Remarkably, a few remain in service to this day. [45] On March 9, 2007, the rifle and pistol complex at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar was officially renamed the Carlos Hathcock Range Complex.[46]. Nevertheless, Winchester Model 70s teamed with the Unertl scopes were superb sniping arms, certainly better than anything else in the militarys inventory at the time. Carlos Hathcock typically used the Winchester Model 70 sniper rifle chambered for use with 30-06 ammunition along with an eight-power Unertl scope. The letter, signed by Winchesters Edwin Pugsley, concluded: It occurs to us that the Marine Corps may be interested in an additional quantity of [these] rifles at this time and shall be glad to submit quotation if you will advise us what styles and quantities you may be interested in.About a week after this letter, the Marine Corps firmly closed the door on the acquisition of any additional Model 70 rifles. Great project. Choosing a selection results in a full page refresh. Due to the extreme injuries he suffered in Vietnam, he was in nearly constant pain, but continued to dedicate himself to teaching snipers. Just 55 days short of the 20 years that would have made him eligible for regular retirement pay, he received a permanent disability separation. His previous skill as a marksman had won him a variety of matches and trophies at places like Camp Perry in Ohio. The company made its humble start in 1963in Gussago, Italywhen Giuseppe Pietta made a commitment to produce guns as authentic and true-to-original as possible. I had a chance to take a trip back in time recently and shot the Winchester Model 70 .30-06 using an 8-powerUnertl scope, the same set up that the famous Carlos Hathcock used while he was in Vietnam. Carlos Hathcock, the most celebrated US sniper in history, preferred the model 70 over a host of other rifles at his disposal, using it extensively in combat during the Vietnam war, and in Wimbledon matches at Camp Perry in the years that followed. And they did see duty. The matte black LR/T weighs 19.5 ounces and is 13.5 inches in overall length. It is undesirable to inject another rifle into the supply system, and if another rifle is injected into the supply system, it is necessary to inject non-standard ammunition for this rifle into the supply system in order to exploit fully any gain in accuracy. His longest confirmed kill was 2500 yards. The Winchester Model 70 represented perhaps the epitome of the bolt-action sporting rifle. At the direction of Van Orden, USMC armorers began modifying some of thesporter weight rifles, fitting them with heavy Douglas target barrels and Unertl 8X scopes. The rifle most associated with Carlos Hathcock is the Winchester model 70 sniper rifle with an 8X-power Unertl scope. JavaScript is disabled. The Winchester Model 70is abolt-actionsporting/huntingrifle. [10], One of Hathcock's most famous accomplishments was shooting an enemy sniper through the enemy's own rifle scope, hitting him in the eye and killing him. These rifles pop up every now and then, not often but they do show up. Many of these were subsequently rebuilt between circa 1956 and 1963, primarily at the Marine Corps Match Rebuild Shop in Albany, Ga. Hathcock pulled seven Marines from the flame-engulfed vehicle, suffering severe burns (some third-degree) to his face, arms, and legs, before someone pulled him away and placed him in water because he was unaware of how badly he had been burnt. "[35], Hathcock's son, Carlos Hathcock III, later enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps;[36] he retired from the Marine Corps as a Gunnery Sergeant after following in his father's footsteps as a shooter and became a member of the Board of Governors of the Marine Corps Distinguished Shooters Association.[37]. So if you are looking to own the first two Model 70's ever made then these are of interest to . Hathcock generally used the standard sniper rifle: the Winchester Model 70 .30-06 caliber rifle with the standard 8-power Unertl scope. This is an example of a very rare post-64 "U.S. PROPERTY" marked Winchester model 70 target rifle that was manufactured in 1967, that is fitted with an even rarer "USMC PROPERTY" marked Lyman Super Targetspot rifle scope. The success of the Model 70 on the rifle range attracted renewed interest from the U.S. Army as evidenced by a Feb. 2, 1955, memo from the Office of the Chief of Ordnance to the Chief of Army Field Forces, which stated: It is requested that this office be furnished [with] your comments and recommendations relative to procurement of cal. Thanks. Hathcock's career as a sniper has been used as a basis for a variety of fictional snipers, from the "shooting through the scope incident" to the number of kills he made. Both men served in Kilo Co., 3rd. This recommendation made its way up the chain of command. The Model 70 was largely based on the Model 54, and is today still highly regarded by shooters and is often called "The Rifleman's Rifle".In 1999 Shooting Times magazine named the Model 70 the "Bolt-action Rifle of the Century". The Model 70 was largely based on the Model 54, and is today still highly regarded by shooters and is often called "The Rifleman's