Dog Patch

My MOS was 6461 Crash Crewmen with MAG 11 in Danang '65-'66 .The call came around evening one night to respond to Dog Patch. A couple of buildings were on fire. While hitting the first building with water about a dozen hookers came running to the truck and starting climbing aboard and yelling F.U. Fire we take care of you. One girl was grabbing L/cpl Crooker  by the leg while he was kicking her to let go. Another was coming thru the door on my side while I was spraying water. Our M14s were right there, well I bent down and kicked her out the truck door when she hit the ground and got up she flipped me the bird and cursed… with that, they all ran. Shook my thinking these b-tches only had one thing on there mind and it wasn't about there houses on fire…  read more

Proud Grandfather

It's been awhile since I submitted anything. I just celebrated my 78th birthday and 61st anniversary of my enlistment in the Marine Corps. Last January my grandson Dylan Hattox graduated from MCRD San Diego and is currently stationed at Pensacola learning how to be and air crewman hoping to make Crew Chief one day. Ive enclosed a pic of him and me at his graduation doesn't he look squared away? read more

40 Round Magazine

I saw an AK-47 while in Vietnam and it had a 30 round magazine. So I cut the top and bottom off of a couple of M-14 Magazines and welded them together and made a "40" Round magazine for my M-14. It really didn't work very well when test firing it, several of the last rounds would not chamber with only two springs. So I put "three" springs into the magazine, but then I could only load a little over 30 rounds. There just wasn't enough room for three springs and 40 Full Metal Jacket rounds in that magazine. I sure received some strange looks while walking around with my 40 round magazine. read more

I Wandered Around For A While

BOY! Do these photos bring back MEMORIES!

Too bad the few remaining huts have fallen into such disrepair. I went to the USMC Scout Sniper Association reunion a few years ago in San Diego and we as a group attended a recruit graduation. Things have really changed since I went thru MCRD in '64. For one thing, on that grad day the recruits did not march in review like we did back then. They were marched out by platoons, lined up in front of the reviewing stand and just stood there while a Colonel gave a congratulation speech. Then they were dismissed and that was it. (R. Lee Ermey showed up and visited with some of the officers and DIs, then left without even a nod to us). read more