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From: henry@zoo.toronto.edu (Henry Spencer)
Newsgroups: sci.military
Subject: Re: M16 Rifle
Message-ID: <10405@cbnews.ATT.COM>
Date: 20 Oct 89 01:41:59 GMT
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From: henry@zoo.toronto.edu (Henry Spencer)
>From: raymond@io.ame.arizona.edu (Raymond Man)
>	I remember from read Profile that a large part of the
>initial problem with the M16 was the switch by the ammo supplier
>to a powder of a different specification....

The switch was not the supplier's idea; it was ordered by the Army.
And the Army being the lead service for the M-16, the other services
had to go along, despite loud protests from the USAF that the new
powder ruined the rifle's reliability.  Which it did, because the
Army standard powder produced much more residue than the powder the
rifle was designed for.  Of course, nobody asked Stoner his opinion
about the change until the decision was already made.

>...The problem was pretty much cured
>when the right kind of powder was prescribed...

Can you cite a reference for this?  My understanding is that the problem
has *never* been cured because the powder has *not* been changed back.
Various other little changes, and heavy emphasis on cleaning, have only
controlled the problem somewhat.

>But still the
>mechanism is kind of delicate and a lot of TLC is needed to presuade
>the M16 to work properly...

Stoner's original AR-15 consistently demonstrated reliability superior
to that of the Army's operational rifles, e.g. the M-14.  When used with
the powder it was designed for, it didn't need TLC.

>... extended operation in eg. humid Vietnam jungles
>is the limus test. It seems AK's had a far better reputation than the M16.

Remember, the M-16 was adopted not because the Army wanted it, but because
the AR-15's performance *in Vietnam* was so spectacular that everyone was
screaming for more of them.  But of course, it had to be "improved" first...

                                     Henry Spencer at U of Toronto Zoology
                                 uunet!attcan!utzoo!henry henry@zoo.toronto.edu