Swede used to call that performing and exorcism on the pig. It wasn't long after that Swede "liberated" an STG57. I don't remember what the official explanation was for the loss of the "pig" but there was this young Lt that would run at the sight of the Swede as long as I remember.You should try clearing a "worn and tired" M60 machine gun in pitch black nighttime darkness….
As far as the procurement of the STG? Legend has it that Swede brought it back from a walk in the woods. When asked where he found it he gestured to a corpse on the tarmac at Ubon and said " he wasn't using it anymore".
For those of you that know the pig well the STG57 is 10 pounds lighter and box fed. It's also capable of being an improvised DMR. Accuracy even with worn roller delay pieces was excellent. Unlike a G3 these pieces can be replaced. Being able to carry 12 pounds of ammunition and ditching the pig was a win. Curiously large stocks of 7.5x55 appeared along with magazines.
Once stateside an armorer mistakenly attempted to replace the STG57 with a 510-4. This mistake was quickly rectified. It seems he like his anatomy arranged just the way it was.
@Stomper , I didn't mean to go off on a tangent here but both the Swede and I have performed that exoticism in the dark on multiple occasions. The above history is meant to enlighten the current generation as to just how much the pig was despised in service. So much so in fact that nearly any other solution was better than the M60.*
*By the time we saw them in the mid to late 70's they were already "mixmasters" and "franken guns" . A collection of parts just to keep them running. The leaf spring that retains the grip housing would break, partial case extractions were a barrel change, and before the e3 upgrades there were a litany of other ills. And it was heavy ;-) When it worked it was a savior, and it was still heavy. Essentially a crew served weapon because it was , umm, heavy.
