Kitbash Grenadier, 3rd Bn, 75th Ranger Regt

To be effective in combat, every military squad needs a grenadier and the US Army Rangers are no exception. In the 2001 film "Black Hawk Down" based on the book of the same title by Mark Bowden that depicts the Battle of Mogadishu, Ewan McGregor played US Army Ranger Specialist John "Grimsey" Grimes, who while serving as a clerk for the Army Rangers during the Somalia conflict, joined Task Force Ranger at the last moment and ended up in urban combat, armed with his trusty M16A2 mounted with a M203 grenade launcher.

This is a 2006 kitbashed 1/6 scale 12-inch US Army Ranger Grenadier of the 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, part of Task Force Ranger at the Battle of Mogadishu, Somalia, 3-4 Oct 1993. He wears PASGT helmet with six color Desert camouflage cloth cover, combat goggles, woodlands body armor, grenadier’s vest, t-shirt, three color Desert Camouflage Uniform (DCU), US flag insignia, web belt with two M16 ammunition pouches, two water bottles with pouches, M16A2 with M203 Grenade launcher, knee pads, and desert combat boots.






A closer view of the grenadier's vest that can hold the M203 rounds. The M203 is able to fire a variety of different rounds for many purposes. There are 8 different rounds for the M203: M406 High-Explosive round, M433 High-Explosive Dual Purpose round, M585 White Star Cluster, M651 Tactical CS Grenade, M781 Practice round, Star Parachute - White (M583A1), Green (M661) and Red (M662), Ground Marker and M576 Buckshot ("Beehive"). [ source: wiki ]


The M203 is a single shot 40 mm grenade launcher that attaches to a number of popular assault rifles, but was originally designed for the US M16 and its variant, the M4 Carbine. In the US military, when a rifle or carbine is equipped with the launcher, both weapons are collectively referred to as an M203. The rifle magazine functions as a hand grip when firing the M203. A separate sighting system is added to rifles fitted with the M203, as the rifle's standard sights are not matched to the launcher.

The M203 grenade launcher was intended to be used as close fire support for point and group area targets. The round is designed to be effective at penetrating windows, blowing up doors, producing casualties in groups of enemies, destroying bunkers, and damaging or disabling non-armored vehicles. A well trained 203 gunner can also use his weapon to suppress the enemy, both from movement and sight. In addition, the M203 can be used as a crowd control weapon when equipped with the M651 Tactical CS grenade. The M203 was not, and is not intended to be used against armored or heavy vehicles.

I've posted pictures of Dragon 1/6 12" Master Sergeant Gary Gordon, US Army Delta Force Sniper Team Leader HERE, Dragon 10th Anniversary Commemorative Edition 1/6 scale 12-inch "Danny McKnight", Commanding Officer of the 3rd Ranger Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment military figure HERE, Dragon 1/6 scale 12-inch US Army Delta Force Snatch Team Leader "Jeff" of Task Force Ranger HERE, and Dragon US Army Ranger Staff Sergeant "Matt", 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment HERE and a kitbashed US Army Ranger M249 SAW Gunner in the previous post.

I had covered in greater detail the "Battle of Mogadishu (1993)" as depicted in the film "Black Hawk Down (2001)" in an earlier post HERE

There's also a post on the 1/6 AH-6 Little Bird attack helicopter HERE