weapons

SOCOM Taps the Sig Sauer MCX Rattler as Its Personal Defense Weapon of Choice

Small but Mighty

US Special Operations Command (SOCOM), on May 19th, issued a notice of intent to buy an undisclosed quantity of Sig Sauer’s MCX short-barreled rifles as personal defense weapons (PDW) under a five-year sole source contract. As a result, special Operations Forces (SOF) will finally be receiving a much-requested ultra-compact PDW to help blast their way out of tight places. Known as the “Rattler,” this Sig will be chambered in .300 blackout and standard 5.56X45mm ammunition.

The Sig MCX Rattler is destined to be an operator’s new best friend. Image Credit: Sig Sauer

The official US Government notice of intent reads, in part:

“The Government hereby submits a notice of intent to award the Commercial Personal Defense Weapon (PDW) contract to Sig Sauer. This IDIQ (Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity contract) will provide complete PDW weapons (Sig Rattlers – 5.56mm and .300 Blackout caliber) that includes suppressors (SL series), cleaning kits, magazines, quick barrel change kits and force on force training kits. Furthermore, parts, sustainment, and New Equipment Training will also be part of this IDIQ. The PDW system will allow Operators to have maximum firepower in a concealable weapon.”

A Long Time Coming

SOCOM had explicitly requested a weapon chambered in .300 blackout as it delivers more stopping power when launched from a short-barreled rifle (the Rattler has a 5.5-inch barrel) and boasts improved performance over 9mm offerings in the subsonic velocity band. If an operator decides to fire 5.56 NATO rounds instead, the switch is simple. All one has to do is change the barrel. As you’ll note above, quick change barrel kits are included.

The cartridge base is identical on both rounds fired by the MCX, so the bolt and bolt carrier are unchanged. For this same reason, magazines are interchangeable as well.

Here, the factory experts tell you all about this compact yet powerful firearm. Video courtesy of YouTube and Sig Sauer.

In both configurations of the Rattler, the barrel is married to a familiar AR-15 style lower receiver. With the folding aluminum stock fully extended, the total length of the .300 Blackout version is 23.5 inches, a half an inch longer than the configuration chambered in 5.56mm. Both versions weigh roughly six pounds. Both feature Sig’s M-LOK free-floating handguard topped with a Picatinny accessory rail and ambidextrous charging handle. Operators will be provided with Sig Sauer’s SL series suppressors, which add an additional 8.8 inches to the length of the weapon when attached.

The Rattler should require less maintenance in the field when compared to other AR-15/M16 platforms. It utilizes a physical gas piston to cycle the action rather than a direct impingement system that would blow propellant gas directly into the weapon’s inner workings.

The Sig Sauer ROMEO4T red-dot and Sig JULIET magnifier have proved to be ideal companions for the MCX Rattler.

SOCOM began looking for a new PDW in 2017, at first thinking they might be able to have one built around the M4 carbine’s receiver. But the Sig MCX was already in production, so they acquired ten of them in 2018 for testing purposes. Their stated goal in that search was to “find a new PDW with a highly concealable .300 Blackout upper receiver group (URG) and buttstock kit solution for the M4A1 platform.”

As it turned out, the Rattler worked out nicely to meet SOCOM’s intent for the new PDW. If you want to buy one of these bad boys for yourself, they can currently be purchased online for about $2,299. I just found a new item for the top of my Christmas list.

Israeli Special Forces | The Feared and Secretive Shayetet 13

Shayetet 13, also known as S-13 or “the people of silence,” is an Israeli marine commando unit of the Israel Navy operating in the sea, on land, and in the air.

The unit is one of the most secretive in the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). Its members and the details of many of its operations remain a secret. Their mission set is similar to the U.S.’s Navy SEALs’ and the U.K.’s Special Boat Service’s (SBS).

Shayetet 13 is considered one of the best trained Special Operations units in the world. It was formed in 1949 and has steadily grown in size and evolved over the years.

Service in the unit combines long and comprehensive infantry training with specialization in maritime warfare, diving, and the operation of special vessels. While conscription service in Israeli Special Forces units requires a 36-month term of service, Shayetet 13 members require an additional 18 months.

