by 2005 this will be the standard army rifle. Looks awesomely futuristic. It supposidly can fire 15000 round without jamming or needing cleaning, which are the problems the m16's are well known to have. The downsides i can see its that it looks really plastic, and thr writing looks stupid on the side. The butt doesnt seem like it would be too strong, and you cant put a bayonnet on it.
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="verdana">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Highclass Whitetrash: by 2005 this will be the standard army rifle. Looks awesomely futuristic. It supposidly can fire 15000 round without jamming or needing cleaning, which are the problems the m16's are well known to have. The downsides i can see its that it looks really plastic, and thr writing looks stupid on the side. The butt doesnt seem like it would be too strong, and you cant put a bayonnet on it.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> looks pretty damn kool, but i think that they should have used a modified kalashnikov. one of the most reliable weapons in the world you know. but i guess they wanna set them apart from the rest of the world. i hope they dont make it too complicated, with electronics and too many parts.
is this the "for sure" issue? i knew that they were testing different rifles to determine which one they liked best. the last i'd heard, they were pretty happy with the rifle with the built in camera, but the last i heard about that was in the initial testing. AK's are cool. i hear that the main argument that they had over it was that the m16 had better accuracy at long range. but who knows how true that is. also, ya'll seen the new squad based machine gun that they are thinking of replacing the 50 cal with? i don't have any links, and forgot what it's called, but it's pretty sweet. it uses an explosive round and built in computer, so that it can shoot through a window and detonate. killing all of the unhappy saps inside. they estimated that this baby could do with about 100 rounds what the current 50 cal can do with about 1000 or so. damage wise. it's also a lot lighter, which is the most important thing about squad based guns. those things are HEAVY.
Bayonnet hasn't been used in centuries. They've been phazing them out for years. Why this is a suprise to you, considering you're in a service, is beyond me. Or maybe not. You're in canada. And if you think any service would impliment a weapon with weak parts on it, you're not thinking very intelligently. I'd wager you could run that fuckin thing over with a HumV. The "plastic" is for weight i'm sure. Which you should be thankful for. Whats it shoot? .223 as well?
ok its 223 and made from a polymer, that can handle heat more than most metals. I heard its a bit heavey though. It comes in different colors, there's a black on which i guess will be standard issue. and even better, since its built on a oicw frame, it has rails. you can convert it from a SAW to a sniper in a few seconds.
yea theres no real reason to have a bayonett, the only reason the bayonet was implimented was so that they could use the rifles and muskets as make shift spears and charge, and then they had like 14-18 inch bayonets. no one does a "formal" war any more where people have to charge. no ones gonna charge at a person with a weapon firing are 800 rounds a minute, well maybe if the gun is jammed. if they make it out of plastic you pretty much know its gonna be hard as shit, and prolly just a tad heavy. prolly gonna use the 5.56mm, with a 30 round magazine. i hope they have tested it much better than they did with the m16, they had jams out the ass, and ordered 15 round magazine if i remember correctly.
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="verdana">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Highclass Whitetrash: yeah but hell will freeze over before you see the US army using russian weapons<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> they used AKs during the vietnam war on a limited basis, that and those nifty ass star-light scopes. shot in the dark you might say?
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="verdana">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by NiCo: Bayonnet hasn't been used in centuries. They've been phazing them out for years. Why this is a suprise to you, considering you're in a service, is beyond me. Or maybe not. You're in canada.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> Bullshit...they have been used as recently as Vietnam. <BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="verdana">quote:</font><HR> And if you think any service would impliment a weapon with weak parts on it, you're not thinking very intelligently. I'd wager you could run that fuckin thing over with a HumV. The "plastic" is for weight i'm sure. Which you should be thankful for. Whats it shoot? .223 as well?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> I suppose that is why all those "training accidents" happen. Of course it must be HUMAN error....the equiptment is ALWAYS perfect.
they still use bayonett's. everytime you're issued a rifle, you're given one. they even have a good portion of training now in CQC where you use em. also, unbreakable doesn't mean much. the new molle packs they came out for the service sucked royally. they were claimed to be unbreakable, i saw one snap after getting ran over by a hummer. and they were horriblly unhandy. also, the m16 has had 30 round clips for awhile. and the thing does suck. my entire unit thought it was toast cause we went on alert in a sandstorm, and i don't think that there was a single gun that didn't jam up, and that was only chambering the round. that's also including the 240 gulfs and the SAW's though. that is pretty sweet about the full auto to distance single shot though.
