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2008-09-29 Home Front: WoT

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Posted by Besoeker 2008-09-29 09:26|| E-Mail|| Front Page|| [11129 views ] Top

#1 Sorry about the shoddy grammar. Should read "AR-15/M-16 was ultimately selected." Of everything I have lost over the years, I do miss my mind the most.

Posted by Besoeker 2008-09-29 10:00|| 2008-09-29 10:00|| Front Page Top

#2 Its a smooth shooting gun, never jams, with a handy fold down carry handle, but its heavy, real heavy compared to an AR-15. I'd say it would get real heavy with 6 or 8, 30-round mags added to it.

Posted by bigjim-ky 2008-09-29 10:47|| 2008-09-29 10:47|| Front Page Top

#3 Not as accurate as the M14 either, due to bolt lockup design, which is sensitive to number of rounds remaining in the magazine. Reliable though.

Posted by Whiskey Mike 2008-09-29 12:38|| 2008-09-29 12:38|| Front Page Top

#4 Btw, this should read "Fusil automatique léger", since rifle (fusil) is a male word (as opposed to carbine, which is a female one, go figure).
Wouldn't the german G3 qualify as the Ultimate Battle Rifle? It was used almost as widely as the Fal, still is I think, by turkey notably, and was certainly as good, if german standards are up to what they should be.
Or what about the swiss Fass 57? IIUC, the swiss rifles are generally considered the best around, though no one buys them (except Swat teams and so for their current assault carbines, in limited numbers), because they're so expensive and so hard to manufacture...

Posted by anonymous5089 2008-09-29 12:48|| 2008-09-29 12:48|| Front Page Top

#5 My big gripe with the M-16 was that it often took more than one hit to knock down a bad guy. Now, in Iraq, it seems to take a bunch of hits to knock down a guy in a flak vest (and the bad guys have them).

The M-14 and other NATO .308 weapons hit hard enough that even if it doesn't kill the guy, it knocks them down. And knocking them down is the key, once a guy is down he can't shoot while he is trying to get up.

In places like Iraq and Western Asia, the FAL or M-14 make more sense than the M-16. This stuff about the weight of ammo is bunch because you are more often in a mech unit and have a Bradley or LAV full of ammo to back you up. In a jungle TO, with reduced ability to resupply and you have to carry everything you shoot, a lighter weapon makes sense.
Also the .308 is an accuracy weapon that places more emphasis on marksmanship while the AK-47 short and the M-16 are more "spray and pray" weapons.
I originally qualified on the M-1 and we were expected to hit targets at 300m with iron sights, when I was training kids on the M-16, we never popped up a silouette at distances beyond 100m. I have always been a fan of weapons that have some punch, especially after shooting my way out of a sapper attack with a M1911 colt.
If you read enough anecdotal info on the .50 sniper rifle in Iraq, you realize that being able to reach out and touch someone at distance can reduce casualties. If you can whack a guy at 250m when he can't hit you back, it gives you a tactical and psychological advantage.

Posted by James Carville 2008-09-29 13:40|| 2008-09-29 13:40|| Front Page Top

#6 "Shortly after the Second Boer War (18991902)(*), a discussion was begun in an unnamed officer's club about the best infantry weapon. Within the week, the discussion had grown to include the nearby NCO club. The discussion has spread to encompass virtually every military forum since, unabated and unresolved.

(*) Some believe the discussion began shortly after the battle of Actium, (September 2nd, 31 BC)."
-- Anonymous

Posted by Anonymoose 2008-09-29 14:34|| 2008-09-29 14:34|| Front Page Top

#7 No THAT discussion began just after the battle of the Bigger Cave, circa 250,000 BC...

Posted by mojo">mojo 2008-09-29 15:17|| 2008-09-29 15:17|| Front Page Top

#8 "the swiss rifles are generally considered the best around"

Last winter I picked up a Sig SHR970 in 280 Rem.

Concur with your assessment of Swiss rifles, it's now my favorite.

Posted by no mo uro 2008-09-29 20:03|| 2008-09-29 20:03|| Front Page Top

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