S&W 76 for the americans?

[Zeldov]

I've searched up information on the S&W 76 and it doesnt specify if it was widely used during the war, but i've seen it being used in actual footage of the war, is it ever going to be added? Even if it was a spec ops thing, the XM177 is in the game, and the US could use a better smg than the M3

[batmack8989]

Originally posted by Zeldov:

better smg than the M3

BLASPHEMY

[zombiecrc]

Originally posted by batmack8989:

Originally posted by Zeldov:

better smg than the M3

BLASPHEMY

What's next? 9mm better than 45 ACP?

[Zeldov]

Please don't start the 9mm Vs 45 debate lmao inb4 horde of toxic muricans

The M3 is just crap at CQB man it doesn't kill fast enough

[static]

It's not out of the realm of possibility that the M76 would be seen here and there in the hands of US soldiers, but they were by no means common or supplied/maintained in an organized way. To understand the history of the S&W M76, you've got to start with the famous Carl Gustav M/45 SMG, also known as the "Swedish K".

Early in the war, the Swedish K was heavily used by SOG and several SEAL teams for different reasons. The CIA arranged "blind" purchases of the weapon from Sweden for SOG, and some of the weapons in each order were apparently earmarked for the newly formed SEAL teams.

The covert operators in SOG specialized in deniable cross border missions into Cambodia and Laos, and in the early years they were required to exclusively use "sterile" uniforms, gear and weapons that couldn't be traced back to the United States in any way. The Swedish K fit the stringent needs of the SOG Recon Teams, and could easily accept a suppressor as well. The SEALs appreciated its ability to fire even when contaminated by water, sand and mud, which made it a valuable weapon in the Mekong River Delta and riverine areas where SEALs commonly operated.

By 1966 Sweden had embargoed the United States and stopped allowing the CIA to purchase Swedish Ks on behalf of SOG. Smith & Wesson saw an opportunity to sell lots of SMGs, stepped in and copied the "K" as the M76 SMG within a year. Unfortunately for S&W, by that time the SEALs had switched to using the Stoner 63. The restrictions on SOG equipment had been lifted by that time, and SOG had begun equipping their teams with CAR-15s, AKs and cut down RPDs. Despite the embargo on further purchases, SOG remained by far the largest users of Swedish Ks throughout the war, retaining a number of them in their armories to use as suppressed weapons for taking prisoners and quietly eliminating NVA trackers and dogs.

Which brings us back to the S&W M76, the orphan SMG nobody wanted. S&W had tried to capitalize on the Swedish arms embargo against the US by producing a large number of Swedish K clones. Changes in the war and a relaxing of SOG weapon restrictions meant Special Operations units had no need for a new 9mm SMG. Most M76s that had already been produced were unwanted by the military. Some were sent to police units in the US while others were simply blindly supplied to MACV and the South Vietnamese military without a clear idea of who would use them.

A good number of M76s apparently ended up with ARVN, some wound up being used by Marine Security Guards at the US Embassy in Saigon, and others found their way into the hands of random US soldiers and even US military combat correspondents. You'd be most likely to see them used by ARVN soldiers here and there, especially near the end of the war when the process of "Vietnamization" was in full swing and ARVN was receiving anything and everything the US could supply them with.

[Ludicrous]

The M3 was more useful than the S & W could ever be.
It was very cheap for the goverment to produce being made out of scrap metal and welded together. The gun came with the cleaning kit stored in the handle so the troops did not have to carry it separetly, it fired 45 APC but could also be converted in the field to fire 9mm rounds which meant that US troops in WW2 could take German ammunition and use it. The stock for the weapon could be pulled out and doubled as a wrench which is why it was used by tank and vehicle crewman (also it was smaller and lighter than the Thompson). The slow rate of fire was actually better for troops as the Germans and Americans learned, as it was easier to control and did not burn through ammo quicker, which meant that the goverment did not have to produce as much ammunition, ship it, give it and the the soldier have to carry it.

The gun was phazed out in the 1950's but the gun was still used by US Crewman even up into the Gulf War. I think that is it a amazing gun and apparently so do those who used it for so long. If you cant find much information on why the American's didn't use the S & W 76 mabey its because they didn't?

[Kets]

M3 is the best smg in the game, by far.

[@theweedfather]

Originally posted by Zeldov:

Please don't start the 9mm Vs 45 debate lmao inb4 horde of toxic muricans

The M3 is just crap at CQB man it doesn't kill fast enough

It helps when you hit what you're shooting at.

[=(e)= Lemonater47]

Originally posted by Zeldov:

Please don't start the 9mm Vs 45 debate lmao inb4 horde of toxic muricans

The M3 is just crap at CQB man it doesn't kill fast enough

On the contrary.

The M3 one shots people. So you could argue it does kill the fastest CQB.

[Marcy385]

Im honestly just hoping they add player controlled mortars at this point.

[Marcy385]

Oh! And the stoner, that ones neat

[Communism]

I know I'm over a week late, but I think the S&W 76 or the Carl Gustaf M/45 were actually used by ARVN forces. Granted, they weren't used in a major way, but they were still present.

[Big Duke]

Originally posted by zombiecrc:

Originally posted by batmack8989:

BLASPHEMY

What's next? 9mm better than 45 ACP?

hahaha !!

[McToffel]

As a swede i would be happy to see the S&W 76 in the game.

[=(e)= Lemonater47]

Originally posted by McToffel:

As a swede i would be happy to see the S&W 76 in the game. :cozybethesda:

The Swede's at the time weren't happy about it at the time. Which is the entire reason the S&W 76 even existed at all.

[UFO]

"Weren't happy" sums it up - I seem to recall Olof Palme (Swedish head of state during the late war period) going on record comparing the Hanoi christmas bombing in '72 to Guernica and Treblinka. Not to mention that almost half the population signed a manifest demanding an immediate halt to US bombing campaigns in 'nam a week later. Yeah, that might be a hint about the contemporary Swedish opinion of the war :-D

(Of course, this doesn't mean we will give up our spot in the top five list of countries exporting the most arms per capita today - bidniss is bidniss, baby.)