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Category: All About Guns
Being on the back half of my seventh decade, there are a lot of things about contemporary society that I find perplexing. For example, service dogs are now almost ubiquitous. Not the kind of “service dog” that alerts of an onset seizure, helps the physically or visually disabled, sniffs out explosives and runs down escaping perpetrators, they are true gifts of God. As are the “service dogs” that point quail and retrieve ducks. The ones that perplex me are the little “Fluffies” whose supposed “gift” is that they calm the frayed nerves triggered by the perceived anxiety of a “victim” of some trendy contemporary angst.
These dogs are allowed by bureaucratic fiat to chaperone their convalescing victim on planes, in church, even at the SHOT Show. Other delusions of oppression like global warming and PTSD caused by non-combat events are difficult for my limited mind to wrap itself around. Everyone is a victim of someone or thing.
No disorder however is more perplexing than the nouveau defect of “Toxic Masculinity.” Apparently the entire 50’s, 60’s and 70’s were a petri-dish of perversion for those of us who identify as male. Attempting to find an objective definition of toxic masculinity is difficult; they all read like an Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez CNN interview, untethered and well…..sorta crazy.
Suffice it to say that if you like guns, shooting and are reading these words, you probably are a carrier. For sure the sport of “practical” shooting was initiated, administered and dominated by men that would be considered “exhibit A” of toxic masculinity by today’s emotive reformers. Most of the early pillars upon whom we’ve built are well known. One of the lesser known pioneers to whom we can proudly trace our lineage of toxic masculinity is Lt. Col. Bill McMillan.
Lt. Col. Bill McMillan guest speaker addresses the competitors at the 1st Bianchi Cup banquet in 1979.
Bill McMillan retired from the Marine Corps the same year that I joined, 1974. As a 6 time Olympian and Gold Medal winner in 1960 in the 25 meter rapid fire pistol event, he was and is a true icon of the Corps. In those days, McMillan stories ran rampant at Corps shooting events and Bill would occasionally attend and put on demos for aspiring competitive shooters. At one of the Western Division matches, he conducted a demo on trigger control using a Thompson submachine gun.
Taping a clay pigeon onto one of the green silhouette target backers, he backed off a number of paces (the distance is irrelevant to the story). Bill then emphasized that a shooter had to be able to feel and control the trigger of whatever firearm that they were shooting, even a fully automatic one. “For example, here’s a one shot burst, he said.” Bang. The clay pigeon shattered. “Here’s a two shot burst.” Bang, Bang. “Here’s three shots.” Bang, Bang, Bang. “Four shots.” Bang, Bang, Bang, Bang. You get the idea.
He kept going until the number of the shots could no longer be audibly distinguished. He then went down to the target with another clay pigeon and taped it on the backer; it covered every hole that he had shot during the demo!
An often told McMillan story relates an example of coaching that he performed in the mid-60’s for the 3rd Tank Battalion. After conducting a shooting demo he asked if any of the assembled Marines were unqualified with their standard-issued 1911A1. One reluctant Marine came forward. Bill loaded a magazine with 5 rounds and had the Marine shoot at a silhouette backer with a regulation bullseye target taped to it; the Marine missed the entire silhouette with all 5 rounds. Bill took him aside and spoke to him for just a few seconds, reloaded the pistol and had him repeat this exercise with the Marine hitting the target with all 5 rounds and putting 4 in the black!
In 1964 he was made an honorary Deputy Sheriff with the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department during a ceremony and shooting exhibition conducted by Ray Chapman and Eldon Carl who worked for the Dept. After retiring from the Marine Corps in 1974, McMillan went to work for the Sheriff’s Department as the Weapons Training Coordinator.
In 1978 during the first class that Ray ever held at the new Chapman Academy, his curriculum included a segment on both strong and weak one-hand shooting. Ray taught a 5 o’clock hold with the right hand and a 7 o’clock hold with the left with the gun “tilted” in board. This was the first time that I was exposed to the 30 degree tilt which allowed for a more natural and strong hold on the handgun. The technique has become almost universally accepted in the “practical” shooting arena and has been taught by most of the famous practitioners of self-defense training.
