Extra Firepower for Vietnam: the Aussie "B!tch"
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 17 ธ.ค. 2023
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Many of the special forces groups that operated during the Vietnam War found they standard issue weapons a but unwieldy for use in confined jungle environments. They also found a need for something that could deliver an immediate large volume of fire to break contact during an ambush (or deliver an ambush of their own). The Australians were no exception, and with the typical Special Forces attitude towards customization a few guys made some improvements to what they were issued...
What we have today is a recreation (by Mark Graham of ARS, build on a DSA semiauto receiver) of an Australian L1A1 with its flash hider cut down and a second pistol grip mounted to the barrel. The real examples of these often had rather shorter barrels, and ones that began life as semiauto L1A1 rifles were typically converted to fully automatic (some began as L2A1 automatic rifles and did not require this extra step). Fitted with a large LMG magazine, they could deliver a lot of firepower in a very short time; just the ticket for a small jungle patrol.
Special thanks to Bear Arms in Scottsdale, AZ for providing access to this rifle for video!
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It’s like the Aussies saw the yank’s M14 fire in full auto and we’re like: “nah, she needs more muzzle tilt” and made this. Aptly named btw
Precision fire solves a lot of problems, Volume of Fire solves a lot of problems at point blank range
I was in the Australian Cadet Force from 1969-72. The FAL as you call it was always referred to as the SLR (Self Loading Rifle).
All Australian Soldiers of the L1A1 era knew how to turn a semi into an Auto with nothing more than a matchstick from a ration pack.
Anecdotally, the easy modification to enable fully automatic fire on the SLR was to use a matchstick to disable the interruptor. This did make them full-auto only, but was able to be done by less special forces in the field and could be surreptitiously uninstalled before handing your firearm back to the unit armourer.
We (Canadian Army) call that "dump a mag and fall back" manoeuvre the Aussie Peelback. Now I know the gun that originated from, so thanks for that.
I just want to say thanks to all of the Aussies in the comments who've shared their stories! Very great to read, cheers to you guys!
Years ago, when I was serving in Germany, I was good friends with the regimental armourer. Although the SLR was not my personal weapon, my armourer friend adapted one for me so that it fired full auto and used LMG 30 round mags. He had adapted one for his own use and another for a mutual friend who was a combat engineer. As an aside, when working in an urban environment, I happened to be in the infantry defence company armoury, when I espied an M16. I asked who used it and was told no one wanted it: all the infantrymen preferred to take out an SLR when on patrol. The armourer told me I could have it, if I wanted it. At the time I carried a Sterling in a canvas bag with the stock folded and the mag off, plus a Browning 9mm HP in a shoulder holster. Unfortunately, the M16 was too big for my canvas bag. Pity it wasn't a CAR 15, one of those might just about have fitted in.
In WW2, in the jungles of Papua New Guinea, the Aussies learned to love a short-barrelled, full auto with front pistol grip that can dump a shed ton of lead at whatever you’re going after.
Never clicked on a Forgotten Weapons video so fast😅
“A very short, full-auto, .308 calibre, flash & blast, concussion inducing Bitch”
Ian, I volunteer at the SAS Historical centre and can give you some info on the Bitch. Firstly, we did have a empty mag hold open, dont know where you got the info from that we didnt. It was called the Bitch because after its first firing, the shooters response was that it kicked and sounded like a bitch. We have many "Bitches" and others on display for the public to handle. We also have a 40mm grenade launcher shortened to a pistol, plus the patrol member who carried it on patrol is a volunteer as well.
My friend was an armourer in Vietnam and he told me that he did exactly what you just spoke of. About 15 - 20 years ago, after he had retired, he went to the SAS barracks in Perth and enquired about his modified SLR as there was one mounted on the wall. He was pleased to hear that the very rifle he modified was still being used for training purposes. Steve Chapman was the gentleman's name, he was a proud soldier and a very good friend. RIP Steve. Lest we forget.
Once upon a time, nearly 50 years ago, when I was an Army Cadet here in Western Australia, I was one of the few who got a tour of some of the SAS workshops at Campbell Barracks, adjacent to the Swanbourne rifle range where we were training with worn out .303 SMLE and Bren.
Knowing the Aussies, it's a miracle this thing wasn't called the C-word
A guy my dad worked with was a Vietnam vet. He co-wrote a book about his experiences. It is called Crossfire: An Australian Reconnaissance Unit in Vietnam. In it he describes beginning his deployment with an Owen, but, after joining the recon platoon, making his own weapon by putting a heavy barrel on his SLR and modifying the sear to give him full-auto fire. He called it the "slaughtermatic."
Small point of order, the L1A1 was generally referred to in Australian service as the SLR ('Self Loading Rifle'). Yes, it's an FN-FAL restricted to semi-auto fire (well, bar modifications like the one above), but that's what our troops referred to it as.
I was one of those ‘SASR’ armourers and I test fired both the Bitch and the Beast as part of the annual non-technical inspection. The muzzle flash coming of that thing could have started a bush fire, and just a tad loud.
When you are in Australia, you should check out the Australian War Memorial, the Lithgow Small Arms Factory and the Infantry Museum in Singleton. They would most likely have this rifle in their collections.
Best comment I ever heard on full auto FALs: “first shot’s on target; second is 6” above, and anything after that is anti aircraft fire”