You also have to remember that in those days, soldiers fired the courses as range practice several times under the supervision of a coach before they had to shoot the qualification course.

Only a marksman?
Don't knock it, kid.

MANY trainees don't make the cut even today.  

As for your M1911 qualification, don't sweat it.  They make bayonet lugs for the .45! 😊

I have been a WW2 buff for years; I am older (70) and had relatives who fought at the Battle of the Bulge, and many other associations with WW2 Vets over the years. As a Vietnam Era Vet, it is so cool to see the torch being passed to a younger generation, that has an interest in keeping this history alive. I thoroughly enjoy the work you do, thank you!

My Dad told me a large part of the training was how to use your sling to steady the rìfle. He told me the guys who listened and did what they were told did fine. The know it alls usually failed. He told me his instructers and drill sargents were all  veterans of WW2. Bastogne, Arnem, the Bulge. D Day. etc. He discribed them as "Pretty tough fellas"!

Don't feel too badly for not shooting higher xcores. If they conducted weapon qualifying in the WWII era like they did in the late fifties, you would have had about a weeks concentrated practice on live  firing before you had to quaify. I think that training would have increased you scores greatly.

I think you should have spent more time zeroing in first. Don't chase the last shot! Do not remove the rifle from your shoulder as you work the bolt! Each time you do that you are repositioning your body/frame! Advice from a Marine Rifle/Pistol Expert everytime I qualified! Spend a week or so snapping in and dry firing! You'll do much better afterwards!

Marine Corps vet here:  at 6:39 you do not have your loop near tight enough.  All your positions will suffer accuracy.  But you did well enough.  In combat no one is shooting groups.  Every shot you fired was a disabling or kill shot.  With that in mind, you took out 176 enemy combatants.
Well done Pvt.  BTW.....I'm 79 years old.  Platoon 203, USMCRD San Diego, 1966, Blues Award, Series Honorman. 9th Marine Amphibious Brigade, Okinawa, Camp Hansen last duty station.  Oooh Rah.  Although that  was not a sound I ever heard in the Corps in the late 60's.

Having done a similar test (Appleseed Qualification Test), I can testify that Marksman feels like one heck of an accomplishment when your previous test gave you unqualified.

My dad shot expert . He grew up from a young age shooting rifles . He loved the M1 garand and he used a M1 carbine as his primary weapon . He taught me marksmanship as a kid and we shot right up until he passed in 2005 .

He loved shooting his WWII style rifles . A M1 garand , 1903 , M1 carbine , Enfield no 4 mk 1 , Japanese 7.7 Nagoya G.I. bring back , 8mm Mauser K98 .

The military rifles are so awesome to shoot and collect . I worked at a dealer where we had over 3000 new , used, and consignment firearms . Everything from Brown Bess to the most modern and in-between.  Firearms really are history . Works of art and look into the past .

it's always been a bit funny to me that "marksman" sounds cool and talented, but is actually the lowest tier of qualification...
but now that I see what it takes to qualify, "marksman" has gone up in prestige a bit in my book.
good job.

My father was in the USMC during Korea. As he put it he learned to shoot at a kid, then learned to SHOOT in the Corp. He qualified Expert with the M1 Garand, the M1911A1 pistol and Sharpshooter with the M1918 BAR and M1 Carbine. There was talk of keeping him at Camp Pendleton as a weapon instructor but he ended up first at the Pusan Perimeter, then later as one of the "Chosin Frozen" at the Chosin Reservoir.

Going through Dad's WWII foot locker and duffle bag, we found a few manuals, including the 1903 rifle.  Dad told me about his rifle qualification. He had volunteered for the draft, passed the tests, and got his spot in the US Army Air Corp.  He and my Uncle used Grandpa's 1903 from WWI for hunting on the edge of the Oklahoma dust bowl as they grew up.  Dad said some of the firing positions were awkward.  But the prone position was the most remembered because as he was firing, he was pushed back on the platform from the recoil, ending up about 3 feet behind where he started. The drill Sargeant told him to eat more beans. He scored sharp shooter. My Uncle qualified as expert. Dad was only in basic at Ft Sill a short time and then off to Wichita Falls for specific training.  He was issued a 1911, and later an M1 carbine.  He was glad for the "practice" and food provided by the 1903, but dreaded carrying that thing into combat.

So for the ripped paper on the target, any time I was scoring ranges the rule was if paper broke black, that counts. You can’t prove or disprove that the tear in the paper wasn’t directly caused by the bullet or not.

That is of course the modern interpretation, but if the military isn’t anything else, it’s loyal to traditions, so I have to assume the rule is the same then as now (break black)

He has nothing to worry about because I was a 17-year-old kid in the US Army BCT and was issued an M-14 service rifle, making it my first firearm shooting; I did outstandingly for a non-shooter, receiving the Army’s second marksmanship badge. 17, and weighing in at 117 pounds December 12th, 1968, basic training J/F 1969.
During my shooting for the M-14 qualification, I still remember that at Fort Ord-Sea Range, my spotter Pvt Sander, I could see at 500 meters/yards target fire two rounds in 7.62x51; I aimed dead center with the bullet striking below, then I told to aim higher the head area, my second shot striking the target center mass, and down went the target. I was then told, “You are finished.” My next would be AIT at Fort Ord, California -Field Wiremen School completion of the course in May 1969, then to Korea on June 8th, 1969, 13 months tour ending July 3rd, 1970. My next stop was the Vietnam War, which lasted from November 12th, 1970, to November 12th, 1971. I made it out in one piece, so I thought.

First off thank you for your video. As a retired Army officer,  history buff, and certified firearms instructor I think it’s great to see how they did it back then.
For history, you were shooting a model 1903A3 rifle which followed the model 1903 as both were used during WWII. You did not mention the type of ammunition you were using as both of these models have sights calibrated for a specific military round. The M-2 cartridge uses a 150gr bullet at approximately 2700fps. Any variation in those specifications will affect the sight adjustment.
The rifle can be zeroed and adjustments can be made but the specific elevations on the sight may not be accurate as what the sight was made for.
In the military match that I was match director for at my gun club we shot at 100 yards and used reduced targets for 200, 300, and 600 yards. As you mentioned it does not account for distance or wind and weather, where sights have to be adjusted for each course of fire.
I am looking forward to trying your course of fire with my 1903A3 and see how I come out.

Thanks again for introducing a lot of younger people to our military history.

J. S.

The 1903 Springfield was designed so that when you use the stripper clip, you do not have to manually pull it out of the stripper clip adapter. when you push all your rounds down into the magazine, you just push the bolt forward. It will eject your stripper clip.

Try to use your   1907 sling its not just a  carrying strap it's a shooting aid !

Awesome video!  You know what the qual was for the Garand?  Also, profit off your labor, keep making these targets and sell them on your site.  I know I’d be a returning customer for them

Do a retake on those tests every few years. Would be awesome to see how you improve.

Don't give up - my dad qualified after he joined up in 1942, and his glasses were much thicker than yours. We have a picture of him from his WWII days and he looked like Radar O'Reilly from MASH with his glasses!