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Cut Down M1 Carbine into Pistol?


Dakota
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In 1970, I needed something I could fire from my Kiowa, OH-58A. After earlier atempts I settled on the M2. I cut down the barrel and had our armorer crown it. I then cut off the stock just in back of the "pistol grip". I only fired it in the air on a few occasions other than testing. I occasionally had to cover artillery convoy moves when guns were not available. These guys would get holed up for a while and not want to move. Get sniped at and the convoy would halt. I had a senior commander on board screaming at the battery commander over our radio as I would try to locate the firing. Normally through the canopy I would not see any flashes, but a few full auto bursts from that noisy little gun helped the fire and the guys in the cconvoy thought they had a gunshop protecting them. Darn thing in low light would belch about a foot anfd a half of flame out of it. I would tape one magazine to two inverted for easy changing.

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  • 2 years later...
Salvage Sailor

Check out the Navy Seawolves cut down carbine at 5:30 in this film

 

 

Full thread on items in the film being discussed on the Ships and Vessels board

USS ALBERT DAVID (DE-1050)

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Check out the Navy Seawolves cut down carbine at 5:30 in this film

 

 

Full thread on items in the film being discussed on the Ships and Vessels board

USS ALBERT DAVID (DE-1050)

 

Great example of the cut down carbine

 

 

 

D

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439th Signal Battalion

The VC/NVA used them as well (or perhaps they were captured from the ARVN to begin with and then recaptured again). This carbine was on display at the 199th LIB's Redcatcher Museum while the Brigade was in Vietnam.

 

post-4009-0-69175400-1435492525.jpg

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Charlie Flick

The VC/NVA used them as well (or perhaps they were captured from the ARVN to begin with and then recaptured again).

 

Here is another one that I noticed on the website of the 15th Field Artillery at:

 

http://www.landscaper.net/theguns.htm#Miscellaneous US weapons

 

The caption says: ".30 cal M2 carbine taken off a dead Sapper. Photo: Jim Baggett."

 

Cutdown M2 carbine captured from VC sapper.jpg

 

Regards,

Charlie

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blitzkrieg gsd

What a waste of a good rifle why would this ever be done in the first place. The member who said he used his in his chopper had a need for a small weapon I agree. But why not get a greese gun there had to be plenty of them around in Nam.

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Garandomatic

Maybe they didn't like the cyclic rate of a grease gun. I'd also imagine carbines would be extremely common and easy to get a hold of.

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A couple years ago I picked up a Universal M1 Enforcer at a local gun show. It had a sling attached to it and 2 30 road magazines held together with a jungle clip. It had been used during the course of a bank robbery in Bensalem, PA. and carried on the sling under a 3/4 length trenchcoat. Bensalem, unlike most municipalities, sell guns used in crimes after the court case is closed to registered gun dealers for resale. Cost me $400 and I only use it for home defense in Philadelphia. It is fun to shoot, but if you are trying to hit something with it other than an intruder coming up your steps, forget it. And it is registered as a pistol.

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blitzkrieg gsd

See that's what I'm saying you can't hit nothing with a weapon like that. Just like the member above says in his post they just are not accurate weapons all cut up. There other guns out there that were available at the time that would be accurate enough for the job at hand. It's just a solution to a problem that don't exist.

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  • 4 months later...

Darby (Ronnie in post #15), good call!

 

Here's a photo of the cut-down carbine and jacket Hearst wore during one of the armed robberies.

 

post-3632-0-60110400-1449870826.jpg

 

Dale

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Thanks Dale. I paid a lot of attention to that case back then. I was right out of high school and was intrigued

by that entire episode.

Ronnie

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Funny the concepts folks get about historical situations.

99% of the GIs, even in the field had no opportunity or authorization to acquire exotic or personal weapons of any sort.

 

You just don't decide you're going to get a grease gun or a Carbine or what ever.

 

SF and a lot of recon types had some choices as did some of the pilots who chipped in.

 

Average GI got what was handed to him and that was the story.

 

M2 Carbines were some of the most common pieces seen there in the hands of the Viets.

My camp strikers were carrying them and Garands and .30 cals in 1968.

I was issued a new in the bos M2 in 1968 and had to carry it.

 

A lot of combat in heavy growth was just a few feet-could not see any farther.

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  • 2 years later...
Charlie Flick

I ran across this excellent image and thought it would be appropriate to add to this old thread. Loach aviators with cut down stock M1 Carbine. (Photo credit to Bill Buffington, the guy on the left.)

 

Carbine cut down Bob Buffington and Dave Mitchell OH-6 SVN.jpeg

 

Regards,

Charlie

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  • 2 weeks later...

post-80-0-09922800-1522745400_thumb.jpeg

 

A cut-down M1 carbine, early Duckhunter poncho liner, NVA backpack, Tigerstripe cammo and a puppy, all in 1 photo. I think I ticked all the boxes? :lol:

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The two pictured magazines are from the estate of a Lt General. While a brigade commander in Vietnam, the General carried a sawed off M2 carbine under the seat of his helicopter and frequently fired it out the window at VC and NVA. The stock was sawed off leaving only a pistol grip and the barrel was only 10 inches long. The magazines, which have been loaded since Vietnam, remained in the possession of the General's son, a West Point grad and Green Beret who served with FANK during the closing years of the Vietnam War..

 

post-56764-0-01590300-1522781446.jpg

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I think I remember seeing a photo of GEN. SCHWARTZKOPF in RVN holding one of these sawed off carbines.

 

Roger that. This was all I could find but I remember reading in his biography that he carried a cut down M2.

 

ss-121227-schwarzkopf-02.fit-880w.jpg

 

They shape of the pistol grip looks like from an M1A1 sans wire stock.

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