Only recently have a few trainers like Dave Spaulding gotten away from the practice. Chapman credited McMillan with teaching him the technique which Bill said he originally saw being executed by a Russian bullseye shooter at one of the International games. The technique eventually became known as the “McMillan tilt” in bullseye circles.
Ray Chapman and Eldon Carl observing Bill McMillan in 1964.
At the inaugural Bianchi Cup in 1979, Chapman and John Bianchi asked McMillan to be the guest of honor and speaker at the banquet. It was in keeping with the dignity of the event to have McMillan speak.
Almost exactly one year later, disaster struck. On May 21, 1980, Bill was supervising a “shoot/don’t shoot” exercise using duel-a-tron pivoting targets which he operated from behind a control panel. As a deputy worked his way thru a mock store set-up, McMillan activated two targets, one a “shoot,” one a “no-shoot.” The deputy correctly engaged the “shoot” target but out of the corner of his eye saw another “shoot” target against the wall behind the door thru which he had just exited. Turning, the officer fired two rounds back up-range into the target. The two rounds passed thru the target, wall, a glass window surrounding the control panel and struck McMillan in the upper chest. EMT’s arrived on the range within 4 minutes and found McMillan to have neither measurable blood pressure nor a pulse.
Publicity shot of Deputy Sheriff Bill McMillan.
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They somehow managed to resuscitate Bill and transport him to the Emergency room where he endured 5 hours on the operating table and lost 11 pints of blood. Bill remained unconscious for 2 weeks while he endured multiple surgeries complicated by a blood clotting disorder. One slug was removed 5 days after the shooting and the second slug was removed almost a year later. Bill’s injuries left him very much like a stroke victim. He initially lost the use of his right arm and leg and had no feeling in his mouth. He had to relearn to walk and talk. He also suffered double vision which was helped by prescription bi-focals.
It’s difficult to imagine the impact that such a loss of bodily control would have on an Olympic shooter, Korea and Viet Nam combat veteran and law enforcement officer. Intestinal fortitude, stubbornness, character, determination or some combination of traits saw McMillan driving a vehicle and helping the San Diego Sheriff’s Range Master test ammunition and working with the Sheriff’s SWAT team within a year!
Refusing to buy into a victim mentality, McMillan commented that if this accident had to happen, he was glad that it happened on the downside of his career.
Col. McMillan passed away from congestive heart failure on June 10, 2000.
Every time I shoot one handed and tilt my handgun inboard, I think of Col. McMillan and thank God that men like him have enriched my life in some way. If that’s a nod to “toxic masculinity,” so be it.
– – Greg Moats
Greg Moats was one of the original IPSC Section Coordinators appointed by Jeff Cooper shortly after its inception at the Columbia Conference. In the early 1980’s, he worked briefly for Bianchi Gunleather and wrote for American Handgunner and Guns. He served as a reserve police officer in a firearms training role and was a Marine Corps Infantry Officer in the mid-1970’s. He claims neither snake-eater nor Serpico status but is a self-proclaimed “training junkie.”
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Armed in 1994
“First Victory” by James Dietz courtesy of jamesdietz.com.
This article, “”I Felt It Had Saved My Life” … The BAR,” appeared originally in the July 2006 issue of American Rifleman. To subscribe to the magazine, visit the NRA membership page and select American Rifleman as your member magazine.
Editor’s Note: NRA member Frank Fulford joined the Army in September 1949. He had trained to be a transportation specialist and was passing through Fort Lewis, Wash., on his way to Japan when the Korean War broke out. He was quickly reclassified as an infantryman and assigned to the 2nd Division. He became a BAR man in C Co., 1st Bn., 38th Infantry Regiment. The division was shipped to Korea and took its place in the line around the Pusan Perimeter. He spent about 13 months in combat with the 2nd Division, enduring the withering Chinese attacks and the costly retreat through the “gauntlet” near Kunu-ri during the harsh winter of 1951. Fulford later joined the National Guard and served in an artillery unit. He retired as a major after 32 years of military service.
During basic training, the only firearm I trained with was the M1 Garand. I didn’t train with any others until I joined the 2nd Division. I was a small guy in my unit, and I trained with the Browning Automatic Rifle for a few months while we were at Fort Lewis before we shipped out for Korea. I also fired a “grease gun,” but I didn’t think too much of it. I qualified with the pistol, too. Since I was a BAR man, I was issued a pistol.
