In addition to experimentation and development of self loading rifles, government officials initiated research into the idea that a smaller bullet could produce higher velocities, with greater accuracy, and provide sufficient power to be acceptable for use on the battlefield. Testing in 1931 on a .276 caliber bullet that was fired from both a rifle designed by John Garand and one designed by the bullet’s inventor, John Pederson, encouraged the board to approve its use in combat. Moreover, the board noted that the bullet was better suited for self loading rifles than the 30-06 cartridge currently in service. Many felt that the 30-06 was too powerful to be fired from a light auto-loading rifle and that the .276 with its smaller powder charge would be a better fit for such a rifle.
The acceptance of a new rifle and cartridge demonstrated that there were some aspects of the Army’s culture that were willing to change. The board’s findings represented a rapid departure from the standard rifle that was already in existence. The only cultural aspect that was not challenged by the acceptance results was the culture of marksmanship. The action challenged other cultural beliefs, however, and these challenges resulted in the rejection of the change in caliber by the Army senior leadership. The marksmanship tradition was not the only influence to arms development. Economic influences resulted in the entrenchment of a culture of thrift.
Culture of Thrift
The main cultural hurdle that could not be vaulted was the culture of efficiency and fiscal responsibility...
Because of this culture of thrift, Army chief of staff Douglas McArthur decided in 1932 to decline acceptance of the .276 caliber rifle due to logistical constraints that would result from having separate rifle and machine-gun cartridges as well as the fact that there were existing large quantities of .30 caliber ammunition available and development of a new cartridge would make much of those stocks obsolete. He did, however, recognize the importance of evolving rifle technology and ordered further work on John Garand’s .30 caliber auto-loading rifle.
By 1936 John Garand’s rifle had evolved into the .30 caliber M1 rifle. This rifle would become the first semi-automatic rifle in the world to be issued as a general purpose rifle to a nation’s army. Soldiers armed with the M1 in World War II had greater accuracy and firepower than their counterparts on the battlefields of the Pacific, Europe, and North Africa. General George S. Patton’s observation that the M1 Garand was, “the greatest battle implement ever devised,”32 illustrated the popularity of the rifle. The affectionate regard for the M1 rifle that evolved out of its service in World War II resulted in another cultural pattern, one where many perceived the M1 as the perfect rifle despite statistical evidence that demonstrated potential improvements could be made.
Post war research into the effectiveness of the M1 and its .30 caliber bullet found that there were many misperceptions by soldiers about the rifle. Its lethality was not any better than the .276 caliber bullet that the Japanese copied from Pederson in the 1930s and used on American soldiers throughout the pacific campaign.
