Vietnam Trivia

[jinelson]

Sparrowhawk, I remember it being that way. I never understood why we had to pass a full junk on the bunk in staging at MCB Camp Pendleton just to store everything for a year on Oki. On my second tour when I got back to Camp Hanson Okinawa I was told that my bag and gear was destroyed by a typhoon and they gave me a chit for a full reissue at my next duty station. I like to travel light and the chit was very light. I never wore my horse blanket and chucked it before going staging so guess what I had to replace for the junk on the bunk? I used MARS once in Danang at 1st MAW HQ Special Services to call home, the radio transmission was received by Senator Barry Goldwater at his home in Arizone and some how he got it transferred to a telephone line to my folks house. I remember my Dad *****ing about the phone bill to Arizona from California.

MASS - 3 MACG-18 Motor T. FMFPAC WESTPAC
Semper Fi - Jim

[Toby M]

All our civies went into boxes in Okinawa. Most of it was mildewed 13 months later so we all got new issue. Some of the guys didn't so they went home smelling of mildew. I was a perfect size 30 waist w/ a 36 (huge) chest so there was no problem outfitting me. I remember the sound of those 122's coming over most nights though. Usually at the most inconvenient times. You know, after a long hard day at work and relaxing in the shower before an ice cold Black Lable...

[dogman68]

Dogpatch was also a good source of intel on local vc movements and ops.

[Sparrowhawk]

What was the cost of a 12 oz bottle of coke from mamasan?

was there a difference between the price for a cold bottle or a warm coke?

and what about the deposit?

remember them requiring a deposit for the bottle if we took it with us?

What did they charge as deposit...?

[Sparrowhawk]

What type of beer was available there?

I seem to remember one that started with a "B" blitz? ballentine?

long tiime ago....

[Sgted]

Ballentine
Ashai (from Japan)
Kirin (from Okinawa)
Schulitz
Bud

My memory of beers available in 'Nam.

[2091351]

33
Tiger
Bud
Carling
Others, but I have to look them up to remember how to spell them.

Steve '65-66

[Sparrowhawk]

Since you spent some time on Hill 327,was there a PX there?

It seems like I got to go there once, very vague in my mind. Anybody have any pictures of the place or can describe it?

Just one of those things, been wondering about lately.


SF

Cook

[Fred Pfeiffer]

Occasionally you could come across a 'San Miguel'. I seem to remember that you had to be careful about the brewery it came from, Manila or Hong Kong. I can't remember which one would get you sick (the two-step), but it was one of them.

I also remember hearing the VC barber story at Marble Mountain Air Facility just after I arrived in country in 1967, in that case the story went that the incident occurred at Marble Mountain during a sapper attack on the helicopter flight line.

Could the same thing have happened in more than one place? I suppose the VC would try to get onto every base if possible.

[Sparrowhawk]

Originally posted by Fred Pfeiffer
I also remember hearing the VC barber story at Marble Mountain Air Facility just after I arrived in country in 1967, in that case the story went that the incident occurred at Marble Mountain during a sapper attack on the helicopter flight line.

Could the same thing have happened in more than one place? I suppose the VC would try to get onto every base if possible.

The barber on hill 37 only had one leg. He was a cripple, but there was others that also worked there at the barber shop. There were very few instances when both Marble Mountain and Hill 37 were assaulted as has been described it happen where the barber was killed.

I have found no real reference to anyone of them in the official Marine Corps records, if it happened on Hill 37 it would have occurred in 1968 as some of the Marines I served with recall that story.

I have some emails out to verify the story from those that worked S3 at 3/7 but still no reply.

SF

Cook

[2091351]

There was a PX built at the bottom of Hill 327 about the time I left there and went over to Marble Mountain. Seems like the Red Cross had a building near there also (females). Our Control, we were not with LAAM, when I was on 327 was on the west side of the DaNang air field and we would send someone down to get mail about every other day. Not a bad trip down the Hill, through Dog Patch, but getting someone to give you a lift up was sometimes a tougher chore. Then our Staff NCO's found out that we would acquire the left over Adult Beverages from the E Club on top of the Hill everynight and put them in our Refers, remember we had power to run the radios, and we could get a PC (M-37) lift up the Hill every afternoon.

Beers: Turborg, San Migel (painted label), PBR, Schlitz, and of course Bud and Carling.

Been a long time ago (38 Years)

Steve

S/f

[Sparrowhawk]

I know we used them in Nam, that is, I remember the name anyways for some reason.

Anyone have any data on them and if we used them, in Nam?

If I remember correctly the round buried itself in the dirt then shot out a whole bunch of mini-bomlets/ that exploded on contact?


Anyone?

[radio relay]

I probably shouldn't even open my yap about ordinance, because I only really don't know anything, "authoritatively", with the exception of radio gear used in Nam (speciifically microwave radio gear), but I remember the word, "beehive", was used to describe just about any round, or bomb, that contained several projectiles, or bombs. Wasn't there a "beehive" round for bloopers (M-79)? I think it contained flechettes? I think there were bigger arty rounds that had the little bomblets, that also was known as a beehive round.

I just heard the term thrown around alot. Particularly by Grunts BS'ing about action they'd been involved with, or seen. Never had any direct experience with it myself, though.

[Sparrowhawk]

I forgot about the M-79, yes they had some type of round that did that... I think... But I know they had different type of rounds, one being a willy peter round for the blooper?

But remember seeing those droplets explode after the arty round had hit the ground, several times near Liberty Bridge.

Can't find anything on it, so far...

[jinelson]

The rounds that we called beehive's contained ball bearings about the size of .00 buck shoot. Cant remember how many were in each round but they sure blew stuff up. I also heard that they had rounds with the flechettes but never got my hands on any. As a 3531 the blooper was my weapon of choice since it took too long to get my M-16A1 off the wind shield wing nut and wrestle it around the steering wheel, good old blooper was right next to my seat.

Semper Fi
Jim