timing. But by day six, she was really getting into it, yelling at us when we went to the wag bag without our MILES gear on. By week two, she’d pulled all the aces out of a deck of cards ‘for her kills,’ By week four she walked out of the battalion fighting position shirtless with nothing but a DAGR and a dagger, challenging anyone to quench her thirst for blood and vengeance.”
Richards, after a thorough after-action report, will return to her duties as the records clerk at the Raymond Bliss Dental clinic until such time as an investigating board can determine if she is, as she states, the surviving embodiment of Tiger Force.
“I blame myself. When I put that bumper sticker on my Ram that said, ‘kill ‘em all, let God sort ‘em out,’ a couple of the PC types asked me if I was setting a good example for my soldiers,” said Sgt. 1st Class Kenneth Rainier, Richards’ platoon sergeant.
“I said, ‘we’re all POGs, I don’t think anyone is taking this seriously. But then…sweet Jesus. Amanda just had to exact vengeance after the first harassing small arms fire. Men. Women. Some of those men weren’t even Donovian. I think they were OCs. Sometimes, as I drift off to sleep, I still hear them choking on their own blood as they futilely yell ‘ENDEX.’”
On the eve of America’s active involvement in World War II, it was apparent that there would be a serious shortage of service rifles for its rapidly expanding armed forces. Plans were made to increase M1 rifle production at Springfield Armory, and the Winchester Repeating Arms Co. was granted a production contract for the Garand.
Even with this increase in M1 rifle output, the anticipated supply of service rifles would be insufficient to meet the demand. Existing Model 1903 Springfield rifles in the government’s inventory, along with substantial numbers of obsolescent but serviceable Model 1917 rifles, were taken from storage and reconditioned as necessary for issue.
Even so, it was apparent that more rifles would be needed. To this end, in 1941 the U.S. Army Ordnance Dept. contracted with the Remington Arms Co. for new production of the Model 1903 bolt-action rifle using machinery and some raw materials (mainly stock blanks) in storage at Rock Island Arsenal since manufacture of the ’03 rifle ceased at that entity in the early 1920s.
Remington began manufacture of Model 1903 rifles in fall 1941. Initially, the new Remington ’03s were very similar to the rifles made at Rock Island Arsenal in the late World War I period. Shortly after Remington started its new ’03 production line, America was officially at war with the Axis powers, and the expected huge demand for more rifles became a stark reality.
Remington sought to increase production by reducing cosmetic touches such as careful polishing of the metal prior to Parkerizing and eliminating some non-essential features. By early 1942 the company had made some 649 changes in ’03 manufacture to speed production and reduce costs.
While these changes were marginally helpful, further modifications of the basic design were deemed necessary. These changes included less machining to the rear sight fixed base, elimination of the bolt stop, replacement of some milled parts with stamped, sheet metal components and elimination of the grasping grooves on the rifle’s stock.
As demand continued to escalate, Remington received more ’03 production contracts and continued to consider ways to further increase the manufacturing rate.
One component that remained more or less unchanged from the earlier M1903 rifles was the Model 1905 rear sight. This sight, and its barrel-mounted fixed base, required a great deal of machining. A simplified receiver-mounted rear sight would reduce production time and have the added bonus of being a better combat sight.
These changes were significant enough to warrant a new “model” designation and, on May 21, 1942, the “U.S. Rifle, Caliber .30, Model of 1903A3” was standardized. Shortly thereafter Remington began updating its tooling and equipment to accommodate the changes required for production of the new rifle. The first Remington M1903A3 rifles were delivered in December 1942.
While Remington was struggling with increasing its production rate, the Ordnance Dept. sought other manufacturing sources for new ’03 production.
To this end, in January 1942 the Ordnance Dept. began negotiations with High Standard Mfg. Co. of New Haven, Conn., for the production of 100,000 ’03 rifles. High Standard was interested in the contract, but it was already operating at near peak capacity with existing contracts and would be unable to serve as prime contractor on the new project.
The company offered to accept the contract if it would be permitted to manufacture only the barrels and subcontract the rest of the production, including assembly of the rifles, to the L.C. Smith & Corona Typewriter Co. of Syracuse, N.Y. The Ordnance Dept. was reluctant to agree to such a proposal and, logically, took the position that Smith-Corona should be named prime contractor with High Standard serving as the subcontractor for barrel production.
