Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire M60, the pig

Second tour flying Hueys for short spell and doing Nighthawk missions, one of the crew chiefs had fabricated a quad -60 and used an array of landing lights which he could focus. 7 lights, one handle, 4 guns and one trigger. Clever fella he was. He whacked more dinks with that rig than the primary gunner with a Xenon searchlight and a minigun. Dayum, that thing did yammer when he set it off.

My first MOS was a 91A, combat medic. I went on flight status after a couple of years and then got a second MOS as a 67N. Crew chief on a Huey. Got to qualify several times as a door gunner. A lot of fun. They do burn through barrels rather fast.

Story was similar in our army. We had Brens, which were converted to 7.62 at about the time we went over to that calibre in the L1A1. There was also the L2A1, which was like an L1A1 but with a heavy barrel, bipod and full-auto capability, but the M60 became the front line gun and stayed in service until about the 1990s. Brens were a good LMG. L2A1 not so much - a bit hard to hold down, and no quick-change barrel (and nothing to hold them with if the crappy bipod was down. I've shot both.

I have carried the M60 a good number of miles, and there are worse things to carry - the 84 mm Carl Gustaf MAW being one of them. I shot them a fair bit too, including in SF mode off a tripod, and indirect fire using a C2 sight unit and posts. They were getting a bit long in the tooth in the 1980s, when I was in, and every now and again one would "run away", for which the IA was to break the belt. Good fun though!

BTDT as a joe AG at carson then 12 months as a gunner in FRG
always in charge of the rear gun as a Psg for many many yrs
Lead gun with WSL and PL in movement formations.



Anyways side bar long story.
18 of us WSL,s in 1st Brigade all went to a start up M60 Mg leaders course in 93.
101st had all the wpn systems schools in place before desert storm.
Put on Hiatus due to billy boy DOD ammo cut backs for 2 yrs in 92 and 93 due to ammo forecast being severly cut back.

Anyways the guy they had " teaching" had a nervous break down after lunch the 2nd day of a 14 day course.
Guy was faking the funk outta FM 23- 67 big time.
Got 18 e5 P,s and e6,s checkfiring him constantly
Most of us Wearing EIBS , CIBS, with long term line squad and Wpn Sqd ldr experience.

He literally checked himself into Blanchfeild mental health.
Got himself a job at the replacement center.



Anyways the 1sg of Bncoc shows up and starts teaching the course when we all came back from lunch unknown to us that SFC looney tunes checked the fugg out until the 1sg told us.
Holy fugg......

The 1sg and other Bncoc instructors took turns each day.
The course turned into a hands on gunnery course 6 days on the ranges with 5 days in the field doing a full blown dug in live fire defense.
All with student input.
We basically threw away the previous POI.
We couldnt get live fire maneuver ranges scheduled that fast.



Anyways.
Day 3 of the Defense.
Digging in 60 positions to standard with OHC and proper grenade sumps on the sloped floor
1sg rolls up
Tells me and florez
I was in A co 2/327th and Flo was in C co.

Get your schit on you 2 gotta go see the commandant/CSM at the Academy.
Me and Flo are like WTF???
1sg not saying a word....

Anyways...

Standing in front of CSM Nichols.
Former 1st Bde CSM during Desert Storm.
Knew of me and Flo.
In a good way....

Says you 2 have been cleared out of your companies
Go clear out your lockers at your unit after you graduate of your assigned TA 50 and personal gear
You will be the M60 course instructors.
You have 3 weeks to write up a POI for a 2 week course of Combat arms and combat service support units.
I know you 2 and you will get it done.
You will have one for 2 week and vice versa for 2 weeks
You will schedule it so you grad on a friday with a 9 day break betweeen classes.
During that work week draw your ammo, chow, and cooridanate your ranges, training areas, chow, transpo for the FTX.
Once your done logistic planning the rest of that week and those 2 weekends are yours. You do not have to report to any academy formations, you only are accountable to the the BNCOC 1sg.


CSM Nichols hands us each a set of orders signed by the Division Cmdr at the time MG Jack Keene.
Granting us H Identifiers and assigning us to the Academy UMR.
WTF????
Shakes our hands says "Alway 1st"
Get the f u c k outta my office

We go back to the feild .
Tell all our buds what went down.

They are chuckling of course.
Sucks to be you stuff.

Me and flo got noticed by the cadre it turned out wanting to do the right schitt and have high standards in the course.
All us " students " ran the course and had schitt tons of input.
But informal leaders always stick out in schit like that.

Anyways me and FLO got the long term logistics out for 18 months cooridinated thru our support assets, all ranges and training areas done thru range control.
We were both range OIC/NCOIC cert from our companies anyways.
Got the POI,s set for CA and CSS units.

Schit worked out.
Ran smooth.
VIP vistors all the fughing time.
We wanta go see the M60,s course.


SAW course
M203 course
M60 motar course
M16A2 course
Tow gunnery course

All them instructors ticked at me and FLO.

Cause these guys had to go actively seek their jobs.
Go thru interview board
Go to a 3 week instructor course for the H Identifiers.

Me and Flo
Untouchable.

About 10 months later I came down on orders for 2nd tour in korea
Flo came down on orders for Panama
We trained up our replacement instructors over a period of 2 months

We picked a Infantry E6 guy from 3/ 187th from 1 class
And a Black hawk crew cheif E 6 from another.

Those 2 guys had ta report to the academy outta the Blue after they had graduated well before from the course.
We knew both of em .
Talked and interacted with our students all the time.
Both of em experienced and fully capable

They had no idea.
Me and flo greet em.

Layed it all out to em.
Everything is in stone
Nothing you gotta tweak for CA and CSS units.
All cooridanation done for the next 7 months.

