Noob tricks/pranks

[ardchoille]

Oh, I forgot one; 50 yards of gig line. Anyone who has spent any time worrying about how their military uniform looks will appreciate this one.

[J.B. Simpson]

When I was new to the USS Peleliu LHA-5 I was sent for some "Bulkhead Remover". When I returned with a backpack Oxy/Acetylene cutting torch they decided not to send me on any more "missions". We had "Sea Bats", "Coyote Diodees", and the ever popular "Bucket of Steam". At NAS Lemoore we sent a "Noob" for some "turn signal fluid", 4 hours later he returned empty handed!

[James MacMillan]

These are all great, and it sure does bring back some good memories.

Every prank that I have seen of this type has always been a sort of Rite of Passage, and in my mind tends to bring the recipient further into the fold.... after all most of us had these same jokes played on us. Men in the services and in most industry, for that matter, need weird manners to let off steam.

I wonder if there are similar pranks to play on the newly kilted? -- -- anybody?

[Yaish]

What with wearing pleats in the back, carrying a claymore around in a PC jacket, and wearing only 'authorized' tartans they almost prank themselves.

[TheKiltedCoder]

Like the Bradley guy, back when I was driving M-1's (only carried 4 people, but the gun was bigger. ), the soft armor check was pretty popular. We had one FNG going around to each tank in the platoon, ball-peen hammer in hand, checking for soft spots in the armor, when our brand new LT showed up. As we're watching, he asks our FNG what he was doing. When the FNG explained, the LT pipes in with, "That's a good idea! You can't ever do too much maintenance!", takes the hammer from our FNG, and takes the task over himself. The whole platoon was behind the tank laughing ourselves silly.

[alikws]

Always good to reverse things by finding the impossible object, One person I know sent a fresh fish for prop wash. He found and ordered a rather pricey commercial cleaner for propellers. that put a stop to things. Scouts returning with another left handed scout with a paper plate [left handed smoke shifter] or a pail of water and dry ice [bucket of steam] are good come backs. Now in these politicily correct days they consider it hazing

[Ayin McFye]

Like the Bradley guy, back when I was driving M-1's (only carried 4 people, but the gun was bigger. ), the soft armor check was pretty popular. We had one FNG going around to each tank in the platoon, ball-peen hammer in hand, checking for soft spots in the armor, when our brand new LT showed up. As we're watching, he asks our FNG what he was doing. When the FNG explained, the LT pipes in with, "That's a good idea! You can't ever do too much maintenance!", takes the hammer from our FNG, and takes the task over himself. The whole platoon was behind the tank laughing ourselves silly.

I've heard of a simliar story where my buddy had the FNG / Private tapping on the Bradley and he was told that every time he found a weak spot to make a white circle with chalk to show where the weak spot was. When the CO came by the Bradley was covered in white chalk.

[Jerry]

As a navy ET, we often sent noobe to the storeroom for a surface search radar range strobe, or 50 mils of line current. Other things pulled on navy noobe were mail bouy watches, "seeing the sea bat", and, when deployed in the Med, having someone on lookout for the Prudential sign on Gibraltar.There was a story that went around aboard my ship about a BT striker, who was sent ashore to fetch a bucket of steam. The story was that he came back aboard at the end of the day with a bucket full of water, stenciled with thw words, "US Navy Steam, Condensed.", followed by, add heat.

[ThreadBbdr]

I love the comebacks and the ones where the Noob outsmarted the 'oldsters'.

Unfortunatly, I don't have any to contribute. If JC fell for one, he didn't confess it to me!

[Frank McGrath]

My brother in law takes his neighbor kid fishing for flounder near Ocean City Md. The kid catches a flounder that is 3/4" under limit. He was so excited. Bill says we'll put it on the fish stretcher. Back at the boat ramp, Bill is pulling the boat out of the water and Colby is talking to the Natural Resources Cops. "Mr. Bill has a fish stretcher at home". Several days later, Bill is out on his boat when up pulls the DNR Cops. Bill know all these guys, being a retired cop himself. "Hey Bill, can we try that fish stretcher?" They all had a good laugh over it.