Fifty years ago the M16 jamming from jungle crud got a lot of fine men killed. But the powers hat be “fixed the problem”.
Now we hear the M4 version of the M16 jamming from desert sand is getting men killed. But the powers that be are “working on it”.
And the AR15 is the most popular sporting rifle in the US.
Go figure.
I want all of you to read this following test from last year. Just read it. If the M4 were such a pos then why did most of these civilian models sustain 10,000 rounds of steady fire without such problems. Certain ammo caused problems and overheated barrels drooped and were shot out but that was from using a weapon far beyond any design parameters.
http://www.luckygunner.com/labs/brass-vs-steel-cased-ammo/
It's light, and sportsmen generally don't take it into extreme environments for days at a time, they aren't trying to fire hundreds of rounds through them at a time in a heavy engagement, and the deer are not shooting back.
“And the AR15 is the most popular sporting rifle in the US.”
Different set of criteria... Also, with the M-16 platform being the basic military rifle for so long the AR-15 is familiar to vets looking for a sport rifle.