bobdina
06-04-2009, 04:35 PM
coping out
small arms
Here’s what’s on the horizon as carbine competition looms
By Matthew Cox
mcox@militarytimes.com
LAS VEGAS — As the Army prepares for a possible carbine competition this fall, small-arms companies are getting ready.
Among them is Remington Arms Co. Inc., an American gunmaker known for sniper rifles, which now wants to make the Army’s future carbine. The company displayed the latest version of the Adaptive Combat Rifle at the International Infantry & Joint Services Small Arms Symposium in Las Vegas. The National Defense Industrial Association put on the show May 18-21.
The ACR’s modular design features multiple barrel length and caliber options, a gas piston operating system and ambidextrous controls.
“We are really designing it with the soldier in mind,” Jason Schauble, vice president of military products for Remington, told Army Times at the show May 20.
Remington and other small arms companies across the country are preparing for the potential carbine competition later this year after Colt Defense LLC, the company that makes the M4, turns over the weapon’s technical data rights in June. When that happens, the Army will have the opportunity to make major improvements to the M4 or buy a new carbine.
Army officials hope to have an updated carbine requirement approved by October. If that happens, the Army could issue a request for proposals for a new carbine late this year, weapons officials said.
The initial prototype of the Adaptive Combat Rifle first appeared in 2007 as Magpul Industries’ Masada. Magpul then signed a deal with Bushmaster Firearms International LLC in 2008 to market it commercially.
Both Remington and Bushmaster, however, fall under an umbrella company known as Freedom Group, which decided to groom the ACR for a future Army weapons contract first.
To prepare the military version of the ACR, Remington has run the prototype through tests involving mud, sand and dust to ensure it will be reliable, Schauble said.
“Reliability is the first thing we care about over anything else … as a former operator myself, reliability is what we worry about,” said Schauble, a retired Marine captain who served with the 2nd Force Reconnaissance Company in Iraq in 2004-2005.
Remington has experience with Army weapons. Infantry units rely on the Remington M24 bolt action sniper rifle along side the service’s newer, Knight’s Armament Company M110 semi-automatic sniper rifle.
With the ACR, shooters have the option of using four barrel lengths, which can be changed out in minutes, Schauble said.
The gas piston system on the ACR has two settings for use with or without a sound suppressor. It can be removed quickly for easy cleaning, Schauble said.
The ACR’s upper receiver is aluminum; the lower receiver is made of a high-impact composite material. It has an ambidextrous magazine release, selector switch, non-reciprocating charging handle and bolt release.
The weapon also features a six position, adjustable stock that folds for compact carry.
The military version of the ACR will be tan and the commercial version will be black.
In addition to the ACR, Remington and Bushmaster are prepared to offer a standard M4-style carbine and one with a gas piston upgrade, depending on what the Army wants, Schauble said.
Army officials stressed throughout the symposium that the service has to evaluate more than just the weapon. The larger equation also includes the soldier training, optics and ammunition, Brig. Gen. Peter Fuller, commander of Program Executive Office Soldier said at the symposium May 19.“We have to recognize that it all combines together,” he said.
Lighter machine gun
The symposium also featured updates on existing military small arms programs. One of the most significant upgrades is the Project Manager Soldier Weapons M240L, a lightweight version of the current M240B machine gun.
The M240B is extremely reli­able, but at 27.5 pounds it’s prov­ing too heavy for soldiers to carry in rugged terrain such as the mountains of Afghanistan.
As a short-term fix, the Army re­cently began fielding about 500 MK48 machine guns to forces de­ploying to Afghanistan. The MK48 is about 9 pounds lighter but lacks the durability of the M240B.
Weapons officials hope to shave about 7 pounds off the weight of the M240 by putting a titanium re­ceiver on the weapon. The 240L will weigh about 20.5 pounds when equipped with a new 17.6-inch bar­rel, said Col. Doug Tamilio, who runs PM Soldier Weapons. The standard barrel is 21.6 inches.
The plan is to send the first 52 M240Ls to Afghanistan sometime this fall, Tamilio said. Full pro­duction is planned for summer of 2010, he said.
The Army also plans to offer a collapsible butt stock for the M240, which should be available this fall, Tamilio said. Futuristic models
MetalStorm, a company known for its space-age firing system that relies on electronic ignition to launch projectiles downrange, un­veiled its Multi-shot Accessory Under-barrel Launcher at the small-arms show The launcher, called MAUL, is designed to mount beneath the barrel of an M16 or M4. It resem­bles an M203 grenade launcher, but features a special five-round magazine. The M203 has to be re­loaded after each shot.
The 12-gauge projectiles are stacked end to end in the launcher. The shooter can fire nonlethal or lethal projectiles in a semi-auto­matic mode; no re-cocking is re­quired. he MAUL is designed to give troops and police a weapon that can mount beneath their standard weapon for situations when a shooter has to quickly to crowd control mode metal storm officials said The symposium also offered a chance to look at foreign weapons such as the Israeli Tavor system, a family of assault rifles that the Israeli Defense Force used to re­ place its M16s and M4s.The Tavor family features bull­pup design, meaning the bolt as­sembly, magazine well and ejec­tion port are located behind the pistol grip and trigger assembly.
This gives the weapon a “rear center of gravity, which enables a rapid acquiring of the target and the ability to fire the weapon with one hand,” Amihai Dekel of Israel Weapon Industries Ltd., said. The newest version of the Tavor is the X95, formerly known as the Micro Tavor. The Israeli Defense Force began fielding the X95 to its special forces in 2008. It is cham­bered for 5.56mm, but it can be converted to shoot 9mm, as well.
The X95 can be equipped with a sound suppressor and features an integral, reflexive optic for quick shots in close quarters, according to Dekel.