When we arrived in Korea, we went right up on the line in the Pusan Perimeter. On our first night on the line, we had a couple of heavy attacks, and I probably fired about 1,000 rounds through my BAR. We were lucky that we brought plenty of ammunition up to our hole. I fired all night, and my assistant kept loading magazines for me. The ammo we had for the BAR came in cardboard boxes with 20 rounds in each box. We didn’t have those loaders they have now with the M16 rifle, where you can strip the rounds right into the magazine. We had to load them into the magazines one round at a time. The next morning, the barrel of my BAR was all discolored, so I went down to an ordnance unit and had them change the barrel for me. It was pretty simple, and it didn’t take too long.
I really loved that BAR; I felt it had saved my life a few times. It was quite accurate, too. Most of the engagements were at 100 to 200 yds., and from those ranges, it was deadly. You just couldn’t miss. It had two cyclic rates of fire, 650 or 450 rounds per minute. Usually 450 was sufficient; it would help hold down shooting the rounds too fast. I was good enough with it that I could fire single shots by controlling the trigger pull.
The North Koreans would zero in on our automatic weapons. They’d make probing attacks to locate them. We learned not to fire the automatics during those probing attacks. You could tell when the main attack came, and then we’d cut loose. On the attack, the BAR was a great weapon. You could really keep some heads down with it. When we attacked, the BAR would be in the center of our line. It was a good reliable weapon; I fired thousands of rounds through mine, and only once did I have to take immediate action to clear a jam. It was heavy, and the ammunition was heavy, but it gave you a lot of firepower.
During the breakout from the Pusan Perimeter, the 1st Cavalry Division was in the lead, and we were cleaning up behind them. I was on our flank one time, and I saw a few North Koreans running through some trees and fired at them. I dropped a few of them, and then 14 of those rascals came out of the bushes and surrendered. It surprised the heck out of me. They had heard that BAR talking, and they came out and threw their weapons down. I had my assistant take the prisoners back to the road and went in to check to see if there were any more of them hiding. One other North Korean came out and tried to run. I called for him to stop but he wouldn’t, and he met his maker.
After a few months, I was promoted to assistant squad leader and they gave me a scoped M1 sniper rifle. It was a nice, brand-new rifle, covered with cosmoline. It came with a scope and a cheekpad. Just like that, I was a sniper. No training, just here’s your rifle, go zero it. That rifle was a honey; I could reach out and touch someone with it. I had quite a few takedowns with that rifle. One time, I saw a North Korean that was about 500 yds. away across a valley. I took him down with one shot. I held a little bit over his head, fired and watched him fall. I used that rifle for several months, but then I had a problem with it. During the fighting at Kunu-ri, it would only fire one round at a time, and I had to slam the bolt back after every shot.
I just didn’t have time to clean it. I think we had fired so much that there was a problem with carbon build-up in the gas system. It just wasn’t blowing back enough gas to cycle the bolt. I threw that rifle away and picked up another one. That one did the same thing, so I found another rifle that worked right. Normally, every time we’d stop for a while, we would clean our rifles, but we couldn’t do that during Kunu-ri. There was just too much going on. We fired thousands of rounds through those rifles during that fight. It was the only time I ever had a problem with an M1. It was a tough rifle under tough conditions, and I don’t fault it for the problem I had with it. The M1 paid its way.
Before I completed my tour, I was made a platoon sergeant and acting platoon leader. I started carrying an M1 Carbine because I could move around with it better. The carbine couldn’t hold a candle to the M1 as far as effectiveness goes. I never had to use it too much, but I didn’t like it. You just couldn’t reach out with it. Most of the time, I was directing the platoon’s fire, and I wasn’t shooting.
U.S. Infantry Weapons In Combat
The accompanying article is excerpted from U.S. Infantry Weapons In Combat, which includes interviews with 65 U.S. combat veterans from World War II and the Korean War. What’s different about this book is that it is a “gun book,” and the stories presented are based upon the guns these men used—including M1 Garands, Thompsons, M1 Carbines. U.S. Infantry Weapons In Combat is a 6″x9″, 237-pp. softbound book available from Scott Duff Publications. The price is $23.50.