Headspace and Timing

[Stan]

In retrospect that's something I should have been doing as the XO of a four-gun 175mm battery in 1980. The four M548 tracked cargo carriers in the firing battery had M2 .50-cals. Our main concern at the time was keeping the 175 rounds within 50 meters of our targets.

Jeez, Pete, don't you mean the M35 Deuce and a half? I only know of one other person herein that drove the M548 when Christ was a Corporal (Ken)

With that, a little history...

INTRODUCTION
The author’s introduction to the “fifty-cal” was the opportunity to fire a few rounds for familiarization during infantry training in 1967.

That was after we had been shown the basics of its operation: how to load, cock, fire, and clear it. Such was the extent of our exposure to the legendary “MaDuce,” officially known as “Machine Gun, Caliber .50, Heavy Barrel, M2.”

The instructor explained that the M2 had been in use since 1933. Some of the trainees, including myself, gazed curiously at the guns placed before us, thinking that they didn’t look that old.

Observing a US mechanized rifle company “trim the tree line” with a dozen “fifties” made me appreciate that the receiving end of such fire was a place no-one would want to be.

[Pete]

In his book Mounted Combat in Vietnam Donn Starry said the Cambodian incursion couldn't have taken place without the M548 hauling cargo but that the vehicle had reliability problems. Based on my experience with them I agree wholeheartedly regarding the maintenance headaches. Ours in 6/9 FA in Germany had ring mounts for the .50 cals.

[KenWats]

Jeez, Pete, don't you mean the M35 Deuce and a half? I only know of one other person herein that drove the M548 when Christ was a Corporal (Ken)

Hah, now you know three. I had an M548 in my Combat Engineer platoon in 1997 (used as a Volcano carrier). Generally referred to as the "Short bus" (I'll leave it to folks here to debate whether that was aimed at the vehicle itself or the operators).

[Pete]

When I was at Fort Ord we had an Officer Professional Development tour of the FMC Corporation factory up the road in San Jose. FMC was then making the Bradley as well as the M113 family of vehicles, of which the M548 was one. I asked the FMC guy who ran the test track why the M548 had such reliability problems and he said they checked each and every one before it left the factory, so it must have been Army maintenance that was to blame.

[KenWats]

When I was at Fort Ord we had an Officer Professional Development tour of the FMC Corporation factory up the road in San Jose. FMC was then making the Bradley as well as the M113 family of vehicles, of which the M548 was one. I asked the FMC guy who ran the test track why the M548 had such reliability problems and he said they checked each and every one before it left the factory, so it must have been Army maintenance that was to blame.

Getting a bit off topic here, but it is your thread, so hopefully nobody minds much. I recall thinking mine was a pain in the neck, but I always chalked it up to the fact that the 113s in my platoon drove all over the place. The 548 basically drove from AA to AA and then maybe did a Volcano mission then back to a hide site or the AA. So, anything that was getting ready to go on a 113, you'd find it pretty quick. The 548s tended to sit around more, so problems got a chance to fester. I also remember one of the mechanics saying to me that the 548s were a little harder to get into to work on and that there were easier leak paths for rainwater to get in to corrode things that aren't supposed to corrode. That jives with my vague memory of starter problems with the one in my platoon.

Also, when you change the center of gravity of the vehicle, I'd bet you change how it responds to abuse as well. Plus the thing was loud as heck to ride in, and having the crew compartment so far forward and high up (as compared to the 113) made for a bumpy ride.

On the whole, it was less than reliable, but not a "tremendous maintenance headache" on the order of an AVLB, CEV, or M9 ACE.

[Stan]

Hah, now you know three. I had an M548 in my Combat Engineer platoon in 1997 (used as a Volcano carrier). Generally referred to as the "Short bus" (I'll leave it to folks here to debate whether that was aimed at the vehicle itself or the operators).

Ken,
My comments were actually for our very own Ken White, not you. But, yep, now I know three 548 riders/drivers

I never got to ride in one, but did get to tow one with a 578. Does that count?

Some great pics here albeit a little earlier than 97 .

[Ken White]

and it's newer than an M75 or an M41A1, it's probably wrong.

[Pete]

Jeez, Pete, don't you mean the M35 Deuce and a half?

Back when we had the Deuce and a Half our rifles were of .45-70 caliber and our politically incorrect C Rations still had cigarettes in them.

[Pete]

Regarding the old C Rations, the Pork Slices w/ Juices could be turned into a good sandwich when combined with the round crackers in a can, what one of my guys once called "Field Frisbies." Spaghetti w/ Beef Chunks wasn't that bad either. The Eggs and Ham used to have a blue tint.

I'd best wind this up before a Moderator brings up the subject of me being off-topic again.