I don’t mean to hijack this thread, but what would be a good rifle for a small woman, in terms of carrying weight and especially, recoil?
Any AR style rifle is light with minimum recoil. Supplies are plentiful with all the add ons and mags are cheap. Plus you can get different uppers so besides the standard .223 round you could get .22 platform for cheaper shooting.
As for specifically what AR I’ll leave that to the experts as I run the AK system though my understanding of ARs there are varying tiers of quality — lower priced Bushmaster to higher priced better quality Bushmaster, etc. I’ve read to lube AR’s with motor oil and terminal damage more effective with 75 grain bullets. I figure there will be plenty of AR’s laying around or obtainable from domestic enemy combatants.
Also other options are the SIG 516 (or 556 in 7.62x39), FN FS2000, FN SCAR as supposed to be phenomenal.
“I don’t mean to hijack this thread, but what would be a good rifle for a small woman, in terms of carrying weight and especially, recoil?”
Brace yourself for a flood of opinions. It would depend on what you intend to use the rifle for. Indoor defense? Outdoor street battles/sniping? Hunting? Target practice? For instance, for short-range work, I have a lightweight carbine that is nimble to swing and aim and shoots .45 ACP pistol bullets with minimal kick, but plenty of knock down power. Some people make a big deal about .45 ACP recoil in a pistol, but in a rifle the recoil is mild. It punches big holes at any velocity. It uses standard and extended Colt .45 magazines. Some people would suggest shotguns for indoor defense, but most of those have greater recoil than my carbine and don’t hold as many rounds. And, as a friend of mine found out, it takes a long time to dig all the shotgun pellets from kitchen cabinets!