Schit all worked out.



The Hotel Identifier also made me in the chute for train the trainer course,s when I got assigned to the 3/187th.
Was one of the 1st ones in brigade to attend the M4 carbine feilding with colt and the M240B fielding with FN.
Started 2 week course in both.
Everything from tech data , classroom instruction, live fire ranges.
The whole 9 yrds
Then all of certified trainers.
Trained our companies on the new systems.
Same thing with the Javelin missle system when I was in the 502nd
Tuesday morning sept 11 2001 2nd day of a train the trainer 2 week course.
All units on post locked.
Javelin course students .
Your place of duty is here till you graduate .
Your units have been notified.
You are exempt from the alert.
For obvious reasons
Feilding a new wpn system for 3 infantry brigades we will use on the co ck sukka,s in due time.

Anyways. ..


The M60 was a good wpn.
Its downfall was due to clintons cut backs.
Once the Saco Maremont mil spec parts started dying up in the logistic chain.
DOD statred bidding out repair parts to Mom and Pop so to speak shops.
Mil spec varied widely.
Schit wasnt working out.
No parts available or of dubious quailty.

I used to carry in my ruck when I was in 327th a schitt load of m60 parts just to try to keep my 2 60,s as a WSL up and running.
And when possible the other 4 guns in the other 2 platoons.
I had connections at 801st maintenance armor shop and with the contact teams on ranges.
Just being a social butterfly and getting aquianted with people in the logitics channels.
Being a scrounger to keep schit running so soldiers can train to fight.
Deadlined guns are 35% of a Infantry platoons firepower.
Some people DGAF about their equipment, sad to say and use the 2404 and 2408 parts ordered on paper alibi too often.

I had quite a bit of stuff.
When I got assigned to the academy I passed that stuff on to the guy who replaced me a WSL in my platoon and the 2 other WSL,s in the other platoons.
They were thankful cause they knew I got assigned to the academy and were hoping to get those parts.
I dont blame em.
At the time clintons cutbacks really affected unit readiness with wpn systems.


The M60 had its day.

I will say the M240B is a much better MG though.
Way more accurate
Way more stable bipod and tripod
Way more reliable in schitty conditions.
Better design.

That is my opinon based on experience.
Why do I say that?
Many reasons , but the main one is
The M60,s gas piston system was a problem.
Excessive tight tolerance and rapid fouling with the gas tubecand piston add in the front and back of the gas cylinder plugs and the bottom bolt plug being wired and becoming loose at the worst of times or breaking, losing gas from those plugs would turn a 60 into a single shot MG fast.
Once a 60 started chugging it was telling ya it needed attention.

If they had made the M60 a op rod gas cupped system similiar to a AK like the 240 is.
It would have been a better wpn IMO.

I have alot of memories with Mg,s from all over the planet.
I like MG,s

Happiness is a warm MG...
👍👍👍👍👍

You can litterally see the cold bullet shadow in a hot really hot barrel with nods on when firing.

I carried one for two years, '78-80, B2/75. It was a beautiful weapon!

As I recall, the M60 shared a great deal of its design with the German MG42 which had the nick name of "Hitler's buzzsaw" due to its rapid rate of fire. The MG 42 had a rollar lock operating mechanism instead of gas operated. IMHO, the US should have directly copied the MG 42 and chambered it for 7,62 withiout other modification. All reports and accounts from WW II were that the MG 42 was as supreme weapon. It was made with simpicity and cost effectiveness in mind - mostly stamping instead of machining - a half of million were produced and used in combat. All the bugs were worked out, and it weighed a couple of pounds less than the M60. Why mess with perfection?

I could get about 1500 rds outta a maintained 60 firing sustained 100 a min for 10 mins with a barrel change before one would start chugging.

Yup but not for long.

Maybe, but it sure as fugg ain't doing gun drills every hundred yards on a gravel road.

Hearing "gun up" and slamming down that stupid tripod until your knees and elbows were raw is NOT happiness.

But, I guess those were cold MGs......

I don't recall seeing him. At that time I don't think his name was even well known. There were folks coming through the embassy though.

You bet, it'll put a grin on your face!

Those fugging leaf springs that held em in .
Loose tension and the 3/4 moon slots get worn.
Main culprits........

Ahhhhh..... thats a SAW man.

Dang boy...you let your dumbass hillbilly disguise slip on that post.

No schit man.
No schit..


83 to 08.

Left one america in 83 and shawshank redemption into another in 08.

The Civilian world is a goat F u c k....

I cant imagine only knowing one veiw of the nation and never seeing it from the outside and looking back into it.
And wondering WTF happened.
How could it have gotten this frigging bad...

Kinda makes ya think .
What the fugg did I even accomplish?????

I accomplished keeping soldiers I seen as brothers alive the best I could at times and passed on knowledge that was passed onto to me and developed young wolves to be leaders just like what was done for me.


Sure as fugg wasnt for what this country is now.
JFC.....


JMO.....

Edit

I'm smarter than the average national park bear looking for chubby treats.
And I had excellent leaders that I grew up as a joe under.
Learned right and wrong.
Hard right before the easy wrong is the way to roll.

LOL!!!

Why didn’t the US just adopt the MG 34/42?

Any of ya remember being an AR with a A1, clip on bipod , and a azzload of extra mags.
Fugging running rattling gypsy wagon...
Mags strewn all over ya. Cargo pockets full of em.

Gawddamm..
🥴🥴🥴😆😆😆😆


E1 at carson late 83 early 84.
All the newb dismounts got that schitt.
Bout 5 months for me.
Then 203 gunner then 60 AG

JFC.... Fuuging being an AR sucked..


Sally from gun smoke had less schitt....
🥴🥴🥴😂😂😂😂