M16A2: The Worst Rifle the U.S. Marines Ever Used in Combat?

Key Factors: The M16A2 rifle, developed with Marine Corps enter, was a dependable and correct platform however fell brief as a fight rifle.

-Designed with aggressive capturing in thoughts, its precision sights and elevated inventory size hindered fight usability, significantly beneath stress or with physique armor.

-The addition of a burst hearth function sophisticated reliability and degraded set off efficiency, whereas the “authorities profile” barrel added pointless weight and stability points.

-Regardless of these flaws, the M16A2 served successfully throughout its time, particularly within the early International Battle on Terror. Nonetheless, its design displays a missed alternative to create a extra combat-optimized rifle.

The M16A2: A Good Rifle That May Have Been Nice

The Marine Corps and their stance that each Marine is a rifleman border on obsession. The Marine Corps is massive on their rifles, and generally that’s nice; different occasions, nicely, not a lot. Marine stubbornly clung to the M16A4, and earlier than that, helped develop the M16A2. The Marine Corps led the event of the M16A2, and it was an enormous miss total.

The Marines, and the army normally, wished to push the M16A1 ahead to construct a greater rifle total. Sadly, the Marines’ obsession with rifles and long-range, Desk 1 competitive-style capturing not combative capturing guided the M16A2; and this exhibits.

The benefit of the M16A2

Admittedly the M16A2 wasn’t a nasty rifle. But, it simply wasn’t an excellent rifle both and was a waste of potential. The M16A2 nonetheless utilized the M16 platform as its core weapon. This ensured reliability, accuracy, ergonomics, and ease of use had been on the forefront of the design. The rifle by no means had main flaws just like the British SA-80 or M14, however the minor flaws added as much as make a much less environment friendly fight rifle.

The issues with the M16A2

The Sights

The Marine Corps harassed accuracy within the M16A2. That doesn’t sound too loopy, proper? Properly, they targeted on the accuracy of the rifle from a target-shooting perspective. This includes nonetheless positions, no gear, and a sling looped across the arm. But, accuracy in fight is a good bit completely different.

The M16A2 sights had been fairly sophisticated and allowed for very minute modifications for optimum accuracy right into a bull’s eye goal. These sights are nice for capturing targets on a nonetheless vary. Nonetheless, beneath the stress of being shot at, nobody will likely be making small changes to make tiny teams.

The entrance sight was skinny and considerably onerous to see, particularly in low mild. The 2 peep sights had been an excellent concept. The smaller sight was unneeded, however at the very least the bigger peep sight made attainable quick and correct capturing. Less complicated, bigger sights would have been suited to the infantry rifle.

Burst function

The army frightened that Marines and Troopers would simply empty their magazines on full auto and never give attention to correct hearth. In order that they put in a burst operate. Burst is a kind of compromises by which you get the worst of each worlds.

Burst triggers are sophisticated and sometimes create a much less dependable weapon. These triggers additionally simply suck by way of being mild and easy set off pulls. They even have an effect on the standard of a semi-auto set off. Loads of civilian AR15 decrease elements kits supply higher triggers than the M16A1. I’d slightly have a semi-auto-only rifle than a rifle with a burst function.

Lengthy size of pull

Size of pull is the measurement from the rear of the set off to the tip of the inventory. The Marine Corps elevated the size of pull by .625 of an inch. It doesn’t sound like a lot, however it made an enormous distinction for smaller shooters. The lengthy size of pull is nice with a loop sling and in among the wacky capturing positions utilized in marksmanship contests.

Nonetheless, for fight, it sucked, particularly when worn with physique armor. It was simply too lengthy for many shooters, particularly once we moved to a extra fashionable capturing stance. Taking pictures the M16A2 in a squared-up athletic stance was considerably troublesome and uncomfortable. This made the rifle tougher to manage and tougher to shoot precisely in fight.

The barrel profile

The M16A2 created a brand new barrel profile that nobody ended up loving. The Authorities profile was created. The M16A2 used a light-weight barrel. They stored the gun mild, balanced, and useful. The Authorities profile was created by making the entrance of the barrel thick and the rear thinner to accommodate a grenade launcher.

Why make the fronter thick? Properly, apparently, the Marine Corps thought Marines had been bending their barrels. So stated it was from Marines utilizing the barrel as a pry bar. Others instructed it was from Marines being overzealous with the bayonet. They thickened the barrel to withstand bending…and possibly to reinforce sustained hearth, however the reality the remainder of the barrel was factor makes this doubtful.

US Marine Corps (USMC) members from L Firm, third Battalion, third Marine Regiment, third Marine Division, carry out a biathlon on the Camp Hansen ranges, firing a Colt 5.56mm M16A2 Assault Rifle.

Even after the Authorities profile was adopted, the gauges used to find out if a barrel is bent nonetheless got here again damaging. It seems burs close to the gauge port would accumulate metallic from the projectiles and trigger the Go/No Go gauge to at all times be no go. Barrels weren’t bent, and the concept turned out to be foolish.

The heavy portion of the entrance barrel affected stability and made the rifle heavier than it wanted to be.

The M16A2 rifle

When the M16A2 was designed, its creators adopted some attention-grabbing decisions however which had been confirmed to be a bit foolish total. The rifle could be nice for the vary however not so sensible for fight. But, it was by no means a horrible rifle, however on the identical time, it was simply nowhere close to pretty much as good because it may have been. Generations of men and women wielded it nicely, together with in the course of the starting of the GWOT. Nonetheless, how can we be taught if we don’t discover our faults? We bought any vets within the viewers who used the M16A2?

US Marine Corps (USMC) members from L Firm, third Battalion, third Marine Regiment, third Marine Division, carry out a biathlon on the Camp Hansen ranges, firing a Colt 5.56mm M16A2 Assault Rifle.

Personally, I solely used one in boot camp.

Concerning the Writer: Travis Pike

Travis Pike is a former Marine Machine gunner who served with 2nd Bn 2nd Marines for five years. He deployed in 2009 to Afghanistan and once more in 2011 with the twenty second MEU(SOC) throughout a record-setting 11 months at sea. He’s skilled with the Romanian Military, the Spanish Marines, the Emirate Marines, and the Afghan Nationwide Military. He serves as an NRA licensed pistol teacher and teaches hid carry lessons.