Meh.
I still like the Colt 1911.
And I will always have warm fuzzies for the MK 19, and still wish they had made a belt of alternating red and white phosphorus rounds for it.
The Ma Deuce is as beloved as ever.
But you could throw the HKs in a barrel of sludge and fire them with stuff still running out of the barrel. M16s would never do that. Plus when I was younger and still had good eyesight I appreciated the longer range of the 7.62.
I trained and drilled with the M14, a fun and accurate 7.62 at the range.