Doing the Right Thing with the People’s Money

by John M. Buol Jr.

The U.S. Army Reserve Marksmanship Training and Competitive Program has long been in compliance with the vision of Chief of Army Reserve and Commanding General, Lieutenant General Charles D. Luckey.

We do the correct thing and usher in inclusivity by providing means for all Soldiers of the Reserve to participate in training that takes them beyond qualification and increases their readiness and lethality. All USAR Soldiers are invited to Army Reserve events, such as our Midwestern.
https://armyreservemarksman.info/2018-usar-midwestern-wrapup/

However, it isn’t feasible for everyone to attend in-person events and training. To ensure everyone has a chance to participate, the World-wide Chief, Army Reserve Postal Matches are distributed events that all units can conduct during routine qualification without scheduling any additional resources, ranges, or time to do so.

https://armyreservemarksman.info/postal-match/

All Reservists are eligible to submit for annual marksmanship awards. Deadline is September 15 for the end of each Fiscal Year.

https://armyreservemarksman.info/usar-marksmanship-awards/

More examples of how the U.S. Army Reserve Marksmanship Training and Competitive Program is Doing the Right Thing with the People’s Money.

U.S. Army Reserve Shooting Team: Saving Money
https://armyreservemarksman.info/us-army-reserve-shooting-team-saving-money/

Want to get the training benefit of extra Battle Assemblies for free? Here’s how:
U.S. Army Reserve Shooting Team: Matches Are Training
https://armyreservemarksman.info/us-army-reserve-shooting-team-matches-are-training/

U.S. Army Reserve Shooting Team: Serving The Force
https://armyreservemarksman.info/us-army-reserve-shooting-team-serving-the-force/

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All-Around Champion At National Matches?

by John M. Buol Jr.

From 1935 to 1939, an All-Around Championship was held to determine the best Smallbore, High Power, and Precision Pistol marksman.

The DuPont Trophy, a bronze statue of a medieval archer poised with his longbow at full draw, was bestowed on the winner of the All-Around Championship. This aggregate match comprised a centerfire pistol National Match Course; preliminary Smallbore Dewar Match Course; and four High Power matches that included slow fire; standing and prone, and rapid fire; sitting and prone, at ranges form 200 to 1000 yards for an aggregate of 1100 points. In 1935 and 1936, a service pistol aggregate was also fired, along with a 200-yard Smallbore rifle prone slow fire match and a 50-yard and 100-yard, 40-shot Smallbore prone match instead of the preliminary Dewar for an aggregate of 19000 points.

Winners of the All-Around Championship
1939: 1st Lt. Walter R. Walsh, U.S. Marine Corps Reserve (1058/1100)
1938: Petty Officer 1st Class Melvon O. Wilson, U.S. Coast Guard (1054/2200)
1937: 2nd Lt. William Hancock, Infantry, U.S. Army (1051/1100)
1936: Capt. Sidney R. Hinds, Infantry, U.S. Army (1797/1900)
1935: Deputy Henry J. Adams, Jr., San Diego County, California, Sheriff’s Department (1848/1900)

Competitors firing in the All-Around Championship not only had to hustle between ranges, but also needed the mental ability to adapt from one shooting discipline to another. After the demise of the All-Around Championship at Camp Perry, the DuPont Trophy was awarded to the NRA Service Rifle Champion, beginning in 1951.

https://www.ssusa.org/articles/2018/8/16/all-around-champion-at-national-matches/

https://competitions.nra.org/documents/pdf/compete/nat-trophy/tro-070.pdf

https://www.ssusa.org/articles/2017/8/3/hallmarks-of-heritage-the-nra-trophy-collection

Machine Gun Training

by John M. Buol Jr.

EVERY 0331 that goes through AMGC does high angle fire. Slow news day?

– Joe R Heft

A variety of gunnery skills are taught during USMC Advanced Machine Gunner Course but most Army personnel remain oblivious to gunnery with machine guns and are rarely competent with them beyond loading and minimal marksmanship on easy and well-defined point targets.

In fact, most Army personnel have been conducting machine gun qualification incorrectly and failing to achieve published standards. Consider this from the new small arms training manual:

TC 3-20.40
7-119

Table IV-B requires gunners to practice trigger control and requires the firer to fire one five to seven round burst at each specified point target or series of targets in the area target sequences. Gunners are authorized to fire only one five to seven round burst at each paster. [Emphasis added]

The authors explicitly spell this out due to recognizing most Army personnel have failed to perform at this standard but it is NOT a new/different standard. This is not a change to doctrine or a new qualification, this is the way the qual was always supposed to be run. Simple arithmetic of the number of rounds issued during qualification, the number of rounds per burst to be fired, and the number of target areas engaged confirms this. The explicit instruction was forced in due to a large number of Army personnel that don’t math good.

Lack of skill with this equipment is, unfortunately, common.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/funshoot/6192448113/in/album-72157627774486210/
backwards-load-MG

Operation Cold Steel has been less than stellar…

Such “expertise” is rampant:

army handgun pew

Marines practice rarely trained machine gun tactic that could take out Russian vehicles

The Marine Corps is in Bulgaria practicing high-angle fire with a 40 mm grenade launching machine gun known as the Mk-19… The tactic could be beneficial in striking down infantry troops behind walls or protection, or taking out advancing Russian armor and light-skinned vehicles.

With seamless communications and competent forward observers, high-angle Mk-19 fire could also be used to rapidly and easily walk rounds onto an enemy target, according to several machine gunners.

It’s a skill set learned at the Marine Corps’ six-week Advanced Machine Gunner Course.

More:
https://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/your-marine-corps/2018/07/18/marines-practice-rarely-trained-machine-gun-tactic-to-prepare-for-a-fight-with-russia/

https://firearmusernetwork.com/soldiers-take-aim-and-miss/

https://firearmusernetwork.com/machine-gun-gunnery-commonwealth-militaries/

https://firearmusernetwork.com/death-of-machine-gun-gunnery/

https://firearmusernetwork.com/comparing-small-arms-training-wwii-today/

https://firearmusernetwork.com/suppressive-fire-cyclic-rates/
https://firearmusernetwork.com/suppressive-fire-myth-fact/

https://firearmusernetwork.com/automatic-rifles-should-the-m249-be-replaced/

https://firearmusernetwork.com/the-emma-gees-by-herbert-mcbride-part-1/