Craziest thing I've learned today, Claymores have iron sights.

The Claymore saved me during my tour of MW2 and my second deployment during Black Ops 1

'To install claymore, spread out your legs" 💀💀💀💀

It's pretty crazy how deeply video games have given people misconceptions about how these weapons work. Anything from lasers to tripwires have been shown as the trigger mechanism in video games but only rarely are they accurately depicted as being a command-detonated weapon.

Now you too can ambush your milk man with a cleverly laid M18A1 Claymore. Knowledge is power.

The "back" side is a common misconception. That shit is lethal in ALL directions!

Very helpful, i'll keep this in mind when im installing M18A1 CLAYMORE in my backyard.

4:22 i would not take away the test set and connect to the trigger while the handle is still pressed down as shown on video :) ... might be a small detail but an important one if someone follow this step by step :)

These do a great job. US Vietnam Veteran 69-71

Years ago we were training at the demolitions pit with all kinds of explosive stuff, mines, TNT, det cord and M18A1's. We had to have a medic with us anytime we trained with explosives, and he kept complaining he had no place to sit while we did our thing. So, we taped a Claymore to a stout pine tree and set it off. The back plate shattered the tree trunk and felled the tree handily. The medic now had a place to sit on the downed tree trunk.

When I was in the Navy during the 80s I was taking with a SeaBee that served in Vietnam. The subject about claymores came up, and it was common for the NVA sappers to locate the mines and turn them back towards our personnel. The old salt said they would booby trap the claymores with a grenade by placing it under the mine with the pin out The weight of the mine held the spoon ( detonator ) in place. Once moved by the NVA sappers they got a very big surprise... Problem solved

I own an M33 Claymore Training set. The important distinction between the two: my version the mine itself is colored blue which is standard code for training ammo which doesn't contain any propellants or explosives and cannot be made to function as the original was designed. With that out of the way, the rest of the set has real components like the clacker and test set. The Claymore itself is a terrifying weapon, as my friends and I call it "The world's smallest superweapon." Enough punch to knock out an enemy squad (about 12 personnel). They work well in the role of both ambush and defensive.

I had an Ex Vietnam Green Beret neighbor who had decorative dummy M18A1 mines placed in his backyard around his swimming pool, facing outwards. He used to tell me that scrounging insurgents used to sneak in and grab emplaced M18A1s during the night and use them in the jungle for their own ambushes. “The dumb ones” that did not know about the back blast would be sitting behind the mine when they detonated them. It was also more than just the blast force. Debris can fly back with force enough to kill for a very long distance. He would often go out on patrols in the jungle and spot the feet of the claymore and the hands of the insurgent afterwards. The insurgents Darwin Awarded themselves into oblivion because they had not read the manuals for either the US versions or the communist copies of the claymore. They also used to give minor electrical shocks as a practical joke using the command detonators. It reminded him of being an electrical line repairman as a civilian. He would climb up a tower or pole and often see bird feet left behind by birds that electrocuted themselves.

18 years old in a radio bunker alone 13 hours a night 7 days a week I had a footlocker with 4 claymores,4 frag grenades,10 phosphorous grenades to melt the equipment had we been over ran,200 rounds of M-16 ammo and I had an M-16. Now I'm 70 years old and the VA clinic has a sign "No weapons or knives allowed'. Odd how things change when the Government has a war going ain't it???

Yes, "Front Toward Enemy" is very important.

:22 It explodes in 4 directions. Can be lethal up to 300 yards to the front. Within an area of 16 meters to the rear and sides of the mine, backblast can cause injury by concussion (ruptured eardrums) and create a secondary missile hazard. Friendly troops are prohibited to the rear and sides of the mine within a radius of 16 meters. U.S. Marine.

Trivia: C4 simply means "Composition 4." As this explosive material was developed, it was improved from C2 to C3 to what is now C4.

4:16 Before you connect the shorting plug to the firing set, I imagine you would reset the safety bail back to the "safe" position, right?

Had a demo of the claymore in my nco training. We setup wood targets on metal fence stakes, against a hill. After it went boom, we examined the targets. What really impressed me was how some of the fence stakes - about 1/4 inch thick, steel were also perforated.

