Posted on 07/11/2008 5:24:57 AM PDT by DJ Taylor
In a move that could ruffle the feathers of an Army command that views the Colt Defense-built M4 as the best carbine in the world, a select group of top senate staffers is gathering today to look at what could be the future of the military's standard assault rifle.
About 30 legislative aides have signed up to attend a July 11 demonstration at Marine Corps Base Quantico, just outside Washington, D.C., that will feature weapons from various manufacturers vying to end the reign of the M16 and M4 as the U.S. military's most fielded personal weapon.
The range day is intended to help familiarize key lawmakers with possible alternatives to the M16 and M4 once the exclusive contract with Colt Defense of West Hartford, Conn., ends in the summer of 2009, a senior senate aide told Military.com.
(Excerpt) Read more at military.com ...
Yep.
Everybody who can is ditching the AK-47/AKM for the M4 carbine.
More accurate.
More modular.
More ergonomic.
And it poops where it eats.
Oh. I thought they were going to be armed with the weapons and sent out to a local starbucks for coffee, thus having ample opportunity to return fire.
6.8 X 43 SPC,
6.5 x 45 APC, or
6.8 X 45.
The Grendel requires new bolt and a new magazine to function, has a significantly reduced magazine capacity, and an unacceptable increase in weight (210 rounds in magazines). The 6.8 SPC suffers from the same defects.
The 6.5 x 45 and the 6.8 x 45 use the same bolt face and magazine (with minor modifications) as the 5.56 X 45 with minimum increase in weight.
I am going to check out The Capitolist.com to see what the LA’s are saying. That’s their chat room. They were saying some really snotty things about the people who called during the big illegal immigration legislation meltdown.
I can’t watch this from work, but I think this is the Barrett 468 assault rifle video.
http://shock.military.com/Shock/videos.do?displayContent=171394
Staffers? OMG
They should stay in their offices in DC, watch NBC/CNN and conduct a “study” purely academically. This would save the resources wasted on a demonstration that will only be set-up to bring predetermined results.
Yes, the M4 isn’t the newest and greatest. One can make something “a bit” better, but that’s the problem. ALL THOSE who argue for alternatives (to date) are essentially splitting hairs and looking at microscopic differences in performance to justify spending billions and assuming great risk in other areas typically not considered by these them. Spend the money on hardware where our “net benefit” where the “return on investment” for the soldier and Marine is greater. The reductions in weight, the increased accuracy, the handling of the weapon under rapid fire, the weapons modularity etc..... none of these aspects really give a “significant” advantage in the alternatives out there. As of date, there is simply no real alternative that is a break through making the cost, pain in transitioning (logistics, training....etc), risk (production short falls, possible system failure down the road when they begin fatiguing).......... worthwhile. People don’t realize, it’s not just as easy as buying a bunch of new guns. Yes, they will be new and shiny and look cool. They might even have a rep there that calls them by a cool name. There are many things I can think of, right off the top of my head, where the soldier and Marine would benefit more from on money spent. Resources are limited, spend them where we maximize the return, not chase some marginal gain with a cool new toy.
But the Air Farce and Navyget to buy new stuff all the time! LOL
Ah, cut them some slack. If you had the chance to take a day off from pushing paper and go shoot some neat guns, wouldn’t you take it?
ONLY 30 SIGNED UP!?!?!?!
What a bunch of doofus’...
DPMS LR308-AP4 or SOCOM II.
I have a Bushmaster M4 in 6.8. - "significantly reduced magazine capacity" - no. Going from 30 rounds to 26 is hardly significantly reduced, especially when you consider what you're getting for that 13% capacity loss.
Heh! Nice graphic for this subject for the ping.
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