M16

[AKDejaVu]

The M60 is good for one thing... making noise.

I spoke with some commandos that were in a ridge to ridge shootout with some guerillas.  It was mostly just people holding guns up and pointing them in a general direction and firing.  The commandos had M4s and the guerillas had sub-machine guns.  The firefight went on for about 5 minutes before the commandos opened up with an M60 and started firing it across the ridge.

The return fire stopped immediately.  The guerillas decided to be elsewhere.

I've heard a similar story from my grandfather in WW2.  He was on a mobile artillery vehicle that was equiped with a .50 cal machine gun.  One night, there was particularly heavy gunfire going on when some soldiers came up to him and asked to borrow the .50 cal.  My grandfather oblidged and the soldiers lugged the .50 away and my grandfather heard it going off about 30 minutes later.  When the .50 stopped being fired... all gunfire had ceased.  The soldiers returned a few hours later and said thanks as they remounted the gun for him.

I find those stories both to be humorous.  Its allways the biggest kid on the block that gets the most respect.

AKDejaVu

[Monk]

When we were bored in Beirut, and wanted a challenge we would snipe with a M2, a great sniping "gun"

[easymo]

"The M60 is good for one thing... making noise."

That depends on who you are fighting.

My dad was a Machine gunner in Korea. He has told me stories of The NK's human wave attacks. They would blow bugles, beat on pots, anything to make noise. And charge U.S, positions in waves. He was amazed at their determination. He told me. "As the bodies would pile up in front of my gun. I would have to get up and push them out of the way, to clear my field of fire".

Not an M60 of course. But the point is the same.