Shayetet 13 batwings insignia — Shayetet 13 insignia. The “batwings” are earned at the completion of training.

The unit’s motto is, “As the bat emerges from the darkness, As the blade cuts through with silence, as the grenade smashes in rage.”

The unit has won the Israeli Chief of Staff’s award several times for its contribution to fighting terrorism, developing innovative operational capabilities, instilling high norms of behavior of excellence, and striving for victory.

Shayetet 13 combat teams are required to acquire a variety of skills to carry out their missions. Among other things, the fighters specialize in infantry fighting, counter-terrorism, guerrilla warfare, operational parachuting, and naval assault methods.

Shayetet 13 Selection, Assessment, Training

Initial training of Shayetet 13 candidates lasts 20 months and is considered one of the toughest courses in the IDF. The unit conducts a summer course for teenagers who are about to enter the IDF and consider joining the unit. It gives them a small taste of the training in diving, raids, navigation, operation of small vessels, and more.

Those who enlist in Shayetet 13 are put through an intensive, and grueling five-stage training process.

C-130 airdrop Shayetet 13 fast boats — C-130 conducts airdrop with Shayetet fast boats on the water. (Israeli Defense Forces)

Selection and Assessment

A selection course for candidates is held twice a year. All recruits must pass an intensive medical evaluation to be even allowed to attempt the course.

All candidates must be male, though women are allowed in combat support roles. Candidates are put through a smoker of physically and mentally grueling exercises for four days. Doctors and psychologists are at hand to prevent burnout and physical injury. This phase stresses psychological toughness, and tests recruits in their ability to take and operate under stress, conquer exhaustion, hunger, and their own fears. This initial phase results in a huge amount of attrition in the class.

Preparation Phase

After undergoing a six-month basic and advanced training with the Nahal Brigade, consisting of hand-to-hand combat, (Krav Maga), physical conditioning, long-distance road marches in the desert, marksmanship, etc., the candidates move on to the next phase of training. This next phase consists of parachute training, basic elements of maritime warfare, operation of small vessels, long swims, extended forced marches, and demolitions training.

Combat Diving

This phase consists of four weeks of advanced training in combat diving. During this phase, candidates learn the basics of combat diving, how to operate and trust in their equipment and training in cold, dark, or clouded water, and how to survive high-risk underwater situations.

Dedicated Phase

This is the most rigorous phase of training and in which the majority of the attrition occurs. It lasts 12 months and includes training in advanced diving techniques with close-circuit systems, underwater demolition, sea-to-land incursions via diving, ships, submarines, and parachuting into the sea.

A Shayetet 13 sniper during a training exercise.

The candidates that are assigned as the unit’s snipers also undergo six weeks of sniper training divided into three weeks of long-range sniper training at the IDF Sniper School and three weeks of short-range sniper training for hostage situations at the IDF Counter-terror School. Candidates then train in maritime counter-terrorism operations, such as the boarding of vessels, oil rigs, and near-coast buildings. During this phase, candidates are divided between Shayetet’s three specialized units, based on their capabilities and personal interests, and train on their future specialty.

Near the end of their training, Shayetet 13 candidates go through the Israeli equivalent of SERE, a course in enduring enemy captivity. Recruits from other special forces units and pilot cadets must also pass it.

Following a surprise mock kidnapping, they are held in prison-like conditions, what the U.S. calls “the resistance training laboratory” for two weeks. During this period they subjected to threats, interrogation, and physical violence, and are forced to perform humiliating activities.

After their graduation into the unit, Shayetet 13 commandos earn their coveted “batwings.” They continue their training at an even higher level while conducting live covert and clandestine operations. Shayetet 13 participates in cross-training with foreign special forces units such as the Navy SEALs. SOFREP’s Jonathan Weiss was on a Navy SEAL team that conducted joint training with Shayetet 13 commandos in the Tel Aviv area. His report can be accessed here.