Since the Smith-Corona factory was in relatively close proximity to the Remington plant, it was believed that the latter would be able to assist the new manufacturer with the technical aspects of rifle production. All parties concurred with the proposal and on Feb. 25, 1942, Smith-Corona was granted a contract for M1903 rifle production.
While Smith-Corona was in the process of procuring the necessary manufacturing equipment, the M1903A3 rifle superseded the M1903. Accordingly, in May 1942 Smith-Corona’s contract was modified to substitute the M1903A3 for the M1903 rifle.
Concurrently, the original contract for 100,000 rifles was increased to 380,000. The first “pilot” batch of 20 Smith-Corona M1903A3 rifles was completed in October 1942, and mass production began in November, a month ahead of Remington’s initial delivery of ’03A3 rifles. Production slowly increased, and by December 1942, Smith-Corona had manufactured 5,540 ’03A3s.
As had been the case with Remington, some problems with procurement of rear sights from subcontractors resulted in the delay of initial deliveries. Eventually that problem was resolved and sufficient quantities of the sights were procured, and increasing numbers of ’03A3s began to flow from the Syracuse plant.
Other than the manufacturer’s name on the receiver ring, the Smith-Corona ’03A3 rifles were quite similar to those made by Remington, but differed in some minor aspects. The salient features of the Smith-Corona M1903A3 rifle were: The receiver ring had the same marking format as the Remington rifles except for the name of the manufacturer, “U.S./Smith-Corona”; and Smith-Corona was assigned two distinct “blocks” of serial numbers: 3,608,000 — 3,707,999 and 4,708,000 — 4,992,000.
Interestingly, Remington “over ran” some of Smith-Corona’s first block of serial numbers. Consequently, there were an estimated 3,600 Remington ’03A3 rifles produced with numbers initially assigned to, and used by, Smith-Corona. The receivers with these duplicate numbers were stamped with a “C” next to the serial number for identification and inventory control purposes.
The barrels were marked “SC” and the month/year of barrel production. Reportedly, very early in production, High Standard (the maker of the barrels) acquired some unfinished barrel “blanks” from Savage Arms Co.
These had six grooves and were initially produced for commercial rifles before being diverted to the ’03A3 production program. High Standard completed the machining of the barrels and marked them “SC” along with the month and year of manufacture.
The Ordnance Dept. granted the company a waiver for use of these non-standard barrels as their utilization would permit High Standard to deliver barrels to Smith-Corona sooner than would otherwise have been possible.
The number of six-groove barrels used in Smith-Corona ’03A3 production is estimated to be about 5,000. After using up the six-groove barrel blanks, High Standard began manufacture of four-groove barrels, which were used for the balance of production except for a few two-groove barrels that were used for about a one- or two-month period in late 1943. Regardless, the majority of Smith-Corona rifles had four-groove barrels.
Although nearly identical in configuration, there are several rather subtle differences between the Smith-Corona and Remington stocks. For example, the Remington ’03A3 rifles were stamped with a 7/16-inch “circled P” proof firing mark on the bottom of the grip (behind the trigger guard) while the Smith-Corona rifles had a 1/2-inch proof stamp in this same location.
Another minor difference was the configuration of the recess for the spring on the lower barrel band. The recess on the Smith-Corona stocks had a rounded profile while the Remington stocks had a square profile.
The final inspection marking format stamped on the left side of the stock was similar to the type found on the Remington ’03A3s but lacked the “RA” (Remington Arms) mark.
The only substantive difference between Remington and Smith-Corona bolts was that the Remington bolts were marked “R” at the root of the handle while the Smith-Corona bolts were usually marked with an “X” on top of the bolt handle, although some unmarked examples can be found.
Any bolt found on a Smith-Corona rifle, other than one marked “X” on top of the bolt handle, or unmarked, is a replacement and not a factory original component. Some extractors found on original Smith-Corona bolts were marked “S” on the bottom.
Also, the Smith-Corona bolts had a distinctive “scalloped” profile to the sleeve and safety lug. Some of the bolt sleeves were marked “G.” Like the Remington ’03A3s, original Smith-Corona bolts were blued.
