I got some gloves from supply..its all a matter knowing the headspace and timing...I was on a Sheridan tank, the .50 is mounted on top the turret.
The main gun was 152mm..we had heat rounds and a “flechette” round which had 10,000 metal darts in the shell casing. The TC’s firing and control handle was moved from the sitting position and placed so the main gun and 60 could be fired from the hip while standing in the cupola..
It was a very brave Gook to rise up and attempt to fire his RPG on me..
Loved firing that 152. Used to laugh when the TC opened up with the .50 - bap, bap, bap. Then on the way and the whole world shook!
If you ain’t Cav..
We had the asbestos gloves - I don’t care how hard core a man was, they were needed for the .50. We grabbed the 60 barrel by the tripod.
I did like the flechette rounds, we had buckshot rounds for our M-79. There was one Coronado operation in the Delta in December 67 when they would have come in handy but the 155 battery we supported didn’t have them. We dropped off five 155 self propelled howitzers with 200 tons of ammo apiece. Returning the next morning with another 200 tons each and they were down to the rounds in their turrets. They had fired all night at 0-0, 0 elevation and 0 time on the fuses. The round blew when it left the barrel. They had been hit by an infantry assault - intelligence said to expect a few mines and sniper fire! I turned out to be a sizable fight and the 9th Div was hit heavily.
Addendum - we set head space and timing by simply screwing the barrel in all the way and backing it out three clicks. Worked great - we had no gauge.