Shayetet 13 Weapons and Equipment

The weapons and equipment of Shayetet 13, like those of most Special Operations Forces, are varied and often tailored to the individual mission profiles. Shayetet operators use a variety of weapons including:

Glock pistols,
M4 carbines,
CTAR-21, an Israeli bullpup assault weapon
M203 grenade launchers,
M24, and SR-25 sniper rifles,
Negev machine guns
Limpet mines
Zodiac RHIB boats
Morena RHIB boats a rigid inflatable boat
Snunit fast attack craft a U.S.-made fast attack boat

Shayetet 13 Organization and Deployment

The Shayetet 13 is comprised of and organized around three specialized units.

Raids (Haposhtim)

This group is responsible for special reconnaissance and direct action on land, counter-terrorism missions, and hostage rescues.

Underwater

The offensive divers unit. The Underwater unit conducts underwater attacks and sabotage, hydrographic reconnaissance, beachhead reconnaissance and security.

Above Water

The Above Water group in the Shayetet 13 is responsible for surface attacks and the sea transportation of units both to and from a target area. This unit is similar to the U.K.’s Special Boat Service (SBS).

Shayetet 13 commandos emerge from water — Shayetet 13 commandos emerge from the surf during a training exercise.

Shayetet 13 Operations

As the Jewish Virtual Library writes,

“Shayetet 13 has operated during all of Israel’s wars, tasked with advanced reconnaissance, infiltration, and sabotage. During the Lebanon War in the early 1980s, the unit demonstrated an excellent track record with dozens of successful operations that inflicted heavy losses upon Hezbollah, both in terms of manpower and equipment destroyed.
During the Palestinian War, from 2000 to 2005, Shayetet soldiers took part in various ground operations against the terrorist infrastructure of the Palestinians both in Gaza and the West Bank. Members of the unit were also used in the infamous Battle for Jenin during Operation Defensive Shield in 2002.
Since 2000, the unit has earned wide acclaim for its successful capture of vessels attempting to smuggle arms to Palestinian terrorists. These ships, the Karine A, Santorini, Abu-Yusuf, Francop, Victoria, and KlosC, were all heavily laden with many tons of advanced weaponry and missiles that would have been used to attack Israel.
During the Second Lebanon War in 2006, Shayetet was involved in one of the IDF’s more daring missions of the war, when commandos flew hundreds of miles behind enemy lines, raided the Hezbollah stronghold city of Tyre, and killed nearly 30 Hezbollah commanders including some who were in charge of the organizations’ rocket launching network.”

Although the unit’s missions are veiled in secrecy some missions have been made known.

Shayetet took part in the assassination of Syrian General Muhammad Suleiman in Syria in 2018.

During Operation Cast Lead, Shayetet 13 commandos landed on the Gaza Strip coastline and struck Hamas targets on land. And during Operation Protective Edge, Shayetet 13 carried out numerous raids against enemy rocket-launching positions. The unit’s commandos have also attacked Iranian cargo ships, which were smuggling arms and weapons to Syria, with Limpet mines.

Shoot Better by Mastering These 4 Simple Marksmanship Fundamentals

Before even picking up that shiny new rifle you just purchased, let’s take a moment and talk about the four fundamentals of marksmanship. These aren’t going to make you a trick shot or a sniper on day one, but they underpin everything you need to hit your target, whether at 50 meters or 500.

There are many schools of thought for this, but here is an easy one for everyone to remember: Steady Position; Aiming; Breath Control; and Trigger Squeeze.

For this article, the shooter will be in the prone or laying down position.

1) Steady Position

The first marksmanship fundamental has to do with your position. The rifle handguard should rest one heel of the non-firing hand in the V formed by the thumb and fingers. The grip of the non-firing hand should be light, do not squeeze the rifle.

Place the butt of the rifle in the pocket (just above the armpit) of the firing shoulder. This will reduce the effect of recoil and help ensure a steady position.

The firing hand grasps the pistol grip, having it fit in the V formed by the thumb and forefinger. The firing finger should be placed on the trigger, so the rifle’s lay is not disturbed when the trigger is squeezed. Basically, you don’t want the rifle to move right or left when you pull the trigger. The remaining three fingers apply slight rearward pressure to ensure that the buttstock remains in the pocket of the shoulder so that it minimizes the effect of recoil. Nobody wants to get shoulder punched by a rifle.

The firing elbow is essential in providing balance. Placement should allow the shoulders to remain level.