“Everything is fast and durable,” Dekel said
small arms
Here’s what’s on the horizon as carbine competition looms
By Matthew Cox
mcox@militarytimes.com
LAS VEGAS — As the Army prepares for a possible carbine competition this fall, small-arms companies are getting ready.
Among them is Remington Arms Co. Inc., an American gunmaker known for sniper rifles, which now wants to make the Army’s future carbine. The company displayed the latest version of the Adaptive Combat Rifle at the International Infantry & Joint Services Small Arms Symposium in Las Vegas. The National Defense Industrial Association put on the show May 18-21.
The ACR’s modular design features multiple barrel length and caliber options, a gas piston operating system and ambidextrous controls.
“We are really designing it with the soldier in mind,” Jason Schauble, vice president of military products for Remington, told Army Times at the show May 20.
Remington and other small arms companies across the country are preparing for the potential carbine competition later this year after Colt Defense LLC, the company that makes the M4, turns over the weapon’s technical data rights in June. When that happens, the Army will have the opportunity to make major improvements to the M4 or buy a new carbine.
Army officials hope to have an updated carbine requirement approved by October. If that happens, the Army could issue a request for proposals for a new carbine late this year, weapons officials said.
The initial prototype of the Adaptive Combat Rifle first appeared in 2007 as Magpul Industries’ Masada. Magpul then signed a deal with Bushmaster Firearms International LLC in 2008 to market it commercially.
Both Remington and Bushmaster, however, fall under an umbrella company known as Freedom Group, which decided to groom the ACR for a future Army weapons contract first.
To prepare the military version of the ACR, Remington has run the prototype through tests involving mud, sand and dust to ensure it will be reliable, Schauble said.
“Reliability is the first thing we care about over anything else … as a former operator myself, reliability is what we worry about,” said Schauble, a retired Marine captain who served with the 2nd Force Reconnaissance Company in Iraq in 2004-2005.
Remington has experience with Army weapons. Infantry units rely on the Remington M24 bolt action sniper rifle along side the service’s newer, Knight’s Armament Company M110 semi-automatic sniper rifle.
With the ACR, shooters have the option of using four barrel lengths, which can be changed out in minutes, Schauble said.
The gas piston system on the ACR has two settings for use with or without a sound suppressor. It can be removed quickly for easy cleaning, Schauble said.
The ACR’s upper receiver is aluminum; the lower receiver is made of a high-impact composite material. It has an ambidextrous magazine release, selector switch, non-reciprocating charging handle and bolt release.
The weapon also features a six position, adjustable stock that folds for compact carry.
The military version of the ACR will be tan and the commercial version will be black.
In addition to the ACR, Remington and Bushmaster are prepared to offer a standard M4-style carbine and one with a gas piston upgrade, depending on what the Army wants, Schauble said.
Army officials stressed throughout the symposium that the service has to evaluate more than just the weapon. The larger equation also includes the soldier training, optics and ammunition, Brig. Gen. Peter Fuller, commander of Program Executive Office Soldier said at the symposium May 19.“We have to recognize that it all combines together,” he said.
Lighter machine gun
The symposium also featured updates on existing military small arms programs. One of the most significant upgrades is the Project Manager Soldier Weapons M240L, a lightweight version of the current M240B machine gun.
The M240B is extremely reli­able, but at 27.5 pounds it’s prov­ing too heavy for soldiers to carry in rugged terrain such as the mountains of Afghanistan.
As a short-term fix, the Army re­cently began fielding about 500 MK48 machine guns to forces de­ploying to Afghanistan. The MK48 is about 9 pounds lighter but lacks the durability of the M240B.
Weapons officials hope to shave about 7 pounds off the weight of the M240 by putting a titanium re­ceiver on the weapon. The 240L will weigh about 20.5 pounds when equipped with a new 17.6-inch bar­rel, said Col. Doug Tamilio, who runs PM Soldier Weapons. The standard barrel is 21.6 inches.
The plan is to send the first 52 M240Ls to Afghanistan sometime this fall, Tamilio said. Full pro­duction is planned for summer of 2010, he said.
The Army also plans to offer a collapsible butt stock for the M240, which should be available this fall, Tamilio said. Futuristic models
MetalStorm, a company known for its space-age firing system that relies on electronic ignition to launch projectiles downrange, un­veiled its Multi-shot Accessory Under-barrel Launcher at the small-arms show The launcher, called MAUL, is designed to mount beneath the barrel of an M16 or M4. It resem­bles an M203 grenade launcher, but features a special five-round magazine. The M203 has to be re­loaded after each shot.
The 12-gauge projectiles are stacked end to end in the launcher. The shooter can fire nonlethal or lethal projectiles in a semi-auto­matic mode; no re-cocking is re­quired. he MAUL is designed to give troops and police a weapon that can mount beneath their standard weapon for situations when a shooter has to quickly to crowd control mode metal storm officials said The symposium also offered a chance to look at foreign weapons such as the Israeli Tavor system, a family of assault rifles that the Israeli Defense Force used to re­ place its M16s and M4s.The Tavor family features bull­pup design, meaning the bolt as­sembly, magazine well and ejec­tion port are located behind the pistol grip and trigger assembly.
This gives the weapon a “rear center of gravity, which enables a rapid acquiring of the target and the ability to fire the weapon with one hand,” Amihai Dekel of Israel Weapon Industries Ltd., said. The newest version of the Tavor is the X95, formerly known as the Micro Tavor. The Israeli Defense Force began fielding the X95 to its special forces in 2008. It is cham­bered for 5.56mm, but it can be converted to shoot 9mm, as well.
The X95 can be equipped with a sound suppressor and features an integral, reflexive optic for quick shots in close quarters, according to Dekel.
“Everything is fast and durable,” Dekel said