watching the news and such it looks like all the soldiers in sandland have been getting care packages of tactical stuff for the M16/M4's from home. sights, vertical fore grips and other things.
are those add ons issued stuff, or ar the soldiers allowed to customize their issued weapon???
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MOE! LARRY! THE CHEESE!
Life Member the Elmer Fudd Hunt Club
watching the news and such it looks like all the soldiers in sandland have been getting care packages of tactical stuff for the M16/M4's from home. sights, vertical fore grips and other things.
are those add ons issued stuff, or ar the soldiers allowed to customize their issued weapon???
I cant speak for all units but mine allows us to add on these extra "goodies" you can add to but cant take away pretty much. As long as it doesn't pose a hazard to yourself or others put it on your weapon.
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In peace, sons bury their fathers. In war, fathers bury their sons.
Herodotus
depends on your unit . on my m4 i had acog , m203 , pec4 . some others had vertical fore grips on there's and sunfire lights all of that was issued for the unit . the only thing they really don't issue is m7's .
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2 to the chest 1 to the head..
sappers lead the way
depends on your unit . on my m4 i had acog , m203 , pec4 . some others had vertical fore grips on there's and sunfire lights all of that was issued for the unit . the only thing they really don't issue is m7's .
wish we could get acogs and surefire lights here at my unit.
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In peace, sons bury their fathers. In war, fathers bury their sons.
Herodotus
The yankee gummint should concentrate on finding a new battle rifle that WORKS instead of trying to pimp out that dog of an M-16. Any rifle that can't cope with a little dirt without jamming is not something that's fit for the battlefield.
On the bright side, the add-ons will be usable on the next battle rifle, so it's not a total waste of the millions of dollars the Army has put into research to try and compensate for the fundamental failings and faults of the Poodle Shooter.
From what I've read, the Army doesn't really concentrate on marksmanship anymore. I saw an article on Military.com that said the average infantryman can no longer effectively score hits past 300 yards.
Doesn't help that all modern armies are pretty much equipped with carbines and not main battle rifles (M14, G3, FAL) anymore!
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"What we do in life echoes in eternity"
Most data out there shows that most engagements are 300yds and closer. That is why most nations have gotten away from large main battle rifles.
In my opinion the military needs to come out with a better caliber that will hit with authority. Bring back the 7.62x51 or something of similar energy. It will not happen in the economic climate but it's long over due.
In my unit we were not allowed to modify our weapons in any manner for the good or bad. One guy installed a laser on his M9 and was almost given an Article 15. My commander was a Moron. I heard once he left to go back stateside the new commander made alot of changes for the better.
In my opinion the military needs to come out with a better caliber that will hit with authority. Bring back the 7.62x51 or something of similar energy. It will not happen in the economic climate but it's long over due.
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Here, Here!!
__________________ Criminals cheer for infringement of the Second Amendment. AR10 MBR GLOCK CCW
I'm a firm believer in the .30CAL whether it be .30-06 or .308 it will still pack a punch and shoot MOA or better. As for urban combat why not bring back the pistol caliber SMGs again? The Thompson was fine, the GSG/MP5 is fine. Both pack plenty of punch coupled with plenty of firepower. Sure weight is an issue but in all honesty...you have a smaller weapon with better power and for less of an "engineered price."
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The great object is that every man be armed. Everyone who is able may have a gun.
—Patrick Henry
There is a good argument to either side of this coin. The M16 platofrm performs well for it's intended purpose. We are asking it to perform tasks for which it was not desigmed.
Pistol caliber SMG's have served well in combat. They fulfill a niche in urban combat that no other weapon provides. The Thompson, Uzi and the MP5 and K have proved this out. Yet they serve little purpose and longer engagement ranges. (an argument for the AK-47 could be made here).
In all their wisdom, or lack thereof, the Infantry Board has decided to try and improve the M16 platform for logistical reasons. After all, they DO have a budget !! Some basic bandaids were applied in the past by augmenting other platforms such as the M249 and the M60E3 . Both were good ideas, but did nothing to address the main issue. Which is primarily that of catridge size in our issue weapon !! They applied yet another bandaid by issuing M1A's to our Scouts and Designated Marksman (in my time). Yet the issue of cost of, and weight of ammunition still looms heavy on their minds to date.
Factor in that we are currently fighting in 2 theaters, and can barely produce enough ammo in the current calibers to issue, and you begin to see the dilemma. (which also explains why no one is manufacturing 380, 45LC or 10mm or other such calibers).
Then throw in the mind numbing obstacle of politics, and you end up right where we are.
__________________ I keep tellin ya Doc, I'm in pretty good shape considerin the shape I'm in !!
personally i think the weight of ammo is bogus. i asked that question about weight of ammo to an ex Marine on another site. he said during the Korean war, weight wasn't an issue they carried as many bandaleers as the could get. they didn't mind.
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MOE! LARRY! THE CHEESE!
Life Member the Elmer Fudd Hunt Club
I was issued a brand new m-4, red dot CCO, sure fire, replacement flip up rear iron sight, bi-pod/front grip & an infra-red laser (in conjunction with my NVGs of course). All high speed stuff besides the CCO, which is nothing compared to an eo-tech as zmanfury, a fellow engineer, has stated. There are guys around here with those dessert tan buttstocks, mags, hand guards etc. cuz they think they look SF. Truth be told, they just wasted their money since SF guys don't pay out of pocket for their toys...from what I've heard. Since I don't do night missions anymore, my m-4 only has the CCO & bi-pod/front grip on it besides a 3 point sling a couple carabinas to attach to my vest when I don't want to sling it.
Take it from a soldier who dismounts EVERY SINGLE MISSION including 3 times today, WEIGHT IS AN ISSUE BUT NOT THE WEIGHT OF THE LOAD, THE WEIGHT OF THE SOLDIER! There are sooooooo many out of shape troops here it's ridiculous. I'm 1 of the smaller guys in my unit & I have no issues carrying the very light 210 round combat load for my m-4 & I even volunteered to hump the damn radio around as well (+ all kinds of extra radio gear in a backpack). I walk around at 5'7" & about 170 now but in my gear, from boots to ACH, I weigh about 230-240. A full mag weighs what, a pound? we only carry 7. It's really a small percentage.
When I was a saw gunner before I was an RTO I really had fun with the 249 & the 900 round combat load! THAT'S ADDING SOME REAL WEIGHT! I mean c'mon guys, this ain't Vietnam! We ride around in air conditioned vehicles the majority of the time so I don't buy that BS from guys for a second about carrying too much ammo! We always have extra 5.56 in the MRAPs not to mention the 240Bs atop 'em with their hundreds of 7.62s as our outer cordon for firepower.
If you read up on what the PEO is putting $ into as far as R&D goes for PVT Joe Snuffy who does combat patrols over in A-stan & is on foot for a few clicks here & there around the mountains, it's a lighter bullet/shrapnel resistant body armor & lighter crew serve weapons. Makes sense since that easily makes up the majority of the extra weight that we don.
Hope all that was informative because I promise all of you, telling you what I know from my tour is as current intel as you will get out of this particular theater & I've got a few battle buddies over next door as well. The flip side of that coin is I didn't say anything that violates OPSEC or goes into our ROE, TTP etc so yes, I know better & take all those things seriously. The things I discussed are not only readily available all over the net but can simply be observed.
DR