The non-firing elbow is positioned under the rifle to allow a comfortable and stable position. When you are engaging moving targets or targets at various elevations, the non-firing elbow should remain free from support.

The rifle’s stock should provide a natural line of sight through the center of the rear sight, to the front sight post, and onto the target. It would be best if you began by trying to touch the charging handle with your nose when assuming a firing position. This will aid you in maintaining the same cheek-to-stock position each time the weapon is aimed. You should be mindful of how the nose touches the charging handle and you should be consistent when doing so.

2) Aiming

Having mastered the fundamental task of holding the rifle steady, you now must align the rifle with the target in the same way for each firing.

Alignment of the rifle with the target is critical. It involves placing the tip of the front sight post in the center of the rear sight aperture. Any alignment error between the front and rear sights repeats itself for every half meter the bullet travels. For example, at the 25-meter line, any mistake in rifle alignment is multiplied 50 times. If the rifle is misaligned by 0.1 inches, it causes a target at 300 meters to be missed by five feet.

A proper firing position places your eye directly in line with the center of the rear sight. When the eye is focused on the front sight post, the eye’s natural ability to center objects in a circle and seek the center of the aperture aids in providing correct sight alignment. For the average person firing at targets, the eye’s natural ability can accurately align the sights. Therefore, you can place the front sight post’s tip on the aiming point, but the eye must be focused on the front sight post’s tip. This causes the target to appear blurry while the front sight post is seen clearly.

Marksmanship fundamentals — A correct sight picture.

Once you can correctly align your sights, you can obtain a sight picture. A correct sight picture has the target, front sight post, and rear sight aligned.

3) Breath Control

The third fundamental is about your breathing. As your skills improve and as timed or multiple targets are presented, you must learn to control your breath at any part of the breathing cycle. There are generally two types of breath control techniques that most people use. You must be aware of how the rifle’s movement (while sighted on a target) changes due to breathing.

The first technique is used when time is available to fire a shot. According to it, you fire the shot the moment of natural respiratory pause when most of the air has been exhaled from your lungs and before inhaling. Breathing should stop after most of the air has been exhaled during the normal breathing cycle. The shot must be fired before you feel any discomfort.

The second technique is to hold your breath for a moment in order to fire a shot.

4) Trigger Squeeze

The final of the marksmanship fundamentals is about the trigger squeeze. Even a novice firer can learn to place the rifle in a steady position and correctly aim to target if he follows the above three fundamentals. However, if the trigger is not squeezed correctly, the rifle will be misaligned with the target at the moment of firing.

Trigger squeeze is essential for two reasons: First, any sudden finger movement on the trigger can disturb the rifle’s lay and cause the shot to miss the target. Second, the precise instant of firing should be a surprise to you. Otherwise, your natural reflex to compensate for the noise and slight punch in the shoulder can cause you to miss the target if you know the exact instant the rifle will fire. You usually tense your shoulder when you’re expecting a rifle to fire. This isn’t easy to detect since you don’t realize you’re flinching.

Your trigger finger should be placed on the trigger between the first joint and the tip of the finger (not the end). This will also adjust depending on hand size, grip, and so on. The trigger finger must squeeze the trigger to the rear so that the hammer falls without disturbing the rifle’s lay. It isn’t easy to see what effect trigger pull has on the lay of the rifle. Thus, it is important to experiment with many finger positions to ensure the hammer is falling with little disturbance to the aiming process.

Hopefully, this article helped you out some or maybe refreshed your knowledge. With ammo prices seemingly on the rise, consider applying these four fundamentals while dry firing and have a buddy watch you. When coaching, I almost always watch the shooter exclusively, then see where the bullets hit the target later.

Toe Poppers and MiniFrags: The little known toys of US Special Forces in Vietnam

This article will speak about two vital weapons that served U.S. Special Forces during their service in the Vietnam War. They were the M-14 Anti-Personnel mine, more commonly known as the “Toe Popper,” and the V40 Mini-Fragmentation Grenade. Over the course of the conflict, these miniature terrors drew much blood against the North Vietnamese Army (NVA), and Viet Cong (VC), with the V40 even serving beyond into the Iraq War as an effective room clearer. Though both are officially gone now from active duty, they possessed a lethality that outweighed their physical appearances.

