Guns That Changed History: The M16 Rifle

[DougC]

Read more at Truth about Guns

The M16 rifle is more than just a tool of war—it’s a symbol of innovation, resilience and tactical supremacy. For more than 60 years, this rifle has played a pivotal role in shaping modern military conflicts, proving its worth on battlefields from Vietnam to the Middle East. In this article, we’ll dive into the history, evolution and lasting impact of the M16, revealing why it remains a cornerstone of military arsenals worldwide.

Author accounts for the early development of the rifle and its impact on warfighting. My time in the Marine Corps in 1960s started with M-14 in boot camp, M-1 in advanced infantry training then back to M-14 for two years. The M-16 didn't make my hands till Vietnam in 1967 then back to M-14 stateside for several years. Eventually everyone got the M-16. The article also has several videos from various YouTube channels on the rifle.

 

[Lead Belly]

Icky black Mattel.

 

[Pistol Pete]

So far, the M16 nor the M14 have never won a war. But that's because of our gutless politicians.

 

[Tnhawk]

The M16 didn't change history, 70 years of the AK-47 did.

 

[leVieux]

Read more at Truth about Guns

The M16 rifle is more than just a tool of war—it’s a symbol of innovation, resilience and tactical supremacy. For more than 60 years, this rifle has played a pivotal role in shaping modern military conflicts, proving its worth on battlefields from Vietnam to the Middle East. In this article, we’ll dive into the history, evolution and lasting impact of the M16, revealing why it remains a cornerstone of military arsenals worldwide.

Author accounts for the early development of the rifle and its impact on warfighting. My time in the Marine Corps in 1960s started with M-14 in boot camp, M-1 in advanced infantry training then back to M-14 for two years. The M-16 didn't make my hands till Vietnam in 1967 then back to M-14 stateside for several years. Eventually everyone got the M-16. The article also has several videos from various YouTube channels on the rifle.

Thank you for your service.

I, too, recall the ‘‘Stoner’s” we loved to hate.

 

[zackmars]

The M16 didn't change history, 70 years of the AK-47 did.

The 90 years of the M1 did, actually.

 

[leVieux]

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Gee, my old initial Army Reserve unit actually had ‘03’s, and they were very good rifles. One day a year, they’d bus us out to Camp Bullis and let us “qualify” with Stoners.

Some of our Medical Officers were completely unfamiliar with firearms. They’s send a Sergeant from Ft. Sam to act as ‘’Range Master’’ , but he’d hide all day.

Jack Myers & I had to baby-sit. The Major insisted that everyone “qualify’’; but for us that meant hitting a big pop-up metal target @ 50M with 10 of 20 rounds fired, Iron sights, rests OK. Several couldn’t even do that. They got unlimited tries.

Some of the NYC/Philly/NJ contingent had never before held a “real gun”, and had zero safety sense. Jack or I literally had to stand behind them, arms outstretched, to prevent their shooting the gallery.

The targets had been designed for 30-06 or .308 , so many times the spring resets wouldn’t work with the 5.56/.223’s, so we’d walk the line knocking them over so they could reset, with our .357’s or .45’s.

Gee, that rant took me back over a half-century.

In fact, the funeral detail of my current American Legion Post still uses ‘03’s .

Sigh. . . . . .

leVieux

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