My unit would wire 3 claymore togather and use det-cord to fire. Wouls do a good job if closer than 50 yards. These were used alone known enemy trails leading to villages or on night ambush patrol. 69th armor pleiku , South Vietnam.

A 9 volt battery is enough to set off a claymore. At Danang on perimeter we had hundreds of claymores set with tke wire going yo a box with a car battery and a series of switches to select individule mines , a row of mines or all.

Early models had flourescent stickers on the back.The bad guys would peel it off and reverse the mine putting the sticker on the business side facing the good guys.Which is why they started molding the Toward Enemy into the case itself.

Claymore! Claymore! Claymore! Three words you must utter to pass Basic Training. For those of you still remember it! Good Times!

Proficient, Intelligible, good quality work.

On long range patrols in Vietnam. I had all my men in the squad carry two Claymores, two frags, two WP grenades, and smoke grenades. The guys complained, if soldiers don't complain, you have a problem. After ambushing a NVA platoon, the guys wanted to carry more!

Thanx Mscope good job on details and deployment. it's nice to understand why & how they work even though I'll never be using one.

The Claymore has a back blast nearly as dangerous as the front blast . The side blasts are much smaller . You never set it up so the back blast comes towards you as solid cover may not be available . You set it up at angle so the back blast goes past you and the front blast cuts across the kill ground at an angle but with respect to the included angle of the steel balls so the edge of the shrap does not catch any of your own men . You can set up banks on each flank of an ambush with the front blast intersecting across the kill ground but the back blast angling away from each flank and the side blast a safe distance away back along the track usually the length of the firing cable . That way both banks are firing more along the kill ground and intersecting not straight across it . It's rare that one soldier will be setting off claymore's so the positions of a squad of men has to be considered . You don't aim it that high as it tends to lever back and shoot a bit high anyway . You aim it at waist height at the center of the kill ground . You have to set them exactly right or they are far less useful and may even kill your own men . And you can't set them against trees or rocks like you see in the movies as that kills the velocity of the steel balls . Used incorrectly claymores are very dangerous .

Some ARVN airborne Veterans told me that Claymore is very affective to clear Vietcong trenches and tunel. Throw it in and click the detonator immediately they don't take POW 😅

"Porch Pirates", you have been warned. 😂 I remember being trained on the Claymore during basic and AIT at Ft Knox in '86. Even though I was a tanker this is basic stuff everyone learns. Cheers.

Thanks for instructional video. I just ordered 6 on amazon.

Thanks ! I just got my Claymores from Aliexpress and the instructions are in chinese !!! Time to have some fun.

We were taught to announce "claymore!" right before detonation, then depress the clacker three times. Also, resist the urge to watch the detonation and stay behind cover, in case the enemy has found your mine and turned it around on you.

Vietnam was crazy with these everywere..geez

My roommate from our base in Germany (89-91) had a great photo taken of him at the EOD range setting a claymore off. You could see him holding the clacker as the mine exploded in the background. We had some good times at the EOD range.

thank you for the detailed instructions, now I know how to use claymore properly :)

YT recommandations at night : "How M18A1 CLAYMORE Works" :)

I was always curious. Definitely an anti-personnel weapon. A good morning coffee watch.

he missed the shipping well. only mentioned the shipping plug. the clacker is the m57 and the test box is the m48

I remember a guy at the VFW telling me that's what they used to make fougasse for their perimeter. The claymore would propel the jellfied gas towards the target with the added bonus of the discharged ball bearings.

RVN 69-70, the claymore was your friend. One thing not mentioned, put a piece of white or reflective tape on the backside. More then once the enemy would find the device and try to turn it around on us. Having the tape and a green eye made that a bad idea.

Back in the eighties we would daisy chain several for maximum effect. Good fun

Impressive! Very well thought out concept.

Better training than we got in the army.