Many rifles can be found today with Parkerized bolts, which indicate that the components were refinished, typically as part of a post-World War II Ordnance Dept. overhaul.
Smith-Corona and Remington rifles used the same type of stamped sheet metal furniture, including barrel bands, band springs, screws, pins, floorplate/magazine assemblies, and buttplates.
Most of these parts were originally blued although a few components made later in production, such as upper bands, may have been Parkerized. Model ’03A3s, either Remington or Smith-Corona, found with all-Parkerized furniture can be safely assumed to have been overhauled.
Unlike some Remington parts, which were stamped “R,” the majority of Smith-Corona parts were unmarked, although a few marked “G” have been observed. Therefore, it should be remembered that factory-original Smith-Corona rifles will not have any “R”-marked parts. Any such parts on a Smith-Corona ’03A3 encountered today were installed at some point after the rifle left the factory, again, normally as part of an arsenal rebuild.
Another difference between Remington and Smith-Corona rifles was the checkering pattern on the buttplates. Remington buttplates had 16 “squares” to the inch while Smith-Corona buttplates had 10 or 11 “squares” per inch.
Also different was the configuration of the stamped and welded trigger guard/magazine assembly behind the front screw hole. The Remington component has a straight profile whereas the Smith-Corona part has a semi-circular indention.
As the war progressed and production caught up with demand, Smith-Corona’s production contract was cancelled on Feb. 19, 1944, by which time the firm had manufactured 234,580 M1903A3s. Remington continued production slightly longer but its ’03A3 rifle contract was cancelled on Feb. 28, 1944, after the company had produced 707,629 ’03A3 rifles.
The Remington and Smith-Corona M1903A3 rifles provided yeoman-like service to U.S. armed forces during World War II. Although not used for overseas combat duty in the same numbers as M1 rifles, or even the earlier M1903 variants, some M1903A3 rifles did, in fact, see action.
Numerous World War II vintage photos depict ’03A3 rifles employed in overseas combat zones. Military Police (MPs) and other ostensibly non-combat military personnel were issued M1903A3 rifles, but they were also employed by front-line combat infantryman.
Model ’03A3 rifles were used in combat in virtually all theaters of the war, including the European, Mediterranean, and China-Burma-India (C-B-I). Large numbers were also utilized for stateside training and for supplementary use by sentries and other personnel.
Despite the shortcuts employed in the manufacture, the M1903A3 rifles were every bit as serviceable as the better-finished earlier production rifles.
The ’03A3s had strong nickel steel receivers, and the rear sights were actually better for combat use than the older M1905-pattern sights. M1903A3 rifles are among the most common variant of the ’03 available to collectors, and examples can usually be found without too much difficulty, although prices for pristine examples are steadily rising.
After the conclusion of World War II, some of the M1903A3 rifles were sent to various and sundry foreign nations. In addition, large numbers were shipped to various ordnance facilities for inspection and overhaul prior to being placed in long-term storage, typically after being coated in cosmoline.
Although most had previously been arsenal-overhauled before being placed into storage, some were never issued and remained in factory-new condition. It is normally easy to differentiate between a rifle remaining in its factory configuration and one that has been overhauled.
The rebuilt examples can be identified by the arsenal rebuild stamps on the stock, the presence of parts with mixed contractor codes and Parkerized furniture (including bolts).
It is sometimes forgotten that America’s true secret weapon of World War II was its awesome industrial might. Civilian firms that had never produced war material or arms were soon turning out vast quantities of desperately needed items with which to fight the war.
There are myriad examples of this industrial versatility, not the least of which was the service rifle made by a typewriter company.
The following was kindly provided by Captain T.W. Forrest of the D.C. Army National Guard.
Suggestions for
Professional Officer Development Readings
Gen. George S. Patton, Jr.
As soldiers it is our duty to continue are professional development by reading. General George S. Patton, Jr. (1885-1945), was known for his study and reading of military history.
In 1952, his widow, Beatrice Patton, provided a list of his favorite books for an issue of Armor magazine (Patton, Beatrice Ayer, “A Soldier’s Reading,” Armor 61 (November-December 1952, pp. 10-11). I provide it to you for your professional development:
Maxims of Frederick the Great
Maxims of Napoleon, and all the authoritative military biographies of Napoleon
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