Tag Archives: 50 cal

That’s one heck of a small arms locker

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Was reading up on 80-foot Nasty Boats (PTFs) used by the Navy during Vietnam and found the following tid bit from the most excellent N6CC.com site which covers military radios, MIUWUs, and a good bit of brown water Navy antics of the 1960s:

We carried approximately 20 M-16 Rifles, four .45 cal pistols, two .38 cal pistols, two M-60 machine guns, two M-79 grenade launchers, two M-870 12 gauge shotguns, a 40 mm Very pistol, a .45/70 line-throwing gun plus the .50 cal M2, two 20 mm cannons, the 40 mm cannon and the 81 mm mortar. Without a doubt, the most heavily armed vessel of its size anywhere.

Keep in mind these craft were slightly smaller than the Point-class Coast Guard cutters used in Market Time that we have covered here earlier.

Here are some shots from N6CC:

The M-16 was brand new at the time...note the AAA ring for the 40mm in the foreground (All photos via N6CC.com)

The M-16 was brand new at the time…note the AAA ring for the 40mm in the foreground (All photos via N6CC.com)

Nothing says Vietnam better than a waist level M60

Nothing says Vietnam better than a waist-level M60

Nice! The perfect accessory for your M2 .50 cal is always an 81mm mortar

Nice! The perfect accessory for your M2 .50 cal is always an 81mm mortar

That beautiful Bofors...keep in mind the Navy largely scrapped these from the fleet by the 1950s, but the PTFs were still putting them to good use in Southeast Asia long after that

That beautiful Bofors…keep in mind the Navy largely scrapped these from the fleet by the 1950s, but the PTFs were still putting them to good use in Southeast Asia long after that

More here

50 Cal BMG for the Common Shooter

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When the .50 caliber Browning Machine Gun round (12.7x99mm NATO) was introduced in 1921, it revolutionized the heavy machine gun/small cannon. It has been used in every war since then but hundreds of countries and is still is wide spread use around the world. The cartridge is large enough to sink ships, shoot down low flying aircraft, and disable unarmored vehicles. Capable of firing accurately out to and including 2600-yards with an 800-grain bullet, it is truly next level.

Since 1985, its use by hobbyists had expanded dramatically. Then, a good quality .50 rifles cost over $10,000 and was very hard to find outside of military circles. Today thousands of shooters enjoy making precision shots from 600-1000 yards regularly with these long-range systems. The Fifty Caliber Shooter Association (http://www.fcsa.org) sponsors over a dozen organized 1000-yard shoots around the country each year and has over 4000 members.
While still not as affordable as an old .22LR and a bucket of rimfire rounds, owning and shooting a .50BMG is close enough to many shooters to be able to swing.

Continued in my column at Firearms Talk

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