Sgt. Grit,
In Vietnam, a friend and fellow Ordnance Man was the Ordnance Chief of the 1st Marine Division. Hanging on his wall was a Stoner Rifle left over from the test of the Stoner Rifle in Vietnam. I asked him to come with me on a Recon Mission. The Division Ordnance Officer okay'd the Recon so we left touring the OP's. He took the Stoner rifle as his personal weapon while I carried my M14. At each OP he would allow any one that wanted to fire the Stoner, to fire it. Here is a picture I took at one of the OP's and a Marine Firing it. Don't remember his name or the name of the Ordnance Chief, sorry.
The "Stoner", for you Marines that are not aware of it's Versatility, was a rifle that could be easily converted to a Carbine, or a Machinegun (either fired from the shoulder or mounted). The Marine Corps and the Army didn't find a need for it so it wasn't adopted however a few lucky individuals did get to fire it.
Note this is a Fighting Post with Hand Grenades hanging from the metal ditch covers we found great for protection when attacked and how we built our OP's.
Gysgt. F. L. Rousseau, USMC Retired
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