Comprehensive Description of the M18A1. THX Subbed. 🇺🇸

I was hoping you'd go over how the claymore was setup using a trip wire

0:19 One small correction: all explosives detonate in all directions. In the example in the video, the metal would have flown backwards, although not as fast or far as the fragements. Even if backed with bedrock, thick armour steel or similar, they still impart energy in all direction and therefore have effect in all directions. Nothing cannot prevent this. Bedrock might shatter from the surface, heavy armour steel might deform slightly but they are still affected by it. Only after the initial pressure wave, if the backing material resist the pressure, the explosion is/can be directed. This is specially important to note on shaped explosives (HEAT rounds, etc), the expanding pressure wave spreads in all directions, not just to form of the Explosively Formed Projectile. For example, RPG-7 regular HEAT-round has 730g of high explosive, almost twice that of a standard hand grenade. Although the fragmentation is small due to the design, it is still deadly to personel if it explodes nearby. The majority of the energy is directed to the copper liner but the total explosive and it's pressure waver still needs to dissipate and equalize to the surrounding air. This just as a friendly reminder to those saying that HEAT-rounds and their explosive is directed ONLY on a single point and have small, if any, effect of personel nearby.

Unlike a landmine , as a former Marine, you wrap it up, and take it with you for your next obstacle. Das is Goot!!! It's light and effective.

Thank u very much. I really needed it. My wife's parents are coming next week and I didn't know how to activate it in front door.

imagine after setting this up, the enemies come from other directions 😁

"It is important to place the right direction" anyone who needs to be told that shouldn't be anywhere it. Remember on my Assault Pioneer course making one out of a hub cap, being from N.Ireland at the height of the troubles my instructor was highly suspicious!

That was great! Thanks for posting,

Thanks for this video! I have setup 7 of these around my house.

the storey about a man , who uses claymores to rid his property of wolves to save his sheep herd.. worked perfectly, but he was always known as the dude who used mines to solve his wolf problem.

It’s funny how people say video games are so fake on this, but really if claymores were more realistic they’d be too OP in video games 😂😂

the MACV-SOG guys did some interesting things with those claymore mines including taping a WP grenade to the front and fitting them with time fuses

I thought claymore was triggered by the enemies like other conventional mines 😅

Now I know how to set up claymore mine. Not sure what to do with this knowledge, but hey!

You earned a sub.. Keep up these amazing videos ❤

When I'm in a bad neighborhood, I put on my kevlar vest and attach a Claymore on my front and one on my back. That way, if attacked, I pull the string depending on the direction of attack.

I have served in the Singapore army... heard of the claymore mine and was never taught on how it works, never seen the real thing and how to prepare it. During army training... we carried a "dummy" claymore during our training... last it. We called it "tian is ki". We waited till the officer in charge shouted... exploded... and we charged towards a invisible enemy tank or enemy... while charging down... we have to shout."bang... bang... bang..." pretending we are firing...hahah.... looking back... it was a joke..

FRIGGIN loved those!

Our Drill Instructors detonated one for us in Basic training. They make a little mushroom cloud with a deafening roar.

Used these in Fallujah and Baghdad. 04. Mach 3 is 2,220mph. You can also saw them in half and use kitchen timers attached. Made for a very lethal anti personal grenade. In CQC made for better results compared to the hand grenade.

2:14 The reverse thread action is a Claymore secret!

This weapon is pure heck. 😢 Edit: old PRC-77 radio freqs could set off the blasting cap. 😉

These things saved my ass multiple times. Never would have made it off Shadow Moses island alive if not for a few of these things.

The claymore is a grunt's best friend in an ambush or in holding a tactical point! Especially in a stagger set up! And are demoralizing to the enemy trying to overrun a defensive position!

good video and good tips Claymore should always be in some kind of concealment but that concealment shouldn't effect the devices function. for that choose something natural to the environment light branches (like the kinds that are whispy but not full of wood but rather branches) cardboards ( for urban ) and other things use your imagination for best practices have some one (time permitting) stand at about 20 meters and try to look for it after you conceal it, should they have a hard time doing so and picking out if its obvious to them ( like as if it was obviously a spot for a claymore to be or that something would be worth checking out) hide your wire via small surface level trench or with more natural camouflages you should remember to also make sure to hide your stakes they don't have to be in the air but rather enough to anchor it to the ground with out tipping over your device. find or make a cover spot with in the ambush side (think foxhole for open ground with a "roof" even if its more a place for you and your battle buddy to lay in preferably making an L shaped ambush position or behind hard cover like boulder or wall, again use your best judgement). keeping these things in mind will be helpful for you and your squad mates to successfully utilize the M18 claymore in an ambush and give you and your squad mates the first strike capability to win your ambush. Happy hunting.

