Unusal guns of Vietnam

[fyimo]

I was a Combat Soldier in the 4th ID 1/12 in 1969 from March to Jan 1970 and we operated northwest of Kontum on the Cambodian border doing 30 day Search and destroy Missions. We carried standard issues weapons that were the M-16s, M-79s, and M-60 machine guns and our Captain had a Car-15 a carbine version of the M-16 and a Colt 1911 45 ACP pistol. Then in about June we had one of our guys trained with an M-14 sniper rifle with a scope and starlight scope. We moved North in II Corp to just below I Corp and we did the same missions along the Laotian Border and our sniper was wounded and I carried his M-14 sniper rifle until I left in January. I was issued match ammo for it and I carried only 6 magazines with it as our SOP for the guys with M-16's was 21 magazines with 19 rounds in them.
I flew on helicopters and a lot and the air crew members did have non-issued pistols like Browning HP's and S&W revolvers but we only carried what we were issued.

Me with the Captains Car-15


The M-14 on top of this picture is like the one I carried after George our sniper was wounded

 

[litenlarry]

I am late to the party on baboons..In the mountains and dense jungles, there were what we called "Rock Apes"..Big suckers, about 3 feet tall, maybe 50 lbs, and sort of a dull reddish in color..They have set off more than one trip flare on the perimeter wire of an OP..

 

[Texas Star]

Regarding the "apes": Gibbons are apes, not monkeys. The "baboons" were likely langurs. They are large and have big teeth. And are pretty nasty as a group. And smart.

BTW: Howler monkeys are called "baboons" in Belize. Spooky the first time you hear them at night. The girls we were with swore they were jaguars (a jaguar makes a coughing noise and the Mexican or brown howlers sound like someone with super heavy breathing/low growling--the jaguar's not too scary unless you know what it is. Heard my first one at dusk in Tikal).

Got a scar on my hand from when a "tame" baboon tried to eat a finger in grad school.

Bio-

Good point about the gibbon being an ape. I took a class in Primate Behavior in college and learned about them and siamangs "brachiating" through trees, if I recall the term correctly. Is that right? Sort of swung from their hands without fully grasping each branch in transit.

Orang utans are also Asian apes. You know this; someone else here may wonder.

I think you're on the right track re langurs. I remember Jim Corbett mentioning frequent sightings of gray langurs in the foothills of the Himalayas as he hunted man-eating cats.

I believe in tame baboons about like I believe in tame leopards. Maybe some of the time, for some of them.
How'd you get that baboon off of your finger? Which species was it?

I was quite interested to learn about howler monkeys being called baboons in Belize. Isn't Belize the former British Honduras? I can just see some British colonial chap becoming irritated with the howlers and calling them "a lot of bloody baboons." That may be where the locals got the name.

I've heard jaguars. It fascinates me how some Indios can mimic the sound with rocks in a gourd.

I THINK I saw Jeremy Wade fishing in Belize once and he was able to speak English to the natives because it had once been a Crown colony. His guide even had an English name.
I know that Wade speaks some Brazilian Portuguese. Not sure about Spanish. He's usually in Brazil or neighboring countries if he's in tropical America.

We now return you to the actual topic under discussion.

 

[BearBio]

The baboon that tried to eat my finger was a small chacma (I think=been 40 years). Too young to be into a male dominance thing or there woulda been some REAL damage there. I apologize, I was an undergrad in the 70's and helping out in the animal lab at Cal State (not in grad school). Most primates have large carnivore fangs that they use for defense/offense. Just ripped my finger out.

I managed a pet shop while in college and our vet was across the street. I went to get some distemper vaccine and syringes from his office and he called me in the back. They were trying to give a woolly (howler) a shot== Took 7 of us. We had six and the d___ monkey grabbed the syringe with his tail and threw it against the wall, so we had to draft another volunteer. Once you give a monkey a shot, you won't give him a second without an epic battle.

When I was in Belize (teaching a jungle ecology class), the primary language was English (pidgin and Queen's), followed by Mayan, Spanish (a lot on "undocumented immigrants" there also), and Garifano (a mix of pidgin English, Caribe, and some Spanish and Portuguese. In Guatemala, it was Spanish and Mayan, then English.

Our river guide was Ian, an ex-SAS trooper from Liverpool who married a Belizean woman and settled down there (since Malaysia fell, the SAS train in Belize).

BTW: He preferred the Browning HP for "ops" as did a friend of mine who was a LRRP in the Nam. Just to get back on topic!

 

[Gator Monroe]

Early Nam must have been rife with captured French Weapons ?