The first weapon, the M14 mine, looked like a small, thick disc that was olive drab in color, 2.2 inches in diameter and 1.5 inches in height. It contained 1 ounce of Tetryl explosive to make up its 3.5 ounce weight. This lightness came from its mostly plastic construction, and, to set it off, required a pressure of between 20 to 35 pounds.

The mine could be placed in a shallow hole, under a leaf or in the open if in a hurry. Special Forces teams often used this last tactic when breaking contact or protecting a perimeter at night.

Field manuals showed that to activate the mine a soldier would remove a base plug and screw in a detonator. After setting the mine in position, its pressure plate was rotated from Safe to Armed using a special spanner. The last step was to remove the safety clip. At this point the mine was armed.

M14 2 — Replica Of M14 ‘Toe Popper’ With Spanner Wrench

An unlucky N.V.A. or V.C. who happened to step on the M-14 often had half or all of his foot blown away. Due to its small explosive, death rarely occurred, instead it left the victim maimed for life. Many ended up this way because during missions, Special Forces teams sewed several of these along their egress routes and often more than once, an explosion sounded in the distance that bled and slowed their pursuers, as well as worked on them psychologically.

After the war, the Toe Popper fell out of favor, but with so many in stock, the U.S. decided to maintain a supply of over 1.5 million for use on the Korean peninsula, if necessary.

Another curious weapon carried by the Special Forces didn’t come from the U.S., rather, it came from the Netherlands. Called the V40, the design truly fit the profile of a big thing in a small package.

With an olive drab coloration, at 2.6 inches high, 1.6 inches in diameter and weighing just 4.8 ounces, the grenade gave the appearance of a modified golf ball. A safety spoon like that found on standard grenades extended along its side and when released, caused the fuse mechanism to detonate the grenade four seconds later. The fragmentation pattern came from 326 squares pressed inside the metal casing and had a 16 foot lethal radius.

Due to its small size, users often carried three, being the weight of one standard grenade, and used them to good effect against confined areas such as huts or tunnels. No one ever called it by its designation, instead referring to it as the Mini-Frag.

V40 continued being manufactured until 1984. Thousands remained in inventories worldwide, and the U.S. used them again in the Iraq War up until 2008. And now, though the V-40 is gone, the Mini-Frag concept remains desirable and the German defense company Rheinmetall continues to advertise a Mini-Frag as part of its hand grenade line.

Both the Toe Popper and Mini-Frag served the U.S. Special Forces well. There were copycats, and similar designs may be found in other Armed Forces. However, none have ever had the run of success the Toe Popper and Mini-Frag did.

With the enemies blood, they made their mark.

SOG2ndLine — S.O.G. Team Member Loadout. Note The MiniFrags Above And To The Left Of The Regular Size M67 Grenades

On This Day in 1861, Richard Gatling Applies for a Patent For His Weapon

There are some things that stand the test of time and Richard Gatling’s invention of the earliest days of the American Civil War has certainly fit that description. Gatling was an inventor who fashioned the first machine gun, although a different design by most standards. His basic design with many modern variants is still in use today.

Gatling was born in 1818 in North Carolina and began at an early age to fashion many new inventions. Included in those were improved steamboat screw propellers, a rice sowing machine, and a wheat drill that would aid in planting wheat. In 1850, he contracted smallpox and became interested in medicine. After graduating from college as a doctor, he decided to eschew medicine and go back to being an inventor full-time.

In particular was his interest in firearms. In 1861, with the armies of the United States and the Confederate States of America still using Revolutionary War tactics, Gatling developed one of the first and best known early rapid-fire spring loaded, hand-cranked weapons and a forerunner of the modern machine gun and rotary cannon that is in use today by modern forces. He first developed it in 1861, started his Gatling Gun company and patented it in 1862. He hoped to show the futility of war and his weapon, he hoped would cut down on deaths by combat and disease, and on the need for so many troops

The “Gatling Gun” operated with 6-10 barrels which eased in the cooling process of the barrels and synchronized the firing-reloading sequence. Each barrel would fire a single shot when it reached a certain point in the cycle, then it ejected the spent cartridge, loaded a new round, and, in the process, allowed the barrel to cool somewhat. This configuration allowed higher rates of fire to be achieved without the barrels overheating.

