A question about warfare.. for those who have been

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Hi, there. So, as you all know, I saw the movie "American Sniper" over the weekend. It was a good movie, but not something that I would want to see again. However, it did re-kindle a question that I had, and I would like to ask it here, of our former and active Military members, who have seen combat: (And I would like to take this time to thank you for your service.)
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My question regards the "use of enemy small arms on the battlefield." Let me explain...

Several times, we see the platoon of armed forced breaching doors and entering houses and etc etc. They shoot around the corners, ok, cool... but sometimes, they get pinned down and have to do a lot of exchanging fire. However, something I never did quite get: They have a "set" amount of ammunition. I understand the traditional infantry weapon to be some kind of M16-A2. So... let's visualize: We have just "taken down" perhaps, let us say, 2, 3, 4, 5 enemy soldiers. They are well armed. In this arena, they more than likely have "some kind of an AK." Everyone says AK-47; we all know that there are many AKs, some even 5.56, though not the same exact as the NATO round.. (5x45 maybe.) Anyways. I got a little off track. The KIND of ammo isn't important...

Wound, in a situation of running low on ammunition, a US soldier do something like in the video game "Doom" or "Doom 2," and use the weapon of the disabled or at least dead enemy? Basically, and in a nutshell: Using the weapons that were being fired at you, taking them physically off the enemy soldier, and using those to "rock out" and fire back? Maybe not for an assault, but to a retreat? Perhaps to an armored Humvee or something?

I never did understand how there can seemingly be a lot of small arms/assault weapons (?) around, on enemy soldiers, and the US soldiers not even so much as touch one, by trained soldiers that know what to do with them, when it may very well have some live fire that they could then use to secure/advance on ... the enemy territory.

?
 
They did whatever was necessary. Guys in Vietnam would use the AK as early M16's had a few 'issues' to sort out to eliminate jamming.
 
From my conversations with guys. Ammo was plentiful. Engagements are short. Full auto rare.

Am. Sniper was good and although everything in the movie happened in the book, with some minor changes, not everything happened in that order and not everything in in the book was in the movie (ex. Porn used as a way of dealing with stress while on deployment, Jesse Ventura encounter).
 
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I was in Vietnam 67-68. I can only speak for my Infantry unit. We only had M-16's, M-60's, and M-79's, and our officers carried CAR-15's and a side arm. Each man who carried a M-16 carried a minimum of 14, 20 round clips and we only filled them with 18 rounds each. You were welcome to carry as much as you felt you could hump, ammo, grenades, chow, etc. Rarely did anyone use full auto. M-60's provided plenty of that when needed. Many engagements were short, hit and run type. Large engagements we had support from ARTY, gun ships, Puff, and at night Spooky. There is real war and then there is Hollywood. There is fact and there is [censored].
 
Every weapon has a distinct sound. Picking an enemy weapon and shooting it may cause your fellow troops to shoot at you.
 
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The Chinese copy of the Browning .50 was .51 cal which meant they could use our ammo but their ammo wouldn't chamber in a Browning.
 
This is worth a read:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Eldest_Son


Captured ammunition was partially disassembled and reassembled with substituted components. Rifle and machine gun cartridges had the smokeless powder replaced with a high explosive of similar appearance which would generate approximately five times the design pressure of firearms. The bolt and pieces of an exploding AK-47 receiver would typically be projected backward into the head of the individual firing the rifle. Substitute fuzes were placed in the mortar shells to detonate the shell when the mortar fired. Explosions of the team-fired machine guns and mortars often killed or injured anyone near the exploding weapon
 
Basically, you do what you can to survive.

My bother did several tours in Iraq/Afghanistan. He told me it was common for soldiers to pick up Glocks and AK's from the battlefield. Now if they used them or not was really up their on scene commanding officer. Since AK's are not nearly as accurate as M4's, using that weapon would be quite a disadvantage in certain situations. The AK does a better job of shooting through barriers though than the M4.
 
Bingo,

In the fog of battle, pick up another rifle and you may find friendly fire coming your way. Different sound, different silhouette and someone on your side might mistake you for an enemy.

Not saying it's not worth a shot in a him or me circumstance. Just understand the potential risks.

Originally Posted By: ronbo
Every weapon has a distinct sound. Picking an enemy weapon and shooting it may cause your fellow troops to shoot at you.
 
Originally Posted By: Lapham3
They did whatever was necessary. Guys in Vietnam would use the AK as early M16's had a few 'issues' to sort out to eliminate jamming.


Early M-16s had issues due to lack of cleaning kits. The early M-16 gets dirty real fast due its design.
 
Originally Posted By: Doog
Originally Posted By: Lapham3
They did whatever was necessary. Guys in Vietnam would use the AK as early M16's had a few 'issues' to sort out to eliminate jamming.


Early M-16s had issues due to lack of cleaning kits. The early M-16 gets dirty real fast due its design.


I thought it was the powder (ball vs. Flaked).
 
The early ball powder left a lot of fouling. Too many troops were leaving a round chambered over extended periods that combined with fouling and corrosion was then stuck in the chamber. This caused more trouble when it was fired as the extractor then pulled the head off the case. Guys were found dead with cleaning rods down the barrel and confidence lost led to AKs being used. Barrels and chambers were then chromed to counter this.
 
Originally Posted By: Lapham3
The early ball powder left a lot of fouling. Too many troops were leaving a round chambered over extended periods that combined with fouling and corrosion was then stuck in the chamber. This caused more trouble when it was fired as the extractor then pulled the head off the case. Guys were found dead with cleaning rods down the barrel and confidence lost led to AKs being used. Barrels and chambers were then chromed to counter this.


Did they not used to put condoms on the barrels of the M-1-14 (early) and then M-16 to keep them free of dirt and sand and mud?
 
Originally Posted By: MalfunctionProne
Did they not used to put condoms on the barrels of the M-1-14 (early) and then M-16 to keep them free of dirt and sand and mud?
We preferred to cover the entire weapon, but my size condoms were scarce.
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