BAR from 90th ID Preservation Group.

Our good friend, Chris Guska, over at the 90th Division Association Website also moonlights with the 90th Infantry Division Preservation Group.

In BOOTPRINTS, infantryman Hobert Winebrenner, talks of personalizing certain weaponry, while readying for a jeep recon patrol, just after the Breakout from the Cotentin Peninsula.

“At that point, we held a surplus of BARs. Lots of them!  I dearly loved that weapon. It had so much more ass than a carbine or even an M1. Its biggest drawbacks were weight and mobility. Not only was the gun heavy, but carrying the ammo could turn the most virile young trooper into a bent-back old man in no time.

“Just to try something, we sawed off a few of the barrels.  They wouldn’t be as accurate, but shooting from a speeding jeep wasn’t exactly target practice anyway. In fact, we longed to splatter shells in large swathes and could use a little more spray to our fire. The war was about making do with what you had—improvisations for survival.

“Packed to the brim, we must have resembled a well-stocked weapons dealer. The jeep floors were so awash in ammo that we barely found room for our feet. We angled southeast from Avranches, ready for the worst.”

Chris and his gang similarly altered a BAR for their re-enactment purposes, and also probably, because it was fun as hell.

Keep up the good work 90th IDPG!  I can’t wait to come see you guys in person.  Road Trip!