10-13-2011, 01:45 AM
"The HK416 is basically an AR15 that HK fixed with a gas piston assembly and other tweaks to improve reliability, particularly during full-auto fire." Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha (wish we had the little dude dying on the floor laughing his guts out animation)
From the HK416's that I've fired, I would leave that gun in the arms room probably. I hate the SAW with a fervent passion, but the good ones (very few that actually run) are nice to have, since it's a belt-fed platform. There is zero capability added to the Infantry Squad with a re-hashed Auto Rifleman, like they did with the M16A1 and a bipod before the SAW trials of the 1970's. A 30rd magazine-fed squad support weapon is pretty much worthless, which is why I'm waiting to see how the Surefire and, as of yet unreleased Magpul coffin mags work out.
The Surefire followers are not anti-tilt, because the design couldn't work with them the way they approached feeding quad-stacks into a double-column stagger, but I really didn't have a lot of problems with standard M16 30rd mags with the black followers unless the mag body or lips were damaged either.
I'm of the school that leans towards relying on a belt-fed LMG for any dedicated AUTO platform that is intended to provide fire support for Teams, Squads, and Platoons. The 100rd nutsack for the SAW is a great ammunition carrier/feed source, and should be incorporated into the next LMG. Even if I equip a SAW gunner with an HK IAR, carrying 6x60rd Surefire mags, what does he do with the mags when finished? Drop them in a gigantic dump pouch? What happens to the ammo load that members of his team carry for him to distribute that 800-1200rd+ combat load? I'll tell you what will happen if you hand a bunch of 60rd mags to Joe to put in his assault pack for the SAW gunner...he will have one in his M4 (or M16A4 in the Marines' case), and burn the SAW gunner's ammo, leaving him with 30rd mags.
With a belt-fed, you give a rats about the spent links, and just slap a fresh belt on the feed tray, close the cover, charge the weapon, and continue to fire when appropriate. A good SAW gunner can conduct a rapid nutsack change fairly quickly, but you have the same issue with retaining the nutsacks, but they fill a much smaller profile than the 60rd SF mags, and slip right back into the SAW pouch nicely. I would keep them stored in my SAW pouches, and since you're in the prone when firing a belt-fed LMG most of the time, it was easy for me to work out a load management sequence to account for the nutsacks.
The benefits of the IAR are that everyone in the Fire Team can share magazines, which then backfires possibly as a detriment if guys prefer the 60rd mags. I still think the 60rd mags should be issued if they prove to be reliable, so that at least one Rifleman per Team is carrying one, and staggers the incidence of magazine changes to prevent lulls in fire during contact with the enemy. We used to use 20rd mags for this sometimes, but I'd prefer more ammo in the gun rather than less, especially since the Russians have made a 60rd coffin mag for the AK100/AK74 series, and the 45rd RPK mag is widely used by Spetsnaz and Islamic militants in certain regions of the world, to include the Caucasus.
The Surefire 100rd mag would be a complete NO-GO due to its profile, while the 60rd mag is not bad at all. I'll probably have one if I can get one well below that insane price tag for it ($129!!!???). This HK IAR deal has been going-on for a while, so it's not really news. I think it will come and go, once people realize how bad that system is, and its inappropriateness in the LMG role when the hooahs start dead-lining barrels.
From the HK416's that I've fired, I would leave that gun in the arms room probably. I hate the SAW with a fervent passion, but the good ones (very few that actually run) are nice to have, since it's a belt-fed platform. There is zero capability added to the Infantry Squad with a re-hashed Auto Rifleman, like they did with the M16A1 and a bipod before the SAW trials of the 1970's. A 30rd magazine-fed squad support weapon is pretty much worthless, which is why I'm waiting to see how the Surefire and, as of yet unreleased Magpul coffin mags work out.
The Surefire followers are not anti-tilt, because the design couldn't work with them the way they approached feeding quad-stacks into a double-column stagger, but I really didn't have a lot of problems with standard M16 30rd mags with the black followers unless the mag body or lips were damaged either.
I'm of the school that leans towards relying on a belt-fed LMG for any dedicated AUTO platform that is intended to provide fire support for Teams, Squads, and Platoons. The 100rd nutsack for the SAW is a great ammunition carrier/feed source, and should be incorporated into the next LMG. Even if I equip a SAW gunner with an HK IAR, carrying 6x60rd Surefire mags, what does he do with the mags when finished? Drop them in a gigantic dump pouch? What happens to the ammo load that members of his team carry for him to distribute that 800-1200rd+ combat load? I'll tell you what will happen if you hand a bunch of 60rd mags to Joe to put in his assault pack for the SAW gunner...he will have one in his M4 (or M16A4 in the Marines' case), and burn the SAW gunner's ammo, leaving him with 30rd mags.
With a belt-fed, you give a rats about the spent links, and just slap a fresh belt on the feed tray, close the cover, charge the weapon, and continue to fire when appropriate. A good SAW gunner can conduct a rapid nutsack change fairly quickly, but you have the same issue with retaining the nutsacks, but they fill a much smaller profile than the 60rd SF mags, and slip right back into the SAW pouch nicely. I would keep them stored in my SAW pouches, and since you're in the prone when firing a belt-fed LMG most of the time, it was easy for me to work out a load management sequence to account for the nutsacks.
The benefits of the IAR are that everyone in the Fire Team can share magazines, which then backfires possibly as a detriment if guys prefer the 60rd mags. I still think the 60rd mags should be issued if they prove to be reliable, so that at least one Rifleman per Team is carrying one, and staggers the incidence of magazine changes to prevent lulls in fire during contact with the enemy. We used to use 20rd mags for this sometimes, but I'd prefer more ammo in the gun rather than less, especially since the Russians have made a 60rd coffin mag for the AK100/AK74 series, and the 45rd RPK mag is widely used by Spetsnaz and Islamic militants in certain regions of the world, to include the Caucasus.
The Surefire 100rd mag would be a complete NO-GO due to its profile, while the 60rd mag is not bad at all. I'll probably have one if I can get one well below that insane price tag for it ($129!!!???). This HK IAR deal has been going-on for a while, so it's not really news. I think it will come and go, once people realize how bad that system is, and its inappropriateness in the LMG role when the hooahs start dead-lining barrels.