Posted on 03/24/2009 7:17:49 AM PDT by BronzePencil
Fun website that describes firearms used in movies, tv, etc.
For example, this is from the Saving Private Ryan page:
Perhaps the most commonly seen weapon in the movie, the M1 Garand is used by the majority of the U.S. soldiers seen in the film. The M1 Garand is easily identified by the characteristic ping it makes ejecting its clip after the last round in the en bloc clip is fired. Based on the way everyone can hold these weapons easily, they seem to be light weight models for easy handling in the film, which cuts the realism down a bit.
(Excerpt) Read more at imfdb.org ...
“-—and of course, the “ping” is of little or no consequence noise-wise when you have just fired 8 rounds of ‘06’s-—”
Or 4 rds of 8mm Mauser :-).
“...and it was the fictional story of modern day soldiers supplying the Confederacy with AK 47’s and how they had to change the training of using the weapons of that period..”
Truth is stranger than fiction. With the developement of the minnie ball, Rifle/Muskets and multi shot carbines the tactics changed greatly from 1861 to 1865.
Yeah, and that "This is my rifle, this is my gun" song could go on for a long time. Especially if it was the THIRD time.
The M-14 is a fine weapon and is the "son of the Garand," However for prone shooting the magazine on the bottom makes it less user friendly than the inblock clip of the Garand.
Note: In WWII a US infantry man shooting the Garand could lay down twice the rounds a Brit could with his 303 Enfield or the Germans with their Mauser. Both of which are bolt actions.
PS
If you go to Springfield, Mass and visit the Springfield Armory museum you can see the prototypes and the first production one off the line and the subsequent rifles number 1 million 2 million 3 million etc.
John C Garand, Moses Browning, and Stoner were all geniuses in the design of rifles and machine guns. Kalashnikov also but his AK was a modification of a German Design but do not sell him short. He improved it vastly and made it into a potent weapon.
Without any doubt they are the best production open military sight every made. User friendly, accurate, and you can adjust them by clicks and do not even need to look at the sight to do this. Count the click and you know what range it is sighted for. As I said, John C Garand was a genius!
“What’s the point?”
The point is that we see a little tiny bit of what our soldiers go through so we can be able to safely sit on our couches and watch movies and talk on the internet about how graphic they are. It gave me a deeper appreciation of the people who do go to war for us, and deal with all that so I don’t have to, although to be honest the only part of that movie that bothered me at all was the shot of the bloody ocean water washing up on the shore at Normandy, and that was beyond even what I’m used to seeing in terms of death and gore and such.
If you're going to list those names, you ought to toss in David "Carbine" Williams...
Michael Mann is notoriously obsessive about every detail. He's also notorious for driving his crews crazy. An editor once told me that a curse in Hollywood is "May you work for Michael Mann."
I have held and fired a M1, it is a long rifle, but it is not too bad to use... makes a nice ragged hole in targets too.
The Turtledove books are great.
For a greater sense of realism, “The Forever War” served as a fantastic counterpoint to “Starship Troopers”.
The “glory” of warfare is completely eliminated and both the reliance upon technology and the immediate dangers of technology are showcased quite well.
I on the other hand watch it once or twice a year to remind me of the bravery and sacrifices that our military has made to give us the freedom and liberty that we once had. Those in my age group (50s and 60s) can remember the freedom to say what you wanted without fear, for kids to play outside and after dark without fear, to view a policeman without fear and the list goes on and on. WE as a nation have allowed petty little dictators to progressively take away our freedoms one small step at a time and I do not know if we have the will to take them back. I hear a lot of talk but I see no actions.
Ah, yes. “The Forever War” by Joe Haldeman. What a great story.
I’m sure the homos don’t like it too much.
Yeah that is a pretty sweet setup. I am considering their XDM 9mm pistol.
LOL! The shootout in Heat was pretty incredible and realistic.
True dat. One thing it taught the smart generals was not to make a frontal infantry assault on a fortified position. Aimed fire could reach out and touch the individual soldier. Pity everybody forgot about that until it had to be relearned the hard way a half-century later. And that time they had Maxims.
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