Stories of the M1 carbine that have been told to me by the men that used them in battle.
One a WWII Marine. He was issued the M1 carbine being a 60mm mortar man. His first action that he saw was in an assault on a small part of an island that had a look out and communications post on it as a warning station for one of the larger island chains that invasion was planed for. He said they hit the beach in rubber boats trying to sneak up on the japs. When he got out of the boat he looked up and all he saw was green teeth and a bayonet that looked 3 feet long. He said that the japs came running out of the jungle toward them and the one that he fixated on had his bayoneted rifle held high screaming something as he ran. He dropped to one knee and started firing his carbine. He said that he knew that he was hitting him in the torso because he could see dust coming off his uniform but the jap kept coming. He then dropped his aim and shot him in the legs and he went down. This Jap as well as about 30 others were taken care of in just a short time and they accomplished their objective. He said that he went back to the jap that he knew he had killed and he counted 5 hits in his torso two in one leg and one in the other. He then said the he went over to where another marine had been killed and picked up his Thompson sub machine gun and ammo with support gear. He then went up to the nearest palm tree and while holding the barrel of that M1 carbine he swung it against the tree and beat it into pieces and then threw it in the ocean. He said that the Thompson was heaver but he never had to worry about a jap not going down when he turned it loose on him.
Another WWII Army veteran told this to me. He was in Hawaii when the japs attacked Peral Harbor and said he wanted to go kill japs but in the wisdom of the Army they sent him to kill Germans. After D day of which he went ashore on D+2 as a squad leader sometime after the break out of the hedgerow country his platoon assaulted a two story house that the Germans were using as a artillery observation post. After taking the house that they wanted to use for the same purpose. It was getting late in the evening and would be dark in about an hour he decided to post his squad in the down stairs part of the house for the night. Everyone took off their equipment and most leaned their rifles against the wall near them and all of a sudden there was a shot fired outside and one of his squad members that just happened to walk past where one of the windows had been fell dead from a shot the head. As he ran over to the man he then looked out the window and saw a German jump up from behind some big rocks about 100 yards away and start running away. He said that he just reached down and picked up the closest weapon and it was a M1 carbine. He said that he fired the whole magazine at the German and never touched him but he said that he bet that the fellow was still running. He did not like the M1 carbine, he LOVED the M1 Garand and he somehow brought his home with him after the war and it was a WINCHESTER of which I got to handle after he told me this story while in his home.
My hunting buddy was a Marine that did three tours in Vietnam. He was in a helicopter outfit. His first tour was the first Marine helicopters that went to Vietnam. They had not been in country but a few days and went out to take some grunts out someplace and on the way back they had engine trouble and had to put down. Since anyplace you were in Vietnam was hostile country especially at night which Charlie owned it was not a pleasant thought of being without a weapon that could put out some heavy firepower volume if you got shot down or had be only with just your small crew like that night if Charles decided to visit and you had to leave the chopper. They did not have any trouble that night and another chopper came out the next morning with what was needed to repair theirs. Within just a couple days my buddy said he had scrounged up what we wanted as a personal defense weapon. It was a M2 carbine, the ARVN had lots of them, that he sawed the barrel off where the bayonet stud handguard clamp ended and sawed off the stock and fashioned a pistol grip. He filled his M14 ammo pouches with 30 round magazines and also filled a tool bag full and placed them under his seat on the chopper so he could grab them in a hurry if needed. He made a sling that he could strap the "pistol" across his chest. He never had to use this against hostiles but he said that it was a pretty good security blanket. He said on a chopper an M14 was hard to handle and you never had it at hand when it was really needed. He mostly used the machine guns mounted on the choppers. By his second tour he had an M16 and was then a crew chief. He liked the M16 for the type of close range fighting they usually faced in Vietnam once they got the bugs worked out of it and issued cleaning equipment because like any weapon you need to keep it clean for it to function.
My dad was issued an M1 carbine during WWII but he was in the Army Air Corps, 15th Airforce with B24s. Only thing living he ever shot with it was an alligator while in Trinidad after the war in Europe was over and they were getting ready to head toward Japan.
