Posted on 10/01/2018 12:25:29 PM PDT by george76
The Army adopted its battle rifle in 1963 and has spent 55 years looking for a replacement for the M-16 and its variants.
They might have found it in Martin Grier’s Colorado Springs garage. Grier, a self-described inventor who has worked at a local bed and breakfast, built the new “ribbon gun” with a hobbyist’s tools. It looks like a space-age toy drawn by a fifth-grader.
But goofy origins and cartoon-looks aside, this could be the gun of the future. The Army is studying Grier’s gun and has ordered a military-grade prototype.
...
The specifications are incredible, four 6 mm barrels cut side by side within one steel block. New ammunition blocks fired by electromagnetic actuators that could theoretically give the weapon a firing rate of 250 rounds per second.
...
And then there’s the feature no soldier would turn down. “It’s called a power shot,” Grier said.
That’s the shotgun feature of this sniper-shot, machine-assault gun that can send four bullets simultaneously whizzing toward an enemy at more than 2,500 mph.
It isn’t science fiction. He’s built the gun and patented the technology behind it. Now his garage-based company, FD munitions, is hoping the Army will buy it.
“A multibore firearm, with several bores within a single barrel, could potentially exhibit many of the advantages of a multibarrel design, while reducing the size, weight and complexity disadvantages,” Grier wrote in his 2016 patent application.
...
The last rifle that was seen as a possible replacement for the M-16 family of guns was tested for six years before the program was canceled in 2008.
The Army found that the XM-8, despite its high-tech looks, offered few advantages over the weapons troops have carried since Vietnam.
Grier is convinced that his weapon is so revolutionary that it will overcome Army foot-dragging.
(Excerpt) Read more at gazette.com ...
Enemy: one battlefield EMP, “ We win ! “
I think this dude is on drugs myself, and the dude who wrote the article too.
TTIWWP
Damn, gimme one. This guy better have the means to last a two year (minimum) wait for the mills to grind and even longer before money starts to come in.
I want to officially volunteer to test the prototype.
Soon to be seen carried by the Chinese Army...they steal everything they can ger their hands on...
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Those electronic gizmos are great until they fry.
The more complex the weapon , the less reliable. Nevertheless if these particulars are accurate, a platoon armed with such rifles would have nasty surprises for any hostile helicopters in their area.
How heavy is that ammo?
This is an innovative design. Electronic ignition instead of mechanical. Single or “shotgun” multi-shot rounds. The ability to function when one of the 4 bores is jammed. Interesting stuff.
I saw a story on TV about the HK416F, if I remember the model correctly.
The 20 inch barrel version struck me as maybe the best military rifle out there right now.
If you can pour sand in the breach and have a sustainable rate of fire, I’ll buy one.
(Yes, I know).
5.56mm
Metal Storm lined up multiple rounds “nose to tail”. This weapon uses 4 bores to “parallel” rounds.
I’ll test one! Looks pretty neat.
How much does it weigh? How much does the ammo weigh? How much ammo can I carry (weight / dimensions). Side mount magazine - extremely doubtful I could tolerate that.
I have a background in electronics and cannot imagine it would have superior reliability over mechanical systems.
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