 

[Coaltminer]

I've had friends tell me that Thompson SMGs were highly prized by vehicle drivers. They'd take the butt stocks off and had a handy full auto weapon at their disposal.
Jim

My neighbor served in 69-70, bought a Thompson subgun for $50 from someone going home. Carried several mags as well as his issued M16. He was with Combat Engineers. He said that thing sure would chop brush. He had to kill several enemy there, but it was kill or be killed situation in wartime. They were mostly on tracks with motor driven 50 cals, had Agent Orange all over them, rescued downed jet pilots. B52 bombs dropped within 200 yards of them. Mess of a place at the time. My cousin flew Medivac copter there in 66-67. God bless them all.

 

[litenlarry]

My neighbor served in 69-70, bought a Thompson subgun for $50 from someone going home. Carried several mags as well as his issued M16. He was with Combat Engineers. He said that thing sure would chop brush. He had to kill several enemy there, but it was kill or be killed situation in wartime. They were mostly on tracks with motor driven 50 cals, had Agent Orange all over them, rescued downed jet pilots. B52 bombs dropped within 200 yards of them. Mess of a place at the time. My cousin flew Medivac copter there in 66-67. God bless them all.

Not questioning your rendition of your neighbor's in country remberences of the B52 bomb drop's, but 200 yards is a danger close in most instances..B52's were well known for a ARC light mission, 2 planes following head to tail at over 15,000 feet, dropping their ordinance so as to totally decimate the area..
I have done a few BDA's (Bomb Damage Assement's) of ARC lighted areas..Total destruction for a huge area of terrain ..
500 lb bomb's have no eyes and take no prisoners..

 

[NYresQ]

My Uncle was in the first group of 60,000 regular army to be sent over in '65. When asked by anyone what he did in Vietnam, his answer is always "I just drove a truck"... but he came home with two bronze stars, but no CIB... so he wasn't regular infantry, but was in the middle of it doing something.
Some of the pictures he has are amazing, color photos from the year he spent in SE Asia "driving a truck for Uncle Sam"... Maybe someday I can get him to open up about it. He doesn't have any sons, only daughters so maybe someday I can find out what he really did.

 

[Saigon1965]

Welcome home and thank you for your addition to the thread -

I was a Combat Soldier in the 4th ID 1/12 in 1969 from March to Jan 1970 and we operated northwest of Kontum on the Cambodian border doing 30 day Search and destroy Missions.

Carlos Hathcock -

 

[Saigon1965]

Some lovely footprints here -

500 lb bomb's have no eyes and take no prisoners..

Your uncle would know of this town -

My Uncle was in the first group of 60,000 regular army to be sent over in '65.

 

[Saigon1965]

Another one of my favorite -

 

[Texas Star]

Thanks for posting the neat pictures -

Tay Ninh is only about 50 or so miles from Saigon -





Not Bob but a pretty cool dude himself -




I can't make out what kind of shotgun it is but still a neat picture -

In the lower photo, who's the man on the right in the Ghurka hat and with the shotgun? Was he maybe Australian?

 

[Saigon1965]

I am sorry but I don't knnow for sure - He sure looks Aussie with the uni -

In the lower photo, who's the man on the right in the Ghurka hat and with the shotgun? Was he maybe Australian?

 

[THE PILGRIM]

In the lower photo, who's the man on the right in the Ghurka hat and with the shotgun? Was he maybe Australian?

Probably an Aussie.
They don't wear Ghurka hats. They wear Digger Hats.

 

[Saigon1965]

This one just exchanged hands -

Similar to the one I had posted earlier in the thread -

Another jungle workshop gun with documented war trophy form dated Feb 1965 -

Real early in the war -

 

[litenlarry]

Found a few old "Nam pic's..

Upper left and right, emergency ladder extract coming in to 1st Recon rear area..
Lower left, 1st Recon outpost hill 868..
Lower right, The "guy's" standing on top of the bunker at hill 868, holding a Constrictor type of snake...Big sucker..
Bottom, is a CH46 landing at hill 868 LZ..

 

[Old TexMex]

Another one of my favorite -

Was that Vung Tao? See the Caribou, RAAF officer. Probably 35 squadron. Mid 65-68

 

[Saigon1965]

Thank you for sharing - Those are great!

Found a few old "Nam pic's..

The picture was quoted as "Dak Lak / Dak Pei circa 1966" -

Was that Vung Tao? See the Caribou, RAAF officer. Probably 35 squadron. Mid 65-68

 

[mc5aw]

This is the type of thread that allows a Forum member like myself to thank fellow Forum members for their service in Viet Nam.

Many years have past, but you are remembered and appreciated.

God speed, gentlemen.

 

[Donn]

SOG used non-US weapons for classified missions for deniability.

C.I.A. did too.