Rifle." The sniper system shoots the M72 match ammunition loaded with 173-grain . The Winchester Model 70 is a bolt-action sporting rifle.It has an iconic place in American sporting culture and has been held in high regard by shooters since it was introduced in 1936, earning the moniker "The Rifleman's Rifle". FOLLO .more .more 2.6K Dislike Share Indian Gunner 26.3K subscribers. His previous skill as a marksman had won him a variety of matches and trophies at places like Camp Perry in Ohio. If I was you, I might look up this guy on ebay and write him and see if he has anymore of these barrels. I did all the other work. That is the pic. The rifles inherent accuracy was ideally suited as a sniping rifle. A Lyman micrometer sight base is mounted on the left side of the receiver. The M-25 White Feather is a tribute to Carlos Hathcock who accounted for 93 confirmed enemy kills in Vietnam. [22] Hathcock said he was almost stepped on as he lay camouflaged with grass and vegetation in a meadow shortly after sunset. Decorations. By the end of his first deployment Hathcock's life was worth $30,000 to the North Vietnamese . Land, Jr., who served in the . For this operation, Carlos selected a .30-06 Winchester Model 70 mounting a Lyman 8X telescope that McAbee had fine-tuned. [2] Hathcock married Josephine "Jo" Bryan (ne Broughton; 19302016) on the date of the Marine Corps birthday, November 10, 1962. "[20] Hathcock said in a book written about his career as a sniper: "I like shooting, and I love hunting. This is debatable. While the Colt Model 601 was the first AR-15 to be mass-produced, there were several design variations that came before during the platform's development. Despite its excellence as a precision rifle, the Model 70 was never fully embraced by the U.S. military as a standardized sniper arm. Hathcock was awarded the Silver Star for his heroic action. A handful of the original USMC model 70 riflessurvive to this day, and 76 years later hold enormous collector interest. Born on May 20, 1942, in Little Rock, Arkansas, Hathcock took to the sport of shooting at a very young age. [43] In 2002, this record was broken by Canadian snipers (Rob Furlong and Arron Perry) from the third battalion of Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry during the War in Afghanistan. the best known U.S. Marine Corps snipers who used the Winchester Model 70 during the Vietnam War was Gunnery Sergeant Carlos Hathcock, who used a Winchester Model 70 sniper rifle chambered in .30-06. Founded by Frank Galli in 2000, Snipers Hide has been offering informational videos, podcasts, and other support to its users in one location. Copyright 2023 National Rifle Association, Women On Target Instructional Shooting Clinics, Volunteer At The Great American Outdoor Show, Marion P. 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You must log in or register to reply here. These rifles were subsequently used for recreation and target shooting. The Marine Corps utilized Winchester Model 70 rifles in this configuration in 1966 and early 1967 as the primary sniper rifle until the adoption of the Remington Model 700 sniper rifles in mid 1967. Carlos Hathcock (D. Kevin Elliott) The sun lay low in the Vietnamese sky. The machine work, barrel channel and bedding were completed in our shop. Learn more about Gunnery Sergeant Carlos N. Hathcock II and the Winchester Model 70s service in Vietnam in these two American Rifleman articles:The Military Model 70. Nearly 30 years later, he received a Silver Star for this action. Eventually, there were likely thousands of model 70s in military service, with the exact number unknown. As events transpired, the Model 70s pressed into service as sniping arms, especially during the Vietnam War, were really never meant to be more than a stop-gap or interim measure until a standardized sniper rifle could be procured. The rifle would of course have to be chambered in the 458 x 1.5 Barnes cartridge. Winchester Model 70 It was long thought that Hathcock, armed with his Winchester Model 70 . The 1,047 rifles, U.S., caliber .30, M1903, Snipers Equipment on hand at this Depot are believed to be superior to the subject rifle both in accuracy and durability.. 2023 The SOFREP Media Group. The Korean War was the last conflict in which the World War II-vintage bolt-action M1903A1/Unertl sniper rifle was employed. It would be hard to find a better example of this classic Marine sniper rifle from the Vietnam War. An unknown number of additional Model 70s were eventually purchased for military use - both standard rifles and the marksman style target rifles. