“You better tell SGT ----- that when he comes to get his ----------ing weapon, he better be wearing ----------- body armor. I’m pissed.”
So, we have this NCO who goes on leave. Prior to going on leave, he fills out a DA 5988-E (Electronic replacement for DA 2404, which is a maintenance worksheet). On this he list “No Faults Found”. This is an NCO, he should know what he’s talking about.
Silly me, I thought that meant I could breeze through services. So I service the rifle, no problem. I went to check out the M-203. First step, functions check. In other words, does the weapon WORK? Step one of the functions check is cock the weapon, step two is pull the trigger. The firing pin should shoot forwards, which if the weapon were loaded would hit the primer which would ignite the propellant, which would shoot the grenade out of the weapon. In other words, this is the whole reason we have the weapon.
Nothing happens.
I do it again. Nothing happens. Now I’m annoyed—and the weapon is ‘deadlined’. I check out the operator’s manual and sure enough, that’s the first step of the operator level PMCS. OK, I zip to the troubleshooting portion of the armorer manual. I do a couple quick checks that don’t identify the problem, and then it is time to disassemble the receiver. I pull it apart, and it quickly becomes evident the problem is a revolting black dirt/oil/carbon/sand mixture gumming up the works. Ten minutes with q-tips, a pipe cleaner, and lubricant, and problem is solved. Weapon works like a charm. Hooray for me! But I’m ready to sue the dumb bastard for custody. How long has he been walking around with a large, heavy useless chunk of steel attached to his weapon that serves no purpose. And it was such a simple fix, too. It frustrates me how little effort people put into weapon maintenance. A few minutes a day to clean up your weapon (don’t get me started on senior NCOs with layers of chunked dirt on their weapons—but whose privates have clean weapons) and look for any obvious deficiencies does wonders towards keeping it functional. And if it isn’t functional, I sit in the arms room and read books, write, and take naps pretty much all day. I welcome something constructive to do. You’d think this would be a priority in a war zone, but I guess not.
Last night I snuck off the FOB for a few hours. Got the hairy fobbit feet trimmed down a little. Nothing happened (of course) but we actually went into Ramadi. We kind of missed the whole four hour firefight along the route. Y’all are probably happy, I’m not so much so.
http://jeremayakovka.typepad.com/jeremayakovka/2006/07/a_birds_eye_per.html
On the Lebanese front of the Global War on Terror (I gives a damn what George Bush thinks, it's all one war to me--and it's a war that started with the first invasion of the Roman Empire by the first Caliphs), this is an interesting response to the portrayals in the MSM of Lebanon in Flames.
http://www.blackfive.net/main/2006/07/kofi_annan_wors.html
The Liberal Left and the hangwringing crowd want to invite in the United Nations which is already ineffective in creating peace in Lebanon. Here's a better-written version of my opinion of that crap. The problem in Lebanon is not lack of third-world rejects in blue helmets. It's the fact that a vicious terrorist proxy organization for the Iranian and Syrian governments has been allowed to create an autonomous state in Southern Lebanon, and that organization decided to actively war with Israel.
And in the vein of snappy British WWII ditties poking fun at Nazi genitalia (Hitler has only got one ball/Goering has two but they are very small, etc), I give you:
http://gatesofvienna.blogspot.com/2006/07/give-me-hilarity-or-give-me-death.html
Silly me, I thought that meant I could breeze through services. So I service the rifle, no problem. I went to check out the M-203. First step, functions check. In other words, does the weapon WORK? Step one of the functions check is cock the weapon, step two is pull the trigger. The firing pin should shoot forwards, which if the weapon were loaded would hit the primer which would ignite the propellant, which would shoot the grenade out of the weapon. In other words, this is the whole reason we have the weapon.
Nothing happens.
I do it again. Nothing happens. Now I’m annoyed—and the weapon is ‘deadlined’. I check out the operator’s manual and sure enough, that’s the first step of the operator level PMCS. OK, I zip to the troubleshooting portion of the armorer manual. I do a couple quick checks that don’t identify the problem, and then it is time to disassemble the receiver. I pull it apart, and it quickly becomes evident the problem is a revolting black dirt/oil/carbon/sand mixture gumming up the works. Ten minutes with q-tips, a pipe cleaner, and lubricant, and problem is solved. Weapon works like a charm. Hooray for me! But I’m ready to sue the dumb bastard for custody. How long has he been walking around with a large, heavy useless chunk of steel attached to his weapon that serves no purpose. And it was such a simple fix, too. It frustrates me how little effort people put into weapon maintenance. A few minutes a day to clean up your weapon (don’t get me started on senior NCOs with layers of chunked dirt on their weapons—but whose privates have clean weapons) and look for any obvious deficiencies does wonders towards keeping it functional. And if it isn’t functional, I sit in the arms room and read books, write, and take naps pretty much all day. I welcome something constructive to do. You’d think this would be a priority in a war zone, but I guess not.
Last night I snuck off the FOB for a few hours. Got the hairy fobbit feet trimmed down a little. Nothing happened (of course) but we actually went into Ramadi. We kind of missed the whole four hour firefight along the route. Y’all are probably happy, I’m not so much so.
http://jeremayakovka.typepad.com/jeremayakovka/2006/07/a_birds_eye_per.html
On the Lebanese front of the Global War on Terror (I gives a damn what George Bush thinks, it's all one war to me--and it's a war that started with the first invasion of the Roman Empire by the first Caliphs), this is an interesting response to the portrayals in the MSM of Lebanon in Flames.
http://www.blackfive.net/main/2006/07/kofi_annan_wors.html
The Liberal Left and the hangwringing crowd want to invite in the United Nations which is already ineffective in creating peace in Lebanon. Here's a better-written version of my opinion of that crap. The problem in Lebanon is not lack of third-world rejects in blue helmets. It's the fact that a vicious terrorist proxy organization for the Iranian and Syrian governments has been allowed to create an autonomous state in Southern Lebanon, and that organization decided to actively war with Israel.
And in the vein of snappy British WWII ditties poking fun at Nazi genitalia (Hitler has only got one ball/Goering has two but they are very small, etc), I give you:
http://gatesofvienna.blogspot.com/2006/07/give-me-hilarity-or-give-me-death.html
posted by Just A Decurion at 7/28/2006 11:56:00 AM
3 Comments:
linked at http://www.oldwardogs.us/2006/07/just_another_da_1.html
Yep, I have to admit that I'm pretty happy you missed the four-hour firefight.
Sorry, baby.
You know. I just can't understand people not keeping their weapons clean. It only takes a few minutes, and your life can depend on it.
Every time I go to the range, I clean my weapons immediately after I get home. Depending on the number of rounds fired (and the weapon), it takes me 5-15 minutes per weapon.
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