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="verdana">quote:</font><HR> Beginning life as the 5.56mm KE (kinetic energy) component of the 20mm air-bursting XM29 Objective Individual Combat Weapon (OICW), the XM8 Lightweight Modular Carbine System represents the state-of-the-art in 5.56x45mm NATO assault rifles. Developed by the US Army’s office of Project Manager for Soldier Weapons located at Picatinny Arsenal, New Jersey in close conjunction with the US Army Infantry Center, the XM8 Future Combat Rifle is intended to replace existing M4 Carbines and select 5.56mm x45 weapons in the US Army arsenal beginning as early as the fourth quarter of FY05. Once adopted, the M8 Carbine will replace the aging M16/M4 family of weapons, which have been in service for nearly four decades, longer than any previous US service rifle. The M8 Carbine will be up to 20% lighter than a comparably equipped M4 Carbine MWS and yet offer additional features and performance unavailable currently in any assault rifle in the world. As a direct development of the separable OICW (XM29) KE or Kinetic Energy module, the M8 Carbine will share a high degree of common parts and training and maintenance procedures to lessen the required support for the “family” of XM8 weapons. Being developed are four XM8 variants, which include a baseline carbine, a sharpshooter variant, an automatic rifle variant, and the ultra-compact carbine variant. A unique feature of the XM8 modular weapon system is the ability to easily and quickly reconfigure the weapon from one variant to the other to meet changing mission requirements, to include caliber conversion. This modularity includes the exchange of interchangeable assembly groups such as the barrel, handguard, lower receiver, buttstock modules and sighting system with removable carrying handle. In addition and in parallel, the new XM320 quick detachable single-shot 40mm grenade launcher with side-opening breech and LSS lightweight 12 gauge shotgun module can be easily added to the XM8 by the user in the field without tools. The unique buttstock system allows the operator exchange buttstocks without tools from the standard collapsible multi-position version, to an optional buttcap for maximum portability or an optional folding or sniper buttstock with adjustable cheekpiece for special applications. Internally the XM8 employs a combat-proven robust rotary locking bolt system that functions and fieldstrips like that used in the current M16 rifle and M4 carbine. However this bolt is powered by a unique gas operating system that employs a user removable gas piston and pusher rod to operate the mechanism. Unlike the current M4/M16 direct gas system with gas tube, the XM8 gas system does not introduce propellant gases and the associated carbon fouling back into the weapon’s receiver during firing. This greatly increases the reliability of the XM8 while at same time reducing operator cleaning time by as much as 70%. This system also allows the weapon to fire more than 15,000 rounds without lubrication or cleaning in even the worst operational environments. A cold hammer forged barrel will guarantee a minimum of 20,000 rounds service life and ultimate operator safety in the event of an obstructed bore occurrence. The XM8 has fully ambidextrous operating controls to include a centrally located charging handle that doubles as an ambidextrous forward assist when required, ambidextrous magazine release, bolt catch, safety/selector lever with semi and full automatic modes of fire and release lever for the multiple position collapsible buttstock. The operating controls allow the operator to keep the firing hand on the pistol grip and the weapon in the firing position at all times while the non-firing hand actuates the charging handle and magazine during loading and clearing. Major components of the weapon are produced from high-strength fiber reinforced polymer materials that can be molded in almost any color to include OD green, desert tan, arctic white, urban blue, brown and basic black. Surfaces on the XM8 that interface with the operator are fitted with non-slip materials to increase comfort and operator retention. The XM8 uses 10 or 30-round semi-transparent box magazines and high-reliability 100-round drum magazines for sustained fire applications. Special integral flush mounted attachment points are located on the handguard and receiver to allow the quick attachment of targeting devices. Unlike MIL-STD-1913 rails, the XM8 attachment points do not add additional weight, bulk and cost to the host weapon, and will accept MIL-STD-1913 adapters to allow for the use of current in-service accessories. The attachment points for the standard multi-function integrated red-dot sight allow multiple mounting positions and insure 100% zero retention even after the sight is removed and remounted. The battery powered XM8 sight includes the latest technology in a red dot close combat optic, IR laser aimer and laser illuminator with back-up etched reticle with capability exceeding that of the current M68-CCO, AN/PEQ-2 and AN/PAQ-4. This sight will be factory zeroed on the weapon when it is delivered and does not require constant rezeroing in the field like current rail-mounted targeting devices. The XM8 will be fully compatible with future Land Warrior technology and components. The US XM8 Carbine is being designed at the HK Defense design center in Sterling, Virginia and will be produced and assembled in the United States at the new Heckler & Koch manufacturing plant located in Columbus, Georgia, adjacent to Fort Benning. The unit cost of the XM8 will be less than that of the current M4 Carbine and will guarantee the American war fighter uncompromising performance far exceeding that of current in-service M4 Carbines. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE> Dude, its an H&K that shoots a new projectile that is capable (or so they say) to penetrate a tank... not to shabby I think..
