My Next Door Neighbor

This is a spot for posting those old photos of your service days, your favorite tractor, whatever...Don't be shy we all love looking at pictures! No Nekkid People though, this is a "G" rated site!

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mrdibbles
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My Next Door Neighbor

Unread post by mrdibbles » September 22nd, 2010, 6:10 pm

My next door neighbor, when I was a kid growing up in Corpus Christi, was a guy named Thomas. He was like family to us and he regularly kicked my butt all over the neighborhood. He was something like 5 years older than me and I loved taunting him and trying to get him in trouble. During a scuffle once he hit me with a billy club. I was the classic pestering little kid and I really admired him as the BMOC. He later went to Texas A&M and got into the Army National Guard where he became the XO of the 111th Texas National Guard Engineer Battallion. Here's a photo of him in front of a vehicle I think some of us might be familiar with. He said that this was a training exercise where they were keeping Texas ranchlands free from Communists (photo is cerca 1983).

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1992 Mercedes-Benz 250GD Wolf - Former German Army
St. Augustine, Florida

WC Matt
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Re: My Next Door Neighbor

Unread post by WC Matt » September 22nd, 2010, 9:50 pm

Mr. D
Neat photo (thanks, for posting) What is interesting to me about this photo is that it was taken in '83 and he's in the ANG and he has a "Fritz" kevlar helmet. Those were just starting to be issued to active duty personel around that time and here is a Guardsmen with one.

Matt

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muttguru
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Re: My Next Door Neighbor

Unread post by muttguru » September 23rd, 2010, 4:30 am

mrdibbles wrote:...............(photo is cerca 1983).

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Hello Mr D,

I think he's mistaken about the date of the photo. ROPS fitting commenced 1987. :D
Kind regards....
Ken

Always wanted - Details and pictures of M416 Trailer data plates & M151 data plates & body-tags for my research. Thanks!

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Note for 2023..... Ken..."Less Stress - More Exercise!"

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mrdibbles
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Re: My Next Door Neighbor

Unread post by mrdibbles » September 23rd, 2010, 4:50 am

Could be wrong on the date. Honestly I was estimating... let me see what he says but given what you guys are saying I'm voting late 80's not early. He did say that this was one of the last Mutt's in his guard unit as most of the others were replaced with HMWWV's.
1992 Mercedes-Benz 250GD Wolf - Former German Army
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raymond
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Re: My Next Door Neighbor

Unread post by raymond » September 23rd, 2010, 5:07 am

I thought most M16A1's had been withdrawn from service by the time the ROPS came out.
Raymond


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Re: My Next Door Neighbor

Unread post by WC Matt » September 23rd, 2010, 8:20 am

raymond wrote:I thought most M16A1's had been withdrawn from service by the time the ROPS came out.
I'm not sure when ROPS were added but if Muttguru says about '87 then I believe him 8) . I remember a NY ANG unit putting on a display by my home (when I lived in Queens, NY) around 1982/83 and they still had pickle suits (OG107s),steel helmets & M16A1s. There was also an M60 equipped mutt there but for the life of me, I can't remember if it was an A1 or an A2 I do seem to think it was sans ROPs though. I saw some more Army reserve(?) or NYANG units around '90 and they were still roll'n in the G838s but those had ROPS and netting instsalled.

As for the M16A1, They kept those in reserve for a long time after the A2 was introduced. There were NG and support units that deployed to the first Gulf war with them . A friend of mine joined the USAF right out of high school (1989) and he qual'd with a slick side M16 that still had the crome bolt & carrier in it :o . Another friend was the CO of the NBC unit, 29th Infantry div (VANG) during the mid/late 90s. he told me at some point, they took away their A2s and gave them A1s. They then took away the A1s and gave them worn out A2s :? .

Matt

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Re: My Next Door Neighbor

Unread post by cstaup » September 23rd, 2010, 8:53 am

raymond wrote:I thought most M16A1's had been withdrawn from service by the time the ROPS came out.
I firs qualified on a worn out A1 in Ft Leaonardwood, MO 1991. There were a few of them in the 25thID with A2 handguards (for uniformity) when I got there. '91-93
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Re: My Next Door Neighbor

Unread post by WC Matt » September 23rd, 2010, 9:05 am

cstaup wrote:
raymond wrote:I thought most M16A1's had been withdrawn from service by the time the ROPS came out.
I firs qualified on a worn out A1 in Ft Leaonardwood, MO 1991. There were a few of them in the 25thID with A2 handguards (for uniformity) when I got there. '91-93

I was on paris Island in '02 and all of ours were A2s and of Colt mfg.

