An M14 for me, and I don't remember the serial number.
The rifle that I was issued in IOBC in 1977 was a preproduction XM16 without the forward assist plunger.
Only one I remember was the M-16.
I trained and shot with a M14 for a few months, I got along with it well and shot well with it. A couple of months before we were to ship out to Nam, they took away our M14's and handed us M-16's, We only had a few weeks to train with it and while I really did not care for it, I qualified as "expert", and sailed off to Vietnam. As I was not in a line company, we did little shooting but did incur harassment fire from the VC occasionally, usually at night.When I got home I swore that I would never have another ( M16) but of course since then I have owned two of them.
Army 1978 M16A1
Came back in commissioned in 87 and it was the M16A2
M1 Garand, Fort Chaffee, Arkansas. 1959.
L.W.
Drilled with a 03 Springfield, indoor shooting with a Mossberg 44, live fire weapons training with M-14, M-79 and Browning 30 caliber MG. Was issued a M-16 halfway through my tour in Vietnam, kept the M-14 and Stevens shotgun, used the M-14 when running equipment, the shotgun on the few patrols I went on and guard duty.
We used the M-16 in basic training but still had M-14s back at the NG armory. Never liked the 16 as well as the M-14. Never liked the spray and play and the plastic feel of the 16.
Still prefer 30 caliber for hunting and killing stuff. Like walnut and steel for eye appeal. Did shoot expert and was small bore 3 position champ of the battalion for 2 years in a row. Way back when I had good eyes and my body wasn’t worn out.
M16A1. MCRD San Diego 1979, Platoon 3048.
M16A1, Lackland AFB, TX 1977
.30 Carbine in USAF 62-66. Later shot Expert with the little rifle..
M16a1 in Basic. At Ft. Sam Houston we each had an M14 assigned to us and the armory was full of them. But, since we might get them dirty shooting them, we were never as much as allowed to touch them let alone shoot them. When I worked security at a missile base in Alaska in the middle 1970's it was another M16a1. I went back into the Guard in 1985 and we had M16a2's in the armory.
kwg
M16A1, Army Basic Combat Training 1986 Ft Sill, OK.
M-1 1958 Ft Ord Calif. Rio7
M-1 Ft Ord California Rio7