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WASHINGTON, Dec. 1 — The Department of Energy said tonight that approximately three‐quarters of the A‐1 model Polaris nuclear warheads deployed on submarines in

WASHINGTON, Dec. 1 — The Department of Energy said tonight that approximately three‐quarters of the A‐1 model Polaris nuclear warheads deployed on submarines in the mid‐1960's were probably “duds” because of mechanical defects. https://www.nytimes.com/1978/12/02/archives/early-polaris-missile-had-defects-scientists-at-government-labs.html https://www.nytimes.com/1978/12/02/archives/early-polaris-mi... To be fair, the Japanese had really good torpedos at the start of WWII, but there were other things which were just as unproven and wonky. For one, the proposed tactic of letting battleship shells fall short, to target enemy ships underwater, was pretty much useless. (Come to think of it, the initial performance of Sidewinder missiles in Vietnam was another example of this sort of military equipment failure.)

Smoosh 7y ago
Another example is when the M16 rifle was first introduced in the Vietnam War, it was unreliable due to fouling.
- m4rtink 7y ago
  This was prominently shown in the first Vietkong game, including having to use just 20 round clips when using it to reduce the chance of fouling happening. Quite a nice touch.
  - toomanybeersies 7y ago
    I don't think that 20 round magazines were used to reduce fouling and the chance of misfires. It was just the standard magazine capacity of the time.
- chiph 7y ago
  That was the Army's fault. They changed the powder from the one specified by Colt and the Air Force. They didn't require the troops to clean their weapons (wtf?), and the Ordnance Corps desperately wanted the M-16 to be a lighter M-14. https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1981/06/m-16-a-bureaucratic-horror-story/545153/ https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1981/06/m-16-a-...
  - ncmncm 7y ago
    The Ordnance Corps has a lot to answer for.
- toomanybeersies 7y ago
  One of the major issues with early versions of the M16 was that they used a different propellant for the ammunition than what it was designed with. This propellant caused increased fouling. They were also initially issued without cleaning kits, because they were apparently "self cleaning", which is patent bullshit.
  - nyolfen 7y ago
    iirc the barrel linings also were not chromed for the first few years, which caused corrosion (half-remembered from chivers' the gun)
- csours 7y ago
  To be rather pedantic, the very first AR-15 rifles in the Vietnam theater worked very well. It was after the Army Ordnance Corps removed the chrome lining from the spec and changed the ammo from stick to ball powder that the rifles failed in the field. (the story is more complicated than that) Skip to 46:30 for summary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYar4Zf8jH8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYar4Zf8jH8
m4rtink 7y ago
The japanese 25 mm AA gun seems to be considered pretty bad as well, at least by western WWII historians.

Smoosh 7y ago

Another example is when the M16 rifle was first introduced in the Vietnam War, it was unreliable due to fouling.

m4rtink 7y ago
This was prominently shown in the first Vietkong game, including having to use just 20 round clips when using it to reduce the chance of fouling happening. Quite a nice touch.
- toomanybeersies 7y ago
  I don't think that 20 round magazines were used to reduce fouling and the chance of misfires. It was just the standard magazine capacity of the time.
chiph 7y ago
That was the Army's fault. They changed the powder from the one specified by Colt and the Air Force. They didn't require the troops to clean their weapons (wtf?), and the Ordnance Corps desperately wanted the M-16 to be a lighter M-14. https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1981/06/m-16-a-bureaucratic-horror-story/545153/ https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1981/06/m-16-a-...
- ncmncm 7y ago
  The Ordnance Corps has a lot to answer for.
toomanybeersies 7y ago
One of the major issues with early versions of the M16 was that they used a different propellant for the ammunition than what it was designed with. This propellant caused increased fouling. They were also initially issued without cleaning kits, because they were apparently "self cleaning", which is patent bullshit.
- nyolfen 7y ago
  iirc the barrel linings also were not chromed for the first few years, which caused corrosion (half-remembered from chivers' the gun)
csours 7y ago
To be rather pedantic, the very first AR-15 rifles in the Vietnam theater worked very well. It was after the Army Ordnance Corps removed the chrome lining from the spec and changed the ammo from stick to ball powder that the rifles failed in the field. (the story is more complicated than that) Skip to 46:30 for summary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYar4Zf8jH8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYar4Zf8jH8

m4rtink 7y ago

The japanese 25 mm AA gun seems to be considered pretty bad as well, at least by western WWII historians.