Posted on 06/25/2010 4:39:42 PM PDT by ErnstStavroBlofeld
A little WD-40 or PAM and it would be right as rain!
Or you could always hose it down with gasoline and light her up.
Last time Squantos tried that he set his bathtub on fire.
Purtnear burned down the whole outhouse!
Nor do I feel underequipped with a circular poower saw when I'm cutting 2x4s. It will do that job, routinely and continually, all day long. But when it comes time to hammer nails into those boards, a different tool is required, ideally a hammer- and a compromise tool which could accomplish both functions would likely be ungainly and less effecient than the seperate devices.
And I don’t think troops with the M-16A5 “Designated Marksman Rifle” feel too outgunned in Afghanistan, when they are making 800m first-shot kills using the Trijicon sight. So from close and nasty M-4s with red dots, to M-16A5s, I think our rifles will do the job.
It's likely more correct to say that our troops can do the job with whatever tool is handed to them- but some improved tools might allow them to do even better.Of course, this assumes you have troops of a high enough level to actually clean them now and then. An M-4 is not an AK-47, it does need the bolt pulled once in a while.
Would a 6.8 be better? Sure, but it’s not in the cards, just as it wasn’t when they decided to build the M1 Garand in 30-06 to use existing ammunition stockpiles, instead of the 6.5 as spec-ed by the designer.
Well, John Garand's initial work with his first M1922 semiauto rifles built at Springfield in the summer of 1924 was directed at developing a reliable .30 semiauto, then later adapting it for Pedersen's .276 cartridge, then adapting it back to a .30 at the insinstanwe of then Army Chief of Staff Douglas MacArthur. And he lived until February 16, 1974, so he saw the eventual developments of the 7,92x33 MP44 assault rifle cartridge, as well as the Soviet M43 7,62x30 and later 5.45x 39, the British EM-1 .280, and the development and use of the 5.56mm in Eugene Stoner's Armalite rifle design
.ALso, plenty of rebuilt M-14s are getting into theater.
Good thing. There are folks potting at them from three-quarters of a mile away with some very old but still quite capable rifles.
It seems to be current NATO doctrine that the 5,56x45 M885/SS109 ammo is sufficient. But there are those who disagree, and the Other People may not yet have gotten the word.
Man, Travis, you need to get to cleaning that thing a little more often. I’ve seen less crap on the bottom of my boots. :)
I have melted a few M60 barrels in my time yet I have to clean my firearms these days. Not sure the lugs an parts broke due dirt or heat on the AR pictured..... My swag is heat !
Were I as rich as you I could just blow up the dirty ones.....:o)
Hope yer well Buddy....
Try Fulton Armory.
That SS-109 projectile was designed to penetrate light body armor and thin skinned vehicles which it does quite well. What it wasn't designed to do was cause rapid incapacitation of human beings. At that it sucks.
What are troops need is a better bullet. IMO a 62 grain soft point spitzer type bullet would be effective within the envelope of the 5.56 cartridge. I know the Hague Convention is thrown about as an argument against them but I say screw that.
If the JAG weenies won't allow a SP design then a standard 62 grain hollow point would be the next best choice. It's already been approved as far as I know as it's not specifically designed to cause "undue suffering", merely enhance accuracy.
Anyone who says that the 5.56 lacks 'killing power' needs to remember that at 350 yards even the SS-109 bullet has as much energy as the .45 ACP does at the muzzle. The problem is that the energy isn't being delivered to the target. That green tip stuff whips right through soft tissue. You might as well push a pencil through the enemy.
Unless you can get a head shot, something that Travis has pointed out is a very real possibility with that Trijicon system, you're just punching tiny little holes into the bad guys and waiting for them to bleed out.
Not a good plan in my estimation.
I want a bullet that does catastrophic damage when it hits something I shoot. I find it absolutely ridiculous that our troops aren't allowed to use ammunition of a similar type to what is issued to beat cops and police snipers on a daily basis.
Were I in charge I'd withdraw from the Hague Convention unilaterally and let 'em sue us in their stupid world court.
L
The reports on the effectiveness of the Black Hills 77 gr bullets are outstanding. Apparantly Black Hills hit the “sweet spot.” Where the 62gr AP ammo makes “knitting needle” wounds, the 77 gr Black Hills is just stable enough for great accuracy, but it also “tumbles” on hitting flesh and makes tremendous wounds, similar to those made by 308 at the same ranges. And they are accurate as hell. Those who use it swear by it, mainly snipers and designated marksmen. Yes, snipers. Often they prefer to use their M-4 or M-16 with an ACOG sight out to 800 meters, for faster follow up shots, saving their .308 bolt guns for past 800 meters.
See above.
I've heard the same thing about them. Whatever they pick I just want them to use a more effective projectile than that green tip. We aren't fighting a regular army that issues soft kevlar or rides around in military vehicles.
The enemy is in Toyota pickups for the most part. Standard commercial type projectiles would be more than sufficient to penetrate them and deliver incapacitating wounds.
L
I started loading the 77gr SMK about a year ago. I have an accurized Smith & Wesson M&P15PC with a Leupold scope. So far the results are impressive.
The cost is excellent as well compared to standard 5.56 ammo. The 77gr bullets are about $220/1,000. Benchmark Powder about $45 for 3.5lbs. Primers about $35. All told, about $400/1,000 and a few hours time.
The military was looking for a long range, high volume, mag-fed rifle, and they did very well with the SPR shooting the Mk262 Mod0 rounds.
An M4 with optics for close in work and an SPR style rifle shooting Mk262. The two make a great pair and make logistical sense.
Can you imagine a crusty CSM opening a rifle during an inspection and seeing that bolt? Heart attack, followed by a million pushups for the perp.
I need to get hold of that 77gr Black Hills ammo. I don’t reload, so they are a mite pricey.
You got that right! At 87 cents a round it is not something to be bought in bulk very often. Nowhere near a record price though. My personal ‘worst’ was $20 a round for some specialty 7.62x51.
I remember that stuff! Saw it in a cartoon not too long ago. It chases down the bad guy and beats the tar out of him!
That's a skill you really should possess my friend. What are you going to do when the stores run dry and the 'net is down?
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