Bloke on the Range videos

[stoatman]

Well, here goes... I'll split this over several posts.

So that image above was doing the rounds and I thought it was absolutely hilarious, so it got sh1tposted on the FB page:

Everybody has a ruddy good laugh about it, up to the point some SSAA types started ragging on me for it:

 

[stoatman]

Surely the way in which the image was used in advertising for a paid-for magazine should be obvious. SSAA seem to realise that a beaulock had been dropped, cos they pulled the original post and replaced it with a different one a few days later. So our friend Ask Ask sends me a nasty PM (which I won't post cos it doesn't add anything), and posts the front page of the article in the thread....

As if that makes it any better...

 

[stoatman]

So then the author and photographer himself pipes up:

Note the specific claims underlined in red here, they're important and we'll get back to them in a bit:

So anyway, replies ensued:

 

[stoatman]

All went quiet, and then someone alerted me to this, which he posted on his personal page (visible to anyone) and asked people to share far and wide. So I guess I should oblige, right?

 

[stoatman]

Well, that's rather interesting, cos:

1. That historical (and thoroughly lame) grip from the old police manual is not the same one as used in the advertising or the article, and he's used a different one with the support hand the opposite way around;
2. It's a barricade supported position, not freehand;
3. He's used a different modern image not the one from the article/ad...

I guess I must definitely be the f*ckwit here, as he said, since I can see an obvious problem with this!

 

[stoatman]

And as a final catty parting-shot in respect of him saying that I should read the article cos then I might learn something about pistol shooting, let's just say that nobody serious teaches this any more:

 

[Themanwho]

Is there a resource/vid that shows how new rifles (of any kind) were cleaned up at units prior to issue to squaddies? I recall in Sgt York the lads being given their rifles and told to get the grease off, out of the barrels etc.

In the course of thirty years' service as an armourer and then Tiffy weapons, I went through more than a few unit issues of new (and refurbed) weapons, from '85 onwards. Mostly weapons came from the manufacturer or Base repair organisation either lightly oiled or inside green plastic bags and wrapped in that yellow wax & greased sheeting and drenched in thicker preservative oil. The former was normal for large scale issues, the latter was usually reserved for individual replacement weapons which had come from BOD Donnington or some other depot.

However, on one occasion during pre NI training, the MUF range Thompson died, and a "new" M1A1 Thompson was sent down from Donnington, in its own packing case. It was factory fresh and was wrapped in brown waxed paper, greased fabric and was covered in Cosmoline. It took about five kettles of boiled water to get that sh1t off, a couple of hours for me and the other crow armourer. Before we mounted the MUF range brackets onto it and took the wooden furniture off, we had a test fire (obvs). The QM was rather unimpressed that we used about half of the training package's allocation of .45ACP for a cabby, but well, who wouldn't?

 

[clayp1g]

I was getting shades of Keith Flloyd during this vid stoaty. Nicely done the pair of you.

 

[stoatman]

I was getting shades of Keith Flloyd during this vid stoaty. Nicely done the pair of you.

Thanks!

 

[Munter Hunter]

Excellent work indeed.

 

[4(T)]

2. It's a barricade supported position, not freehand;


I guess I must definitely be the f*ckwit here, as he said, since I can see an obvious problem with this!

Quite.

 

[stoatman]

Quite.

Also, if he wants to get rather damp-gusseted about Fairbairn, there's the whole issue of various forms of hip shooting he was a big promoter of, to the degree that they were adopted and dominate the WW2 revolver training manuals...

 

[4(T)]

When they were turning rifles like this out of the factory and going to unit armourers is it safe to assume they didn't have to go to quite such an effort? Is there a resource/vid that shows how new rifles (of any kind) were cleaned up at units prior to issue to squaddies? I recall in Sgt York the lads being given their rifles and told to get the grease off, out of the barrels etc.

Someone's autobiography (Michael Caine?) mentions his platoon of reservists mobilised for the Korean War being issued wrapped and cosmoline'd rifles sent down from Weedon.

They were told to clean with petrol and boiling water.

A few hours later and on mass charge for damaging HM property, they twigged that this cleaning method was supposed to be for the bore only, and not the whole rifle...

 

[terminal]

Surely the way in which the image was used in advertising for a paid-for magazine should be obvious. SSAA seem to realise that a beaulock had been dropped, cos they pulled the original post and replaced it with a different one a few days later. So our friend Ask Ask sends me a nasty PM (which I won't post cos it doesn't add anything), and posts the front page of the article in the thread....

View attachment 526341

As if that makes it any better...

In magazines and other similar publications, it's the layout editor and not the author who picks out which photos to use at the top of the article or for other decorative uses. The layout editor generally doesn't have time to read the article, so he'll just pick something that looks eye catching from among whatever selection he has. This is something to keep in mind if you're ever having an article published.

 

[Tyk]

Someone's autobiography (Michael Caine?) mentions his platoon of reservists mobilised for the Korean War being issued wrapped and cosmoline'd rifles sent down from Weedon.

They were told to clean with petrol and boiling water.

A few hours later and on mass charge for damaging HM property, they twigged that this cleaning method was supposed to be for the bore only, and not the whole rifle...

@Themanwho and @4(T) so in essence application of hot water, elbow grease and maybe some petrol/oil to get the grot off the action, bolt, trigger group and barrel without fecking about with the bedding?

 

[Nomad1382]

And as a final catty parting-shot in respect of him saying that I should read the article cos then I might learn something about pistol shooting, let's just say that nobody serious teaches this any more:

View attachment 526349

With the body bladed to the target, this is the Weaver Stance. It's an Isometric hold that's supposed to keep a steady hold. Not many people actually do it correctly. It's one of those techniques that "if you're comfortable in the stance you're doing it wrong".

The gripping the wrist from the underside hold was still being taught by the U.S. Army Military Police School in 1979.

 

[4(T)]

@Themanwho and @4(T) so in essence application of hot water, elbow grease and maybe some petrol/oil to get the grot off the action, bolt, trigger group and barrel without fecking about with the bedding?

Hot water for the bore (also melts a lot of the cosmo on the outside)

Thin oil and elbow grease for metal work.

Linseed oil & turpentine mix for the wood.

 

[Themanwho]

Kero as well on the metalwork

 

[filthyphil]

All went quiet, and then someone alerted me to this, which he posted on his personal page (visible to anyone) and asked people to share far and wide. So I guess I should oblige, right?

View attachment 526347

Wikipedia gives Fairbairn's year of birth as 1885. He must have been a young thruster for him to be teaching seppos how to shoot pistols prior to the Boxer Rebellion when he was fifteen.

 

[stoatman]

With the body bladed to the target, this is the Weaver Stance. It's an Isometric hold that's supposed to keep a steady hold. Not many people actually do it correctly. It's one of those techniques that "if you're comfortable in the stance you're doing it wrong".

The gripping the wrist from the underside hold was still being taught by the U.S. Army Military Police School in 1979.

Nobody serious teaches Weaver any more. It belongs back in the era of droopy taches and brown corduroy flares