The new MC18 Claymore...Pack (M) Mentos behind (C) Coke with 18 ballbearings in front. 😂

No “I see the light, I see the light, I see the light “. Lol

The kill zone is A LOT LARGER then 60 degrees and 50 metres. The can make enemies unalive 50 meters behind them too. To both sides and the entire curved front. They can and have unalived enemies at 200 meters to the front too. Depends on the terrain. I’d rather take my chances with a bounding mine then a claymore ANY DAY! We never used an anchor post, and tried to have the back a meter from a tree to cutback on the back-blast. You never know where those metal balls will go.

We used to play a game called Carwars. My character was named Kamikaze, crowd favorite, and he walked around with a claymore on his chest when he wasn't driving. Yah, he was totally nuts. 😂

*In NAM we always had to slap the trigger 2 or 3 times in quick succession??? Are newer Clays different????*

We never saw ,much less had a test set . We carried a couple of klackers ,multiple claymores ,extra wires and caps . Spot of reflectin paint on back that would show up w/ night vision .

Great video and presentation.

Now I’ve forgotten my credit card PIN number. Learn something new, forget something important.

4:05 ''...I see the light, Drill Sergeant...''.

They still use claymores, I remember them well , this is from my generation

75 yards forward, 65 yards backwards. I see the light drill sgt!

I was watching how car brakes work, UKposts suggested to watch how claymore works, watching claymore now 😂

Wonderful, now I know how to operate and set a Claymore. Now I only need a Claymore and some people that I could regard as enemies.

Who all said, I see the light, I see the light ,I see the light.

2:14 not being picky, but the plug rotates in the opposite direction to the thread.

Thanks for this tutorial I will try it

Welcome back bro❤❤

Good thing it says "back" on the back, otherwise some people would assume that the side with instructions is the back.

I was taught to depress the trigger 3 times.

While I was in Cambodia we would set these mines on the trail and set up our NDP night defense position. As soon as it got dark we could hear the mine go off. I still remember the short lived screams that followed.

I see the light! I see the light! I see the light! :D Secret Claymore lore there.

Why doesn't the M18 fall over when it explodes? Doesn't it have a "recoil" like other weapons? It stands on those flimsy legs and could be pulled down by yanking on the cable.

my buddy was in the army.he would get some bondo put in the claymore and some more shrapnel like old brass casings. he said he said hit one enemy in the eye with and old casing and laughed. so did I . He did say the blow back was a little more pronounced .

Need a film of the live fire, bro. That supersonic SHIIEEEKKK is terrifying.

0:21 now i understand the scene from NOBODY

Instructions unclear squad members turned to jelly

Supposedly my uncle was killed in Vietnam by his own claymore he set up the night before. I have heard that it was also one of his team members accidently setting it off. Don't know the entire truth, but it got him for sure.

3V only?? i thought the plastic needed quite a energy strike to set it off, so handing it poorly or dropping it cant explode it.

Hell of a boom when they go off.

Blasting caps takes extreme precaution and from wires in contact when installing on the M18A1 C-mine during a hasty ambush. Blasting caps are inside the wire spool and the rubber boot must be kept closed till you connect the wire to the M-57 ignitor. M-57 must be tested before use.

I Like it when the antihero in movies carring one on their frontal armor…i never saw one connecting the trigger and Tester in the Final Battle seconds lmfao…

The best thing to do was to stick a few of these along a narrow jungle pass, detonate them simultaneously, and when the enemy dives into the nearest ditch, another set strategically positioned will take out more of the enemy. You could dispatch three quarters of a platoon in one fell swoop in quick succession.