XJ_Vikings
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Simsbury, CT
A little background...
Last weekend I was at Fort Dix doing a MG shoot with battalion. For those who are unfamiliar with how these things work, they are very, very serious about weapons safety, as we all should be. After the course of fire is complete, the weapons are visually cleared and then a SNCO will come through each weapon and stick a punch rod from the tip of the barrel all the way to the face of the bolt which is locked back to the rear. Upon visual ID that the punch rod is all the way through, the weapon is deemed safe. This is to show that without a doubt there is nothing in the barrel/chamber.
We were shooting the M240B, an open bolt MG. That means that, aside from the millisecond where the bolt is forward and the primer is being struck by the firing pin there is never a round in the chamber. That is to say that condition 1 is bolt locked to the rear and rounds on feed tray. When the trigger is pulled and the sear is released, the bolt rides home pulling the round down from the feedway into the chamber at which point it is fired.
Aaaaaanyway, we finished shooting at about 1930 on Saturday evening. We had a competition between the companies in which the MG section leaders were to determine who had to police call. A couple guns went down, one due to what I think was a firing pin issue. When they were done, the guns were cleared in the aforementioned manner and brought off the line. Personally, as we all should do, If I am taking a gun off the line I also check myself if the gun has been idle since the SNCO checked it, basic weapons safety. I happen to remember that I pulled gun 4 off the line in this manner.
Sunday morning, we are on the bus heading back to CT when my gunner behind me started to clean one of the 240s. He taps me on the shoulder and says "we have a big issue here". my immediate thought was that he had left a piece of gear somewhere. What actually was the case is that there was a round in the chamber that he noticed as he was cleaning it. This means that from 1900 until about 0930 the next morning there was a condition 1 weapon that no one knew about. Im still trying to wrap my head around how this could have happened. The only 2 things I can imagine is that
1) After the firing pin issue, a barrel change occurred improperly, in which the barrel was changed with a round still in it. Then later, off the line, the barrel was swapped again, with the spare barrel that had the round in the chamber. (on the 240 the chamber is in the barrel).
2) Someone intentionally out a live round in the chamber... god knows why....
This is the worst case and closest call I have witnessed or even heard of in my 3+ years in. Worst case is scenario 2, which I highly doubt is the case. But even if it is scenario 1, we have some new joints or even experienced guys who have some serious, serious weapons safety issues.
I still shutter to think what could have happened. If that bolt was to the rear, which it probably was, it could have fired if it was dropped, kicked etc. If my gunner didnt use proper weapons handling procedures and sent the bolt home without checking that thing would have definitely gone off.
scary shit
Last weekend I was at Fort Dix doing a MG shoot with battalion. For those who are unfamiliar with how these things work, they are very, very serious about weapons safety, as we all should be. After the course of fire is complete, the weapons are visually cleared and then a SNCO will come through each weapon and stick a punch rod from the tip of the barrel all the way to the face of the bolt which is locked back to the rear. Upon visual ID that the punch rod is all the way through, the weapon is deemed safe. This is to show that without a doubt there is nothing in the barrel/chamber.
We were shooting the M240B, an open bolt MG. That means that, aside from the millisecond where the bolt is forward and the primer is being struck by the firing pin there is never a round in the chamber. That is to say that condition 1 is bolt locked to the rear and rounds on feed tray. When the trigger is pulled and the sear is released, the bolt rides home pulling the round down from the feedway into the chamber at which point it is fired.
Aaaaaanyway, we finished shooting at about 1930 on Saturday evening. We had a competition between the companies in which the MG section leaders were to determine who had to police call. A couple guns went down, one due to what I think was a firing pin issue. When they were done, the guns were cleared in the aforementioned manner and brought off the line. Personally, as we all should do, If I am taking a gun off the line I also check myself if the gun has been idle since the SNCO checked it, basic weapons safety. I happen to remember that I pulled gun 4 off the line in this manner.
Sunday morning, we are on the bus heading back to CT when my gunner behind me started to clean one of the 240s. He taps me on the shoulder and says "we have a big issue here". my immediate thought was that he had left a piece of gear somewhere. What actually was the case is that there was a round in the chamber that he noticed as he was cleaning it. This means that from 1900 until about 0930 the next morning there was a condition 1 weapon that no one knew about. Im still trying to wrap my head around how this could have happened. The only 2 things I can imagine is that
1) After the firing pin issue, a barrel change occurred improperly, in which the barrel was changed with a round still in it. Then later, off the line, the barrel was swapped again, with the spare barrel that had the round in the chamber. (on the 240 the chamber is in the barrel).
2) Someone intentionally out a live round in the chamber... god knows why....
This is the worst case and closest call I have witnessed or even heard of in my 3+ years in. Worst case is scenario 2, which I highly doubt is the case. But even if it is scenario 1, we have some new joints or even experienced guys who have some serious, serious weapons safety issues.
I still shutter to think what could have happened. If that bolt was to the rear, which it probably was, it could have fired if it was dropped, kicked etc. If my gunner didnt use proper weapons handling procedures and sent the bolt home without checking that thing would have definitely gone off.
scary shit
