The standard issue weapons for U.S. soldiers in Vietnam included the M16A2 rifle, M1911 pistol, and M61 fragmentation grenade. The M16A2 was the most common rifle, firing 5.56mm rounds with effective range of 300 meters. The M1911 pistol had an effective range of 75 yards and 7 round capacity. The M61 grenade had a casualty radius of 15 meters and incorporated a "Jungle Clip" safety feature to prevent accidental detonation in dense foliage.

1. Viet Nam Weaponry U.S. Army Standard Issue Ray Liu

2. Question What was the standard issue to the soldiers of Viet Nam?

3. U.S. Army Standard Issue Primary -- Colt M16A2 Secondary – M1911 Grenades – U.S. M61 Fragmentation Grenades

4. Colt M16A2 Most common associated gun to U.S. troops in Viet Name era. The 5.56mm M16A1 is a gas operated magazine-fed rifle capable of semi-automatic and automatic fire with an effective range of 300 meters and a practical rate of fire of 60 rpm. The current US standard issue gun is made to look similar to the Colt M16A2

5. Colt M16A2

6. M1911 Handgun Effective range 75 yards. 7 bullet clip Made in America in the late 1850’s. The last handguns were made in the 1950’s. Manufactures take in broken guns and replace them with recycled parts. There are currently 2 million M1911 Handguns still in use. A few select squads still use this in the Iraqi War.

7. M1911 Handgun

8. U.S. M61 Fragmentation Grenades It has a light sheet metal body, with an internal fragmentation coil, producing a limited but effective casualty radius (15 meters). The grenade was changed and introduced to the Viet Nam war with a “Jungle Clip”. It is a secondary trigger on the grenade to prevent accidents. During the Viet Nam War, many grenades caught onto trees and bushes and exploded, which is why the U.S. created the Jungle Clip. The user must press down on a part of the grenade and then pull the clip to trigger the grenade. A major improvement from earlier grenades, the M61 is the first grenade which doesn’t spark or smoke when triggered.

9. Citations Dan, Alex. &quot;Viet Nam War Weapons&quot;. Military Factory. 10/29/08 <http://www.militaryfactory.com/vietnam/vietnam_war_weapons.asp>. Richard, Duprel. &quot;USMC Weapons 1965&quot;. 10/28/08 <http://www.duprel.com/usmcgeocitiespaid/weapons.html>. EJ, &quot;U.S. M61 Fragmentation Grenades&quot;. Intert ORg. 10/28/08 <http://www.inert-ord.net/usa03a/usa3/m61/index.html>.