Because it required the use of a hand crank to operate the weapon, it was not a true machine gun. Hiram Maxim in 1883 would patent a weapon that used the recoil of the firing sequence to reload the weapon to construct the first real machine gun.

It was used only a very little during the American Civil War, most notably during the siege of Petersburg and on gunboats. There, local commanders purchased them as it was not adopted by the U.S. Army until 1866. It did, however, serve in the Spanish-American War, during the assault on San Juan Hill. As well as in the Boshin War in Japan and the Anglo-Zulu War.

From Wikipedia: The Gatling gun operated by a hand-crank mechanism, with six barrels revolving around a central shaft (although some models had as many as ten). Each barrel fires once per revolution at about the same position. The barrels, a carrier, and a lock cylinder were separate and all mounted on a solid plate revolving around a central shaft, mounted on an oblong fixed frame. Turning the crank rotated the shaft. The carrier was grooved and the lock cylinder was drilled with holes corresponding to the barrels.

The casing was partitioned, and through this opening, the barrel shaft was journaled. In front of the casing was a cam with spiral surfaces. The cam imparted a reciprocating motion to the locks when the gun rotated. Also in the casing was a cocking ring with projections to cock and fire the gun. Each barrel had a single lock, working in the lock cylinder on a line with the barrel. The lock cylinder was encased and joined to the frame. Early models had a fibrous matting stuffed in among the barrels, which could be soaked with water to cool the barrels down. Later models eliminated the matting-filled barrels as being unnecessary.

Cartridges, held in a hopper, dropped individually into the grooves of the carrier. The lock was simultaneously forced by the cam to move forward and load the cartridge, and when the cam was at its highest point, the cocking ring freed the lock and fired the cartridge. After the cartridge was fired the continuing action of the cam drew back the lock bringing with it the spent cartridge which then dropped to the ground.

The early models used a paper cartridge charged with black powder and primed with a percussion cap. In 1881, the weapon switched to .45-70 cartridges. Then in 1893, the Gatling Gun was adapted to take the newer, .30 Army smokeless cartridge. The new M1893 guns featured six barrels, later increased to ten barrels, and were capable of a maximum rate of fire of 800–900 rounds per minute, however, 600 rpm was the maximum sustained rate of fire. Gatling later tested several M1893 prototypes powered by electric motor and belt to replace the hand crank. Tests demonstrated the electric Gatling could fire bursts of up to 1,500 rpm. This would eventually drive technology far in the future to dust off his invention to create the modern “Gatling-Gun” types in use today.

In 1947 after World War II, the new U.S. Air Force was looking to upgrade the weapons on their aircraft from the .50 caliber MGs that had armed its fighters and bombers during the war and had been rendered obsolete. General Electric decided to take another look at the electric Gatling Gun. After experimenting with different calibers, the Air Force decided to stick with the 20×102 mm cartridge. They eventually did away with linked ammunition which caused numerous feed problems and settled onto a linkless ammunition feed system was developed for the upgraded M61A1 Vulcan cannon. The Gatling Gun had come full circle.

Later, the same system was configured to fit helicopters in a scaled-down version. The M134 was similar to the M61A1 but it fired the much smaller 7.62mm primed rifle cartridge. Capable of firing 6,000 rounds per minute, the M134 was used on a number of helicopters, such as the UH-1 “Huey”, OH-6, and AH-1 Cobra, as well as the AC-47 gunships (Spooky), during the Vietnam War.

The crew-served version of the M134 is the GAU-17. Mounted either on helicopters, vehicles or boats the GAU-17 is very similar to the M134 except that it is equipped with a selector switch that allows the gunner to fire on High (4000 RPM) or Low (2000 RPM). The GAU-17 is currently in widespread service with the US military.

Later in his life, Dr. Gatling would patent several new inventions to improve toilets, bicycles, steam-cleaning of raw wool, pneumatic power, among others. He was elected as the first president of the American Association of Inventors and Manufacturers. He died in 1903 while visiting his daughter in New York City and was buried in Crown Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Photos: US Military, DOD and Fort Laramie Museum