One a WWII Marine. He was issued the M1 carbine being a 60mm mortar man. His first action that he saw was in an assault on a small part of an island that had a look out and communications post on it as a warning station for one of the larger island chains that invasion was planed for. He said they hit the beach in rubber boats trying to sneak up on the japs. When he got out of the boat he looked up and all he saw was green teeth and a bayonet that looked 3 feet long. He said that the japs came running out of the jungle toward them and the one that he fixated on had his bayoneted rifle held high screaming something as he ran. He dropped to one knee and started firing his carbine. He said that he knew that he was hitting him in the torso because he could see dust coming off his uniform but the jap kept coming. He then dropped his aim and shot him in the legs and he went down. This Jap as well as about 30 others were taken care of in just a short time and they accomplished their objective. He said that he went back to the jap that he knew he had killed and he counted 5 hits in his torso two in one leg and one in the other. He then said the he went over to where another marine had been killed and picked up his Thompson sub machine gun and ammo with support gear. He then went up to the nearest palm tree and while holding the barrel of that M1 carbine he swung it against the tree and beat it into pieces and then threw it in the ocean. He said that the Thompson was heaver but he never had to worry about a jap not going down when he turned it loose on him.
Another WWII Army veteran told this to me. He was in Hawaii when the japs attacked Peral Harbor and said he wanted to go kill japs but in the wisdom of the Army they sent him to kill Germans. After D day of which he went ashore on D+2 as a squad leader sometime after the break out of the hedgerow country his platoon assaulted a two story house that the Germans were using as a artillery observation post. After taking the house that they wanted to use for the same purpose. It was getting late in the evening and would be dark in about an hour he decided to post his squad in the down stairs part of the house for the night. Everyone took off their equipment and most leaned their rifles against the wall near them and all of a sudden there was a shot fired outside and one of his squad members that just happened to walk past where one of the windows had been fell dead from a shot the head. As he ran over to the man he then looked out the window and saw a German jump up from behind some big rocks about 100 yards away and start running away. He said that he just reached down and picked up the closest weapon and it was a M1 carbine. He said that he fired the whole magazine at the German and never touched him but he said that he bet that the fellow was still running. He did not like the M1 carbine, he LOVED the M1 Garand and he somehow brought his home with him after the war and it was a WINCHESTER of which I got to handle after he told me this story while in his home.
My hunting buddy was a Marine that did three tours in Vietnam. He was in a helicopter outfit. His first tour was the first Marine helicopters that went to Vietnam. They had not been in country but a few days and went out to take some grunts out someplace and on the way back they had engine trouble and had to put down. Since anyplace you were in Vietnam was hostile country especially at night which Charlie owned it was not a pleasant thought of being without a weapon that could put out some heavy firepower volume if you got shot down or had be only with just your small crew like that night if Charles decided to visit and you had to leave the chopper. They did not have any trouble that night and another chopper came out the next morning with what was needed to repair theirs. Within just a couple days my buddy said he had scrounged up what we wanted as a personal defense weapon. It was a M2 carbine, the ARVN had lots of them, that he sawed the barrel off where the bayonet stud handguard clamp ended and sawed off the stock and fashioned a pistol grip. He filled his M14 ammo pouches with 30 round magazines and also filled a tool bag full and placed them under his seat on the chopper so he could grab them in a hurry if needed. He made a sling that he could strap the "pistol" across his chest. He never had to use this against hostiles but he said that it was a pretty good security blanket. He said on a chopper an M14 was hard to handle and you never had it at hand when it was really needed. He mostly used the machine guns mounted on the choppers. By his second tour he had an M16 and was then a crew chief. He liked the M16 for the type of close range fighting they usually faced in Vietnam once they got the bugs worked out of it and issued cleaning equipment because like any weapon you need to keep it clean for it to function.
My dad was issued an M1 carbine during WWII but he was in the Army Air Corps, 15th Airforce with B24s. Only thing living he ever shot with it was an alligator while in Trinidad after the war in Europe was over and they were getting ready to head toward Japan.