The U.S. Army 25th Infantry Sniper 1969

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Looks like a 700 Rem Varmint to me. The Marines had a few left over 30-06 Model 70s that year I think, but us doggies had 700 Remmies (I was NOT a sniper, but all ways loved guns and examined all I could ever find).

Tried blowing the picture up it DOES look like a push feed Model 70 from the bolt handle, can't make out the safety design. I never saw a push feed 70 over there, but I wasn't near the 25th infantry .
 
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U S ARMY 25th INFANTRY SNIPER VIET NAM 1969

Longrange308: The picture brings back a lot of memiories. Look how young he looks, 19 or 20yrs old, but can`t buy a drink of whiskey at a bar back in the World or Vote to elect thoes who controled his life. I wonder if he made it home ok, I hope so. I wonder how he is doing now and if he had a good life, and is he happy. He deservied that, at the very mimium. And I hope to God the dreams don`t haunt him every night of laying in that dry rice paddy taking that shot, or the many others that he has locked away in his mind. GOD BLESS HIM: ken
 
Oral tradition has it that some Army units purchased their own Sniper Rifles through the PX. That bolt handle does look like a push feed model 70.

Jimro
 
Look at the length of the action. It looks like an early M-40 in .308 with a Redfield scope.
The M-70s are all long actions, that rifle is a short action.
 
Several years ago Remington made limited run reproduction of that in green box with bull barrel parkerized metal parts, dull wood finish, wide sling swivels and aluminum but plate. I did not buy one because price was close to $1000. The caliber was 7.62x51mm.
 
My "shooting buddy" was a Navy sniper in Viet Nam. (43 confirmed, 19 probables) and can still shoot some amazing groups. He likes the paper targets better because they don't shoot back, but he's an amazing guy. To meet him, you would never know he ever did anything, but his "life story" in Viet Nam involved being "butt struck" in the head by a Mosin Nagant during a mission.

All of our snipers deserve respect, because they do the job that tactically saves hundreds and thousands of lives. As the technology improves, the range of the shots has stretched out, but my total respect to anyone who served as a sniper. I don't think which service really matters, because they all do something that requires a special skill and special people to do it. Thanks guys.

WT
 
My father was an army sniper, WWII vintage, and he told me of just a fraction of the stuff they went through and it would still curl your hair 40 years after. Some of it was almost unbelievable. Those men in all conflicts deserve every bit of respect able to be given.
 
great photo.

note the lack of kevlar-reinforced pistol grip stock, 24-48x55mm optic, fluted SS barrel, quick-adjust bipod and $500 rings and bases.

how could he even hit anything with that 'old hunting rifle'??;)
 
Very astute on the action length Float Pilot ! Like I said Marines had a few old M70 30-06 and the rest I saw were Remington Varmint guns with various stock finishes. The most common Remington optic was the Redfield 3-9x with Leatherwood ART cam modifications. I saw a few of the fine old 10x Unertls on the Marine guns and I swear a couple on the early (they were years old when I laid eyes on one in 1968) Model 700 Remington Varmints , maybe they actually were 40x Target guns thinking back. I saw those OLD .308 Unertl sighted guns on Spy Glass Alpha towers in the uplands between Da Nang and PhuBai. Those towers were interesting! I spent a few months in them listening for tactical enemy voice with a direction finder available . There was also a battle ship type binocular that was calibrated for arty support of the 8" Self Propelled guns that were a few miles away and a M2 .50 with a large
ANPVS sight on it and I had an ANPVS2 equipped M14 and a couple radios and a large infra red spot light. The tower was supposedly RPG proof BTW. Rather scary times for the 4 man crew one of which was a genuine US Army sniper.
 
I would say it's one of the most powerful photos I've seen, especially when you consider everything that's going on. The sniper looks like he's in his teen years (robbed of his youth), and the observer imagine what those eye's have seen. I wonder if they were just scanning for enemy personnel, or had his cross-hairs found their mark.
Click to expand...

When you consider everything that is going on, the relaxed posture of the spotter, the helmet rest, and the fact that there are more people spaced equi-distant on the trail and seemingly just as oblivious to any threats, those guys are engaged in target practice. If engaging the enemy, then you have to wonder why so many folks are sitting upright, out in the open and apparently not oriented toward the threat with their weapons.
 
Sarcasm or not, I have to agree these guys aren't actively engaged with any target close enough to be a threat to them. Any infantryman would be able to read that from this picture.

A CO, 1-5 INF, 25th ID, 2002-2003.

John
 
The shooter looks like he's fresh out of Senior Prom, the fact that this is a photo from a training environment is not relevant to what was going to happen when he landed in theater.
I have a pic of my Dad at Monte Cassino with the 34th ID 151st FA BN. ca. 1944, He looks calm as can be, warm and dry with a notebook on his knee and a Field Radio next to him. Pic does not say he is getting Fire Control Coordinates from a Forward Observer, nor does it say that he had to take that FO's place a short time later, Knowing those facts makes the picture all that much more amazing. If you looked at the Pic of my Dad you would think he's at a camp out not fighting for his life.
The context of the picture is not always what is visible in the picture.
Gods pray the Kid in this threads original post is enjoying this Fathers Day with Grandchildren hugging him and his Kids doing the same.
 
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