M-16
M-16
[edit]Name: M-16
Model: Colt Model 16
Caliber: 5.56x45mm NATO
Type: assault rifle
Scale: character
Skill: firearms
Ammo: 20
Ammo Container: magazine
Weight: 4.0 kg
Cost: $1,800
Ammo Cost per Round: $0.32
Availability: 4
Fire Mode: semiautomatic and fully automatic
Rate of Fire: 60 per round
Range: 1-39 / 195 / 390 m
Damage: 3D+2
Capsule: Variant originally adopted by the U.S. Air Force. This was the first M16 adopted operationally. This variant had triangular handguards, butt stocks without a compartment for the storage of a cleaning kit, a three-pronged flash suppressor, and no forward assist. Bolt carriers were originally chrome plated and slick-sided, lacking forward assist notches. Later, the chrome plated carriers were dropped in favor of Army issued notched and parkerized carriers though the interior portion of the bolt carrier is still chrome-lined. The Air Force continued to operate these weapons until around 2001, at which time the Air Force converted all of its M16s to the M16A2 configuration.
M-16a1
[edit]Name: M-16a1
Model: Colt Model 16a1
Caliber: 5.56x45mm NATO
Type: assault rifle
Scale: character
Skill: firearms
Ammo: 20
Ammo Container: magazine
Weight: 4.0 kg
Cost: $1,800
Ammo Cost per Round: $0.32
Availability: 4
Fire Mode: semiautomatic & fully automatic
Rate of Fire: 60 per round
Range: 1-39 / 195 / 390 m
Damage: 3D+2
Capsule: The U.S. Army XM16E1 was essentially the same weapon as the M16 with the addition of a forward assist and corresponding notches in the bolt carrier. The M16A1 was the finalized production model in 1967.
To address issues raised by the XM16E1's testing cycle, a closed, bird-cage flash suppressor replaced the XM16E1's three-pronged flash suppressor which caught on twigs and leaves. Various other changes were made after numerous problems in the field. Cleaning kits were developed and issued while barrels with chrome-plated chambers and later fully lined bores were introduced. The front sight was now a square post with 4 detent positions, adjustable for vertical zeroing by using a cartridge, nail or special tool.
With these and other changes, the malfunction rate slowly declined and new soldiers were generally unfamiliar with early problems. A rib was built into the side of the receiver on the XM16E1 to help prevent accidentally pressing the magazine release button while closing the ejection port cover. This rib was later extended on production M16A1s to help in preventing the magazine release from inadvertently being pressed. The hole in the bolt that accepts the cam pin was crimped inward on one side, in such a way that the cam pin may not be inserted with the bolt installed backwards, which would cause failures to eject until corrected. The M16A1 remains in service in limited numbers in the United States but is still standard issue in many world armies.
M-16a2
[edit]Name: M-16a2
Model: Colt Model 16a2
Caliber: 5.56x45mm NATO
Type: assault rifle
Scale: character
Skill: firearms
Ammo: 30
Ammo Container: magazine
Weight: 4.0kg
Cost: $1,800
Ammo Cost per Round: $0.32
Availability: 3
Fire Mode: semiautomatic & 3 round burst
Rate of Fire: 70 per round
Range: 1-39 / 195 / 390 m
Damage: 3D+2
Capsule: The development of the M16A2 rifle was originally requested by the United States Marine Corps as a result of the USMC's combat experience in Vietnam with the XM16E1 and M16A1. The Marines were the first branch of the U.S. Armed Forces to adopt the M16A2 in the early/mid 1980s with the United States Army following suit in the late 1980s. This rifle is now the current issue to Marine Corps' recruits in both MCRD San Diego and MCRD Parris Island. Modifications to the M16A2 were extensive. In addition to the new rifling, the barrel was made with a greater thickness in front of the front sight post to resist bending in the field and to allow a longer period of sustained fire without overheating. The rest of the barrel was maintained at the original thickness to enable the M203 grenade launcher to be attached. A new adjustable rear sight was added, allowing the rear sight to be dialed in for specific range settings between 300 and 800 meters to take full advantage of the ballistic characteristics of the new SS109 rounds and to allow windage adjustments without the need of a tool or cartridge. The flash suppressor was again modified, this time to be