Posted on 06/15/2005 9:41:06 AM PDT by kiriath_jearim
June 15, 2005
Columbus
Police May Buy M16-Style Rifles
Columbus Police may get a high-caliber addition to their arsenal.
The Columbus Police Department has a proposal pending to acquire semi-automatic rifles similar to the M16 through a federal government program. The division’s ordnance unit is suggesting the weapons purchase.
The initial cost would be around $7,000, plus training and ammunition.
The reason police are considering the purchase is simple: to counter the firepower they sometimes face on the street - rifles with ranges of 600 to 800 meters.
“Handguns were originally designed for close range personal defense,” Officer John Holloway explained.
Right now shotguns are the best weapons patrol officers have to combat rifles, Officer Holloway says with concern.
“We would have to get very close to an individual armed with a rifle and put ourselves in extreme jeopardy.”
Holloway says giving officers access to semi-automatic rifles could be crucial in some cases.
“If we get a terrorist-type situation, we as first line responders… as patrol officers would be able to deal with that effectively by having M16-style weapons,” Holloway contends.
I agree. But then that's what a "squirrel gun" should do, place a small bullet, at a far distance accurately.
As for the "Viper", get it soon. California outlawed the .50 BMG in a supposed preemptive strike against terrorism. Some RINO's in the US Senate are stirring the pot with .50 cal barrels. There's no turning back, we've elected anxious women and girly men to be lawmakers.
A lot of PD's acquired M1 Carbines and had them sitting around for years; many of these departments eventually replaced them with Mini-14's, which didn't seem to get any more use than the old surplus carbines. Today, the Mini is on the outs and the M16/AR platform is the new tool of choice... unfortunately, it will also prove to be the wrong tool for a lot of jobs, but that's par for the course.
They are ignoring my Rights and our Constitution. I guess I'll just have to be a lot more open about ignoring their silly unConstitutional edicts.
M-16's are .556 rounds. I do not know where anyone got .223. 240-G Machine gun is .762 and the Squad Automatic Weapon or SAW is also a .556
Just a point of fact. Carry on.
Don't a lot of local police, sheriffs, etc., around the country have REAL M16s with full-auto capabilities?
I agree with your position, but I would take a different tack. Since many of the recruits for the military and police come from the families that favor the individual concept of the Bill of Rights, I encourage a boycott. Especially of the California National Guard. If the prissies in San Francisco and Sacramento believe that the 2nd. Amendment refers to the National Guard, let the State of California go pound sound for guard recruits!
Its 5.56 Nato which is the same as .223 inch just like 7.62(7.62X 51) Nato is the same as .308 (7.62X51) different for 7.62X "39" different case size for the AK/ sks crowd.
Pays to KNOW what is up/down when the $hit goes round. Don'tcha know.
That would be 5.56 and 7.62, as in mm compared to .223 which is inches.
Have you ever read a news story that mentions a rifle and doesn't call it "high powered" or "high caliber"? I guess reporters just make stuff up, thinking that fictional elements of their story will add drama.
The Dept. of Defense offers military M-16A1 rifles to law enforcement agencies at only a token cost. But it's my understanding that the full-auto features on all these rifles are disabled.
When military troops are used in a riot-control mode in the U.S., they're always supposed to install a small device in their rifles that disables the full-auto or burst capability.
Uh, better watch where you put those decimal points! .223 is the 'English' caliber designation. 5.56 is the metric caliber designation & is in millimeters. They are the same caliber bullet, but can be attached to varying cartridges.
7.62 is also a metric caliber designation in millimeters. There is some minor diameter differences in say, 7.62x39 vs 7.62x51.(I'm not talking about the casing diffs either) The x39 round really is usually a .310-.311 diameter bullet (like the old Lee Enfield but lighter weight, usually 124gr, vs 174-220gr for the Enfield). The x51 is a .308 diameter, but they get the same metric designation, presumably because they are so close in size it wasn't deemed practical to carry it out to the thousandths.
I am by no means a large person. I am 5'7" and weigh 160lbs. I however love to shoot my FAL from the prone position. My favorite shooting sport is service rifle (with the Garand). I don't see the recoil of these rifles as a big deal, after all I am not shooting a Sharps rifle prone. But then again I recently shot a Marlin 45-70 lever action and loved it.
5.56 NATO is not exactly the same as .223 Remington just as 7.62 NATO is not the same as .308 Win. They are often close enough but in match chambers you will notice the difference.
I don't either, then again, I've shot a .30-'06 since I was 10 years old. I like recoil, AAMF, I've learned to enjoy recoil. However, pulling a 16yr. old Asian boy, weighing about 110 lbs, out of the rice paddies and giving him a .308 M-14 and expecting him not to flinch when he had never even shot a .22 in his life was asking the impossible (as was many city-bred American draftees). The M-14 drill for the small Asian frame was essentially to point, close eyes, hold the stock away from the shoulder and pull the trigger. Though I don't care any more for the AK/SKS's than I do the M-15/16's, the AK-47 was a superior weapon in .30 cal and moderate recoil for war in Asia. The .308 too much, the 5.65mm, too little. Another chapter for the lessons learned in war.
No dobt about that. What a cutie! You gotta be a very proud Dad. My daughter didn't take to rifles, but she was excellent on skeet with a 20ga. and a heart stopper with a .38 special. She's in her mid-20's now and teaches her female co-workers how to shoot the wheel gun.
IIRC, the differences are in the way the primer is placed in teh cart. base (crimped), and in the thickness of the cartridge with milspec being thicker and thus rendering potentially higher pressures. But as my initial post indicated, I'm not talking about the brass casings here...
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.