With the soldier’s load growing beyond the bounds of reason, and the Army set to replace the M4 Carbine in some units with the new Interim Combat Service Rifle, questions have arisen about how the soldier’s burden has changed over time. In the comments [Read More…]
Suppressor manufacturers, start your engines. The United States Marine Corps Systems Command (MARSYSCOM) has issued a new request for information (RFI) to the industry regarding future suppressors for the M4 and M4A1 Carbine and M27 Infantry Automatic Rifle (IAR). The [Read More…]
The US Army has released a solicitation for a new 7.62mm infantry rifle to replace the M4. The Interim Combat Service Rifle program, known to be in the works since April of this year, would replace M4 Carbines in use with combat units with a new weapon in the 7.62x51mm [Read More…]
The traditional wisdom goes: Lightweight or “pencil” profile barrels can shoot great – just so long as you don’t get them hot. After a mag or two of heat is dumped into your lightweight build, your point of impact (POI) will probably shift by [Read More…]
The US Army’s newest magazine for the M16 and M4, the Enhanced Performance Magazine (EPM), failed a recent USMC test of rifle magazines, according to a recent Marine Corps SYSCOM document released by National Review. The report shows the EPM coming in last in the [Read More…]
According to a Military.com article, an element of 1st Battalion, 6th Marines will be deploying a 13-man squad of Infantry fully equipped with M27 IARs, suppressors, drum magazines, and other pieces of experimental gear. Called the “Über Squad”, it will be [Read More…]
In recent testimony to the Senate Armed Services Committee, General Mark Milley, the Army Chief of Staff, admitted during questioning that the Army is looking at alternative rifle platforms to the current M4 Carbine. Milley’s comments were made primarily during a [Read More…]
In a surprising turn of events given the recent public motions towards an all-M27 fleet, the United States Marine Corps has just released a new request for information (RFI), soliciting proposals from the industry for a whole new suite of infantry equipment, including [Read More…]
Since its introduction in 2009, the Marine Corps’ M27 Infantry Automatic Rifle has proven itself as an effective support weapon that offers more firepower and range than the Corps’ other squad level weapons, the M4 Carbine and M16A4 Rifle. This good [Read More…]
In a recent announcement, the U.S. Government has released a 7 million dollar award modification notice for Colt Defense’s over 35 million dollar contract to provide M4 and M4A1s in the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program. This modification notice specifically [Read More…]
The bullpup rifle tends to be – when it comes up – a pretty divisive subject among “tactical” rifle shooters. Bullpup detractors dismiss the layout as clunky and awkward, while its proponents cite the advantage of longer barrels and shorter [Read More…]
Not long after SHOT Show, I got the chance to interview Mrs. Kori Phillips, former program officer for the Army’s Lightweight Small Arms Technologies (LSAT) program, and current program officer for the Cased Telescoped Small Arms Systems (CTSAS) program. We talked [Read More…]
Not long after SHOT Show, I got the chance to interview Mrs. Kori Phillips, former program officer for the Army’s Lightweight Small Arms Technologies (LSAT) program, and current program officer for the Cased Telescoped Small Arms Systems (CTSAS) program. We talked [Read More…]
The US Special Operations Command (SOCOM) is seeking something a little smaller than its existing M4A1 and Mk.18 carbines: The command just released a request for information (RFI) to the industry seeking proposals for conversion kits for M4A1 Carbine receivers that [Read More…]
The US Special Operations Command (SOCOM) has revised its solicitation for the Suppressor Upper Receiver Ground (SURG) program (via FBO.gov). The SURG program is intended to provide an upper receiver for the M4A1 Carbine which would be designed for continuous [Read More…]
Earlier today, the United States Marine Corps Systems Command released a request for information (RFI) to manufacturers regarding the industry’s capability to fill an order for 11,000 new IAR-type rifles. You can read the RFI over at this link at FedBizOpps. [Read More…]
Four US Senators sent a letter to US Army Chief of Staff Mark Milley on Friday, requesting to know why the US Army does not authorize polymer magazines “for use in training or combat”, given that the USMC recently picked the Magpul PMag Gen M3 as their [Read More…]
After several years of being undercut on the market by cheaper offerings from Smith & Wesson and others, Colt introduced early in 2016 a new addition to their lineup, the “Expanse” carbine, designed to cut the price tag of a Colt carbine by $200-300 [Read More…]
Will Heckler & Koch’s HK416 rifle become the most successful assault rifle model of the early 21st Century? It’s starting to look that way. After the French adoption of the HK416F as their standard issue weapon to replace the FAMAS, and a likely [Read More…]
While soldiers are typically lauding the M855A1 Enhanced Performance Round, it has come at a cost of long-term durability and reliability of the M4A1. The M855A1 exposed steep tip loading is substantially different from its predecessor, the venerable M855 steel-core, [Read More…]
“Nathaniel’s starting another series? Oh brother…” Bear with me. I think that there is a lot of rhetoric thrown around with regards to modern defensive/military calibers that exists apart from the necessary additional data and context of the [Read More…]
Tom Demerly is a blog writer and he got a chance to not only see the Dearborn, MI Police SWAT Team train, he got to train with them. Embedded with the SWAT Team, they respond to a call of a mass shooter. At least that is the training scenario. They use the Ford Research [Read More…]
The US Army’s plan to wrap new technologies and commercial off the shelf (COTS) improvements into the M4A1 rifle has apparently been canned. The program, called M4A1+, was originally intended to upgrade the M4A1 fleet with new COTS rails, back up sights, flash [Read More…]
Remington’s lawsuit against Colt Defense, LLC, Fabrique Nationale Herstal USA, and the federal government has been dismissed by Senior Judge Nancy B. Firestone of the US Court of Federal Claims. The sealed lawsuit, which contested the award of a mega-million [Read More…]
Hognose, over at his blog Weaponsman.com, has written a tidy rundown of the past, present (and probable lack of a) future for burst-limited automatic small arms. A sample, and further discussion, is below, but I encourage my readers to click through and read his article [Read More…]
The $212 million contract that Colt and FN won for M4A1 Carbines is not going through uncontested. Remington Arms Co. has named the two companies, along with the Federal Government in a sealed lawsuit, reports Guns.com: Remington Arms named the federal government, FN [Read More…]
M855A1 is the Army’s new round; it boasts improved accuracy, penetration, and terminal effectiveness vs. the legacy M855 “green tip” round. We previously covered the story of M855A1, and Major Glenn Dean’s history of the round’s [Read More…]
Looks like Colt has a guardian angel in Washington. From today’s DOD contract announcements: Colt Defense LLC, West Hartford, Connecticut (15QKN-15-D-0102); and FN America LLC, Columbia, South Carolina (W15QKN-15-D-0072), were awarded a $212,000,000 [Read More…]
Old promotional videos and literature aren’t just entertaining for their nostalgic qualities, but also as important tools for the historian. Features being marketed in a video or pamphlet give the viewer decades later a marker for when those had been introduced, [Read More…]
There is nothing quite like a great factory built rifle sometimes. Like many American shooters my first rifle was an AR-15, unlike most American shooters I decided to build every single one I have owned. I never treated myself to spending quality time behind a premium [Read More…]
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