During the US congressional hearings on the effectiveness and reliability of the M16 rifle in Vietnam, INTERARMCO/Interarms owner, weapons broker and dealer Sam Cummings was called to testify as an expert on the capabilities of the M16 and the Vietnamese and Korean fielded M1 and M2 carbines, since the congressmen were suspicious about the forthrightness of some of the testimony they'd received from Army Ordnance senior officers.
Commenting on the Carbine's WWII development as a replacement for the pistol for rear-area and support troops and that accordingly, its performance was more akin to that of a .32 or .38 pistol rather than a serious Infantryman's rifle and that in comparison, it was a *dog,* the Representatives were mildly shocked when their own stenographer jumped up and said *He's right! He's right! During the Battle of the Bulge, I popped a Kraut with eight hits from with my carbine, and the bastard got back up and nailed me....*
It seems the congressional investigators hadn't needed to have gone to such great lengths to find a real expert. They had one working for them all along....
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As I said, I test firearms and ammunition. A carbine slub can petrate 10 inches of pine with no problem. I also test penetration on the steel of pick-up truck wheels. 41 and 44 magnums will push their way through 1/8 inch steel leaving a dent around the hole. A carbine melts its way through before the steel has a chance to dent.
It's difficult for me to believe a carbine shot wouldn't penetrate clothing.
Many people don't understand what it takes to kill. When I was in the army the old sergeants used to remark when you hit someone with a lethal shot, they don't go down immediately. The carbine or even the 30-06 or .308 leaves a clean wound in military ammunition dure to the Geneva Convention. Hitting a man in the foreward midline with a carbine would probably blow out his spine and bring him down immediately. A side gut shot or lung shot would be lethal, but not before he attacked another 50 or 100 yards and fell. The average solder who sees his buddy die during that interval assumes the enemy isn't being hit.
As sighted, the carbine has an effective distance of 125 yards. There are quick sight adjustments on the weapont for greater distances. Not one soldier in 10 was trained to use those adjustments.
The 30-06 and 308 are a different matter. At 300 yards the slug is just getting started. On Fort Leonard Wood trainfire, before most people here were born, I hit 46 out of 48 lethal shots at 300 yards with a Garand. That was the limit of my eyesight with partially corrected glasses. Anything 300 yards away takes a bullet. Basically, If I cans see it, it's in big trouble. Whether the targe runs another 50 or 100 yards after being hit is inconsequential at that range. Right now we don't have a widely distributed service rifle that can do that. If a Garand or M14 were scoped, nothing survives at 500 yards. Yes, I know they are not designed to be scoped.
I would have been in favor of taking the carbine design, lengthening the cartrige by 1/8 inch, using 1/16 inch more lead and a more powerful charge.