13-072 M14 :-) Picture of the Day - Vietnam

[Nibbs]

Stumbled onto this:

LINK: One Lucky Marine and His M14 Rifle
http://www.usmilitariaforum.com/foru...ach_id=1062653

One Lucky Marine and His M14 Rifle - FIREARMS & ORDNANCE - U.S. Militaria Forum

"Posted 23 January 2016 - 01:45 PM

The caption to this press photo reads: Bull's Eye - U.S. Marine PFC. Jerry D. Goff of St. Louis MO. examines a split barrel of his M-14 rifle which was hit square in the bore by Viet Cong sniper bullet during exchange of fire with guerrillas at My Song, south of DaNang. Goff was slightly wounded in the face by the freak occurrence.

AP Wire Photo April 25, 1965

Yeah, I'd say he was real lucky!

Regards,

Charlie"

Information

Warning: This is a relatively older thread This discussion is older than 360 days. Some information contained in it may no longer be current.

[Flying10uk]

A photo such a this perhaps helps to confirm that war can, at times, be very much a lottery of who lives, who is injured and who is killed. If the marine seen here had been positioned either an inch further to the left or right he probably would have been seriously injured or killed.

[CINDERS]

Somewhere there is I heard of a 303 with a mauser round right up the spout from the wrong end happened I think in the mud & blood of WWI whilst the two combatant types were trying to kill each other from their respective trenches.

[RCS]

On Gallipoli during 1915, Australian sniper Billy Sing (estimated 200 kills) and his observer Tom Sheehan had a close call with Turkish snipers. A Turkish
snipers bullet hit the telescope that observer Tom Sheehan was using and the spent bullet hit Sings shoulder. Both men were alright

[Tom in N.J.]

"Sniper bullet" a good story, hard to prove or disprove, to avoid a statement of charges for the rifle muzzle stuck in the mud as a walking aid... (happened to a good friend of mine, it didn't work!)

[browningautorifle]

Old thread and post...

Thing is it HAS been documented before and we have SOME proof. I know some of these guys went into fantastic bullet storms, why couldn't it have happened? Too, I've seen my share, everything from a barrel full of crap to a blank attachment left on.

I can't say, I wasn't there...

[Bill Hollinger]

I have to say I find the sniper bullet a little far fetched but sense I was not there a can’t refute it. I have, however, seen a number “plugged” muzzles that when fired resulted in this exact catastrophic barrel failure.

[Flying10uk]

If supposing that the rifle seen here (OP) was indeed hit by enemy fire, would fire from a standard infantry rifle, fired at some distance away, do this much damage to an opponent's rifle barrel. A 50 cal round may but I am referring to 7.62mm cal. and below. I do not know the answer to this question.

[browningautorifle]

the sniper bullet a little far fetched

I think it would be better suggested that it was a stray round during a firefight that the press suggesting a sniper.

this much damage

The damage was from him firing a ball round with a fully plugged barrel. Yes, this is one type of damage you could expect.

[CINDERS]

And no doubt a hefty recoil and muzzle blast............!