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. The Army's most accomplished Vietnam War sniper, Sgt. My Hathcock tribute. Hathcock dreamed of being a Marine throughout his childhood, and so on May 20, 1959, at the age of 17, he enlisted in the United States Marine Corps. Press the space key then arrow keys to make a selection. [34] After the war, a friend showed Hathcock a passage written by Ernest Hemingway: "Certainly there is no hunting like the hunting of man, and those who have hunted armed men long enough and like it, never really care for anything else thereafter." Hathcock held the record for the highest bounty and killed every known Vietnamese marksman who sought him to try to collect it. The Winchester Model 70 is a bolt-action, sporting rifle that can be used for hunting or shooting. However, where the USMC procurement brass failed to see the merits of the Model 70, the Marine Corpsmarksmendid not. Hathcock was soon a member of the USMC rifle team, and in 1965 he won the Wimbledon Cup, a 1000-yard individual match fired at the National Matches in Camp Perry, Ohio. Although never adopted for combat use by the U.S. military, some Model 70 rifles were used as sniping rifles during World War II, Korea and Vietnam.Soon after Pearl Harbor, two members of the U.S. Marine Corps Equipment Board, Capt. [33], Hathcock once said that he survived in his work because of an ability to "get in the bubble", to put himself into a state of "utter, complete, absolute concentration", first with his equipment, then his environment, in which every breeze and every leaf meant something, and finally on his quarry. The US government eventually purchased additional model 70s andofficially sanctioned them for combat duty. Built with glass-bedded actions and heavy barrels, and used for long-range target competition, the M70s were capable of great accuracy with the Unertl scopes. He was the only child of Carlos and Agnes Hathcock. Serial numbers were in the approximate 41,000 to 50,000 range, and the rifles had 24" sporter barrels with leaf sights, sporter-checkered stocks with steel buttplates, 1" sling swivels and leather slings.Shortly after the government acquired these rifles, Winchester reported that all .30 Government 06 Rifles are now frozen under War Production Board Limitation Orders. The company obviously wanted to sell as many of the Model 70s remaining in its inventory as possible. This shot covered a distance of 2500 yards. Are you at 6 or are you at 5.75 or 6.25? Can't recall if they were 264 or 7mm Rem mag offhand. You are correct in that stainless cannot be blued as it is. The only sound in the sweltering stillness was the buzzing of flies and gnats as. The rifle retains the original style sporter stock with checkered pistol grip and forearm and steel checkered buttplate. It was supplied with a Redfield 3x9 mounted with Redfield base/rings. And, yes, I am extremely fortunate to have the most wonderful private range at my disposal. [23][failed verification] This effort took four days and three nights without sleep and with constant inch-by-inch crawling. S. Jay Ratliff Only thing I would add is I forgo the 6X as I dont think its precise. The author says Carlos used a Model 70 Winchester with a long tube Unertl scope. Although the model 70 was never officially approved for combat service during WWII, a number of Model 70s made their way into combat with USMC snipers. He used a M2 .50 Cal Browning machine gun mounting a telescopic sight at a range of 2,500 yd, taking down a single Vietcong guerrilla. The "U.S. Rifle, Caliber .30, Model of 1903," better-known as the M1903 Springfield, has become one of the most popular U.S. military small arms to collect. It is an odd scope by today's standards. The rifle was already being used by Marines snipers in Vietnam. Van Ordens rifles also enjoyed some measure of success on the target range, as Marine Col. Walter Walsh won the 1952 National Rifle Matches at Camp Perry, Ohio, with one of the Van Orden Snipers.. THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING VETERAN JOURNALISM - JOIN SOFREP+ , PO Box 1077 MURFREESBORO, Tennessee 37133 United States, P.O. Calvin Lloyd, wrote a 72-page report titled Equipment for the American Sniper, which discussed the various types of rifles and telescopic sights available at the time. Hathcocks primary set-up was a Model 70 (pre-64), 30-06 target rifle with a heavy barrel, and Unertle 8x scope. Im sure with a lot of practice and tons of time behind the rifle, it could become almost second nature, but for the time we had it, it wasnt something to brag about. It was advertised as missing parts. [38] He is buried at Woodlawn Memorial Gardens in Norfolk, Virginia. Not only were we pleased to help supply them with the correct part, but we were more pleased to see this aging model 70 remain in active service, rather than face an inglorious ending as scrap metal. But if you go by the books, everything seems right on it. [44] Turner Saddlery similarly honored Hathcock by producing a line of leather rifle slings based on his design. He fell into a state of depression when he was forced out of the Marines because he felt as if the service had kicked him out. "White Feather" as he was called by the North Vietnamese . STOCK: Walnut FINISH: Blued barrel and action, oil-finished stock LENGTH OF PULL: 13.8 in. Carlos N. Hathcock II, who won the Wimbledon. Model 70 sniper rifles were used by US Marine snipers continuously from WWII, through the Vietnam War. On some occasions, however, he used a different weapon: the Browning M2 machine gun, on which he mounted a 10X Unertl scope, using a bracket of his own design. On some occasions, however, he used a different weapon: the M2 Browning machine gun, on which he mounted an 8X Unertl scope, using a bracket made by metalworkers of the SeaBees .