More XM8 Commentary
Reader robert writes:
The XM8 fixes everything thats NOT wrong with the M16. It’s an expensive piece of junk.
For the m16: Up the caliber, (more knock-down), float the barrel in a tube,(more accurate and cheaper), drop the burst kit and put in a better trigger, (cheaper and MUCH more accurate), and we would be set for another 40 years.
January 4th, 2005 at 4:56 pm
Add “replace the direct impingement gas system with a gas piston of some sort” to that list, along with maybe an ambi safety, and I’d agree.
January 4th, 2005 at 5:00 pm
There’s a company that did that (maxim mini, i think – article at home). They reconfiged the AR15 gas system. The piston system also increased the output so they were getting FPS and accuracy equivalent to the 14.5″ M4 barrel out of an AR with a 9.5″ barrel.
January 4th, 2005 at 7:14 pm
Yep, absolutely. Both points.
Full Disclosure:
I’ve been shooting the M16 in every variant for a year at Ft Hood while teaching the Squad Designated Rifleman class. Every trooper coming through our class comments that he has shot more in the week class on the range than in the rest of his Army career.
It’s a great weapon, but could certainly use the suggested upgrades.
XM8s are currently pretty pricey and don’t address many of the M16s weaknesses, IMHO.