The Original M16 Manual Was a Vietnam War Comic Book
BY Herschel Smith
3 years, 2 months ago
Most importantly, the new M16A1 came with a cleaning kit, lubricant and an entertaining field manual, drawn by Will Eisner, the former Army comic artist who designed vehicle manuals in World War II. It was called “The M-16A1 Rifle: Operation and Preventative Maintenance,” otherwise known as “Department of the Army Pamphlet 750-30.”
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The comic was easy to read, entertaining and — above all — a familiar look to American GIs in Vietnam. Many of them would have been familiar with “The Spirit,” a comic about a Batman-like masked vigilante he created before the United States entered World War II.
By 1968, more American troops in Vietnam began to accept the use of the rifle as malfunction incidents decreased dramatically. The powder used in the 5.56 cartridge was upgraded to reduce the fouling of various parts of the weapon. By 1969, the M16A1 was fully accepted as the standard infantry weapon for the U.S. military.
I’ll bet if you had an original of this it would be worth a lot of money.
On October 1, 2021 at 2:32 am, WiscoDave said:
$15 on eBay.
On October 1, 2021 at 6:32 am, Wes said:
For those without an original there is an excellent reprint (exception of barcode on back cover) of it, DA Pam 750-30, dated 1 July 1969. It is not woke, containing manly men & buxom women, and features a buck-toothed ‘gook’ picking up your discarded empty mags that you should’ve stuck back in your gear. I remember the original and it was in the same series of maint publications for a variety of equipment. Correct size, great color, I think mine was around $10.
Findable on amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/M16A1-Rifle-Operation-Preventive-Maintenance/dp/1616088648
On October 1, 2021 at 9:09 am, Houston said:
I got mine when I purchased a Brownells Retro BRN-601. The manual only cost me 900.00. Oh and the rifle shoots quite well. Faxon pencil barrel, chrome chamber and barrel, Hard Chromed bolt carrier and bolt. Weighs a little over six pounds.
On October 1, 2021 at 4:37 pm, Thomas Madere said:
I have one.
On October 2, 2021 at 8:19 pm, bobdog said:
I got mine for free back in 1970.
The powder choice was one issue, but the main problem was the DOD decided that a chrome plated chamber was unnecessary and was eliminated as a cost saving measure. Both notions were tragically wrong and were fixed in the A! version.
It also needed a forward assist and a less harmful flash suppressor.
The process reminds me of the military’s complaint about repeating rifles during the Civil War. They were worried about soldiers needlessly “wasting” ammunition.
Things like this happen when procurement decisions get made by rear echelon morons.