12-10-2011, 07:27 PM
Yes, the Marines maneuvered and fought for a while against the enemy in the early days of the Vietnam War, but then their combat endurance was significantly increased with the adoption of the M16. The weight and length handicap of the M14 was one of the main factors in adoption of the M16, as was the increased ammunition capacity.
I can't stress enough how important magazine capacity is among dismounted infantry units. As a kid, I remember reading every LRRP, SF, Force Recon, SEAL, and first-person account of deployments to Vietnam. In one book, a LRRP described a particular firefight when his team had been compromised....
"I was down to 10 mags...." That was 200 rounds back then (10x20rd mags). That made a very distinct impression on me, since I had been collecting TA-50 from early childhood, and had my own full set of LC-1 ALICE gear, knowing full well what space would be taken up with 200rds of ammo.
Units equipped with M14's for every rifleman were extremely limited in their ability to press the fight...basically, you might make two bounds and you're done, at which point in time you have to stay in place and let the trail unit by-pass you to press the fight, as you wait for a re-supply. This creates more demand on number of bodies to press the fight, lulls in fire that allow the enemy to escape, and confusion as the spent unit tries to pass on enemy disposition, direction, and distance to the passing unit.
The caliber used by riflemen to press the attack doesn't warrant anything larger because they are already closing with the enemy as a numerically-superior force. Most of the fire is effective because of psychological persuasion, especially since riflemen don't have a ton of practical marksmanship training.
Another over-looked factor is how disorienting large-caliber muzzle blast is to your buddies left and right. 5.56 is the most minimal offender in this respect, but is still somewhat of a problem to be dealt with in close proximity to friendlies who are trying to keep the enemy's location and movements fixed, which is a fleeting game with very little positive results usually.
I can't stress enough how important magazine capacity is among dismounted infantry units. As a kid, I remember reading every LRRP, SF, Force Recon, SEAL, and first-person account of deployments to Vietnam. In one book, a LRRP described a particular firefight when his team had been compromised....
"I was down to 10 mags...." That was 200 rounds back then (10x20rd mags). That made a very distinct impression on me, since I had been collecting TA-50 from early childhood, and had my own full set of LC-1 ALICE gear, knowing full well what space would be taken up with 200rds of ammo.
Units equipped with M14's for every rifleman were extremely limited in their ability to press the fight...basically, you might make two bounds and you're done, at which point in time you have to stay in place and let the trail unit by-pass you to press the fight, as you wait for a re-supply. This creates more demand on number of bodies to press the fight, lulls in fire that allow the enemy to escape, and confusion as the spent unit tries to pass on enemy disposition, direction, and distance to the passing unit.
The caliber used by riflemen to press the attack doesn't warrant anything larger because they are already closing with the enemy as a numerically-superior force. Most of the fire is effective because of psychological persuasion, especially since riflemen don't have a ton of practical marksmanship training.
Another over-looked factor is how disorienting large-caliber muzzle blast is to your buddies left and right. 5.56 is the most minimal offender in this respect, but is still somewhat of a problem to be dealt with in close proximity to friendlies who are trying to keep the enemy's location and movements fixed, which is a fleeting game with very little positive results usually.