Wally has written a very interesting guest post at MArooned blog about the 57mm M18A1 recoilless rifle.
Note the interesting cartridge design. The cartridge is intentionally covered with holes to vent gas into the gun.
Very nice. I’ve always wanted to try one of those.
All I know is that I want one.
Greetings from Texas,
The closest I have gotten to any of these were a couple of DWATs mounted on M274 Mules. I wasn’t aware of the subcaliber training devices in .22 and 6.5 Carcano. I saw the .30-06 version for sale at a gun show, I think in the 80's.
I thought it was neat, but since I didn’t have the recoilless rifle it seemed pointless. I didn’t see the point of MP-40 parts kits either. Live and learn.
I worked with a guy who used these for avalanche control in a ski area. He said they were very accurate and fun to shoot. He said it was no problem to hit within a foot of aiming point from almost a mile.
Did someone go into the time machine to Operation Varsity?
The M-84 Carl Gustav is far more effective being solder fired rather than from a tripod.
Thanks for the linky love! The M18A1 is an absolute *hoot* to fire – although with the .30-06 insert, it’s really somewhat of a let-down.
Thanks so much to Wally for sharing her story, and especially for letting me shoot this piece of history!