Matt

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Re: My Next Door Neighbor

Unread post by cstaup » September 23rd, 2010, 10:35 am

See you Marines get all the good stuff. :lol:
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Re: My Next Door Neighbor

Unread post by Crusader_22 » September 23rd, 2010, 1:39 pm

Cool pic, thanks, Mr. D.

When I joined in 1987, in basic at Ft. Dix, NJ, it was steel pots and M16A1s. By the time I got to AIT (96R MOS) at Ft. Huachuca, some of the instructors had Kevlar helmets. They were active duty, of course, I was there for Army Reserve Basic & AIT. My reserve unit (Ft Huachuca, also, yes, I did AIT a hundred miles from home here in Tucson) was an Armor Battalion, 8/40th armor. We had steel pots, and A1s...and M151A2s for our MOS. We drove those things all over Ft. Huachuca. What a blast! That's why I have a MUTT today, nostalgia.

I had a long break in service, came back as 11B MOS, and went from Kevlar, M16A2 to the RFI bonanza of ACU stuff, ACH helmets, and BRAND NEW Colt flattop M4s right out of the box on the way out the door to Iraq with every bell and whistle imaginable.

Soon, we will be going to Multicam uniforms. So by the time I am done, I will have seen quite a few major equipment changes.

Sitting in our armory vault right now (I'm in an aviation unit now), is a Colt AR15 rifle, converted to M16a1 configuration, and THEN converted to an M16A2 rifle!

Jeff
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Re: My Next Door Neighbor

Unread post by moose53 » September 23rd, 2010, 3:33 pm

Ft.Dix was still using the M16A1's at least into the early ninety's. I stopped instructing on the ranges there about 94 and we still had them then....

Jim
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1971 G838-M151A2 1966 G857-M416
1968 G748-M101A1 1976 G748-M116A1
1990 MEP-701A

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Real jeeps have horizontal grille slots

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Re: My Next Door Neighbor

Unread post by WC Matt » September 23rd, 2010, 3:54 pm

Crusader_22 wrote:Cool pic, thanks, Mr. D.

When I joined in 1987, in basic at Ft. Dix, NJ, it was steel pots and M16A1s. By the time I got to AIT (96R MOS) at Ft. Huachuca, some of the instructors had Kevlar helmets. They were active duty, of course, I was there for Army Reserve Basic & AIT. My reserve unit (Ft Huachuca, also, yes, I did AIT a hundred miles from home here in Tucson) was an Armor Battalion, 8/40th armor. We had steel pots, and A1s...and M151A2s for our MOS. We drove those things all over Ft. Huachuca. What a blast! That's why I have a MUTT today, nostalgia.

I had a long break in service, came back as 11B MOS, and went from Kevlar, M16A2 to the RFI bonanza of ACU stuff, ACH helmets, and BRAND NEW Colt flattop M4s right out of the box on the way out the door to Iraq with every bell and whistle imaginable. That friend of mine who was CO of the NBC company told me that Unc.Sugar spent something like 6k per man in new gear & dodads before they were deployed overseas.
Soon, we will be going to Multicam uniforms. So by the time I am done, I will have seen quite a few major equipment changes. Multi is a great pattern-always new the ACU pattern was a "stop gap" uniform :wink: .
Sitting in our armory vault right now (I'm in an aviation unit now), is a Colt AR15 rifle, converted to M16a1 configuration, and THEN converted to an M16A2 rifle! I saw a National Guardsmen with an M203 "overstamp" (started life as an AR15).

Jeff
cstaup wrote:See you Marines get all the good stuff. :lol:
That's because we steal everything from the Army :wink: :lol:

Matt

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Re: My Next Door Neighbor

Unread post by dsw » September 23rd, 2010, 8:25 pm

After my active duty from 1972 thr 1975, I was in the NG from 1980 thru 1988. I would say we got kevlar about 1985. Our A1's were replaced with A2's with rops right before I got out in fall of 1988. My 2 cents.

Scott

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