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Let Freedom Ring,
Posted on 05/25/2012 8:39:14 AM PDT by re_tail20
The US Army is moving forward with their competition to evaluate rifles which may be selected to replace the M4. Part of the ongoing process to see if the market can provide a rifle that shows measurable improvement over the M4 that started back in 2005 with the XM8 project, it appears as if at least five companies have made it to round two of the Individual Carbine competition.
The companies that are moving on to the second stage are Adcor Defense, Colt Defense, FNH USA, Heckler & Koch and Remington. The rifles are the Adcor Defense BEAR Elite, the Colt ACC-M (sometimes called the ACM), the FN FNAC, the Heckler & Koch HK416 and the Remington ACR.
There may be others who have also made the cut but not spoken up; regulations prohibit the Army from publishing which companies are moving on, while these companies have announced their success independently.
"The Army's intent is to ensure that the competition is as fair as possible," Army spokesman Matthew Bourke said in a written response to a Military.com request. "The Army does not want to adversely affect the competition in any way. Providing the names of potential offerors; the number of proposals received, and/or any details pertaining to the offerors and/or their proposals has the potential to skew the competition."
Phase one of the competition was to see which companies could meet the Army's "Threshold Requirements," which include technical specifications of the rifles that must be met for the rifle to be considered at all, such as rails for optics and other accessories which have become necessary in the field, and the ability to use existing M320 grenade launchers and M26 shotguns...
(Excerpt) Read more at guns.com ...
They should just go back to the M1 Garand and be done with it.
Wonder if Red Jacket is in the running with their “ultimate AR platform” or something like that.
This thread is useless without pictures.
Every rifle here is just another Armalite-heritage M16/M4 style firearm except for the FN FNAC (an updated FN SCAR) and the Remington ACR (the Remington-ized Magpul 'Masada').
I really hope these aren't the final candidates. If they're going to break the chains of the shortcomings in the original Armalite design, then they need to stop accepting submissions based on that design.
Any time a firearms-related thread is created on FreeRepublic, please be sure to add the "banglist" keyword to it so that interested FReepers don't miss it. Just a suggestion.
Let Freedom Ring,
The link has pictures.
The link has pictures.
The link has pictures.
“Wonder if Red Jacket is in the running with their “ultimate AR platform” or something like that.”
They are seriously considering Red Jacket Stephanie’s Ultimate Pink AR Platform for the new First Marine Rump Ranger Battalion now that GAY BE OK.
I’d like them to consider 6.5 or 6.8 as a minimum cartridge. I tend to favor more accruate, longer range, heavy hitting rounds. Would truely like them to go to the 7.62 Nato. If small size is needed, you can convert the M14 to a bullpup configuration.
7.62
I can't imagine the US Army material procurement people accepting a bullpup design, but the features of the Steyr AUG need to be looked at, even though it has it's own shortcomings. You're right in that the only way to get a full length barrel in a compact maneuverable package for CQB and rapid response to/from motor vehicle transport is to adopt the bullpup style. If they're going to go that far, then they might as well adopt Steyr's instant-change barrel feature as well.
I've seen AR15-breed rifles offering 'Quick change barrels', but all of these need time and tools to accomplish at the armory where the Steyr AUG can be changed immediately in the field from the standard 20" rifleman barrel to a shorty 14" commando barrel or to a 24" squad marksman barrel.
Downside of bullpup rifles is the trigger pull and length of pull off the non-adjustable clamshell-style stock not comfortably fitting soldiers of various sizes, though the last issue is distinctly an American military characteristic: The Austrians have Tyrolian mountain climbing soldiers who are all pretty much two meters tall and don't have to worry about how their AUG length of pull fits a 5'4" Latina soldier from New Mexico.
There have been a lot of folks who've never really examined the AUG that describe it as the ugliest rifle they've ever seen, but once you give a doubter the chance to use it themselves they're quickly convinced that Steyr-Mannlicher was at least a half century ahead of their time when they developed the StG77 'AUG' rifle.
Dang it! If it don’t have a lever action and shoot pistol ammo it ain’t a carbine. (Shuffles off, muttering darkly...)
I agree. There are lots of choices out there that would fill the gap nicely, including even the old .280 British or for that matter, the .250 Savage, to say nothing of the whole host of newer rounds.
"If small size is needed, you can convert the M14 to a bullpup configuration."
Kel-Tec, of all people, makes a 7.62 bullpup called the RFD. From what I've read/heard/seen (never fired one) it had some bugs not uncommon in a new design but they've been working through them. It uses standard FAL mags and has a unique front ejection making it suitable for left and right handed shooters. It may not be the "right" weapons for our military, but it certainly presents a number of concepts worth exploring further.
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