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Weapons Failed in Battle?

Hard to tell if the failures are a problem with the weapon, training, or maintenance. 

Complaints about the weapons the troops carry, especially the M4, aren’t new. Army officials say that when properly cleaned and maintained, the M4 is a quality weapon that can pump out more than 3,000 rounds before any failures occur.

The M4 is a shorter, lighter version of the M16, which made its debut during the Vietnam war. Roughly 500,000 M4s are in service, making it the rifle troops on the front lines trust with their lives.

Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., a leading critic of the M4, said Thursday the Army needs to move quickly to acquire a combat rifle suited for the extreme conditions U.S. troops are fighting in.

U.S. special operations forces, with their own acquisition budget and the latitude to buy gear the other military branches can’t, already are replacing their M4s with a new rifle.

Posted by Owen at 1700 hrs
Firearms + Military

1. Maybe copy the features of the AK-47??  It’s the proven weapon of choice for millions.  That many insurgents/terrorists/thugs can’t be all wrong.

   Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on October 11, 2009 at 1830 hrs
   
   
   

2. Further, any rifle with a built in manual “pusher” that’s used to close the breach when the action doesn’t completely cycle, is a rifle that wont get my vote.

   Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on October 11, 2009 at 1854 hrs
   
   
   

3. The story indicates that after the barrel gets white-hot, the weapon jams.

   Doh.  I think the AK would have the same problem with a white-hot barrel.

   Of course, the AK won’t hit the broad side of a barn…....which IS a consideration when buying battle rifles.

   I vote for the M-! or M-14.

   Posted by dad29 on October 11, 2009 at 1933 hrs
   
   
   

4. IMHO, M4 is prone to jam if not properly cleaned.

   Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on October 11, 2009 at 1935 hrs
   
   
   

5. There are much improved AR style rifles available now that use an operating rod (as does the AK47) to cycle the bolt carrier rather than the direct gas impingement system of the original Stoner design.  It keeps the action much cleaner and hence much more reliable.  One is the Para Ordnance DIGS system which was developed by ZM Weapons.  Another is the AR platform recently released by Ruger.  Both are big improvements to the original design.  There are others as well.

   Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on October 12, 2009 at 0853 hrs
   
   
   

6. Any gun not properly cleaned will jam. I agree with 45acp - let’s look at soemthing different.

   Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on October 12, 2009 at 1206 hrs
   
   
   

7. I don’t know from the M4 but I was in when the change fromthe M-60 to the M-249 (SAW) was implamented and it was a huge pain in the ass.  The SAW would jam so more often and required a much higher level of cleaning.  I hated it.  I just wanted my pig back. 

   (Thankfully was assigned to the M-2 soon thereafter)

   Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on October 12, 2009 at 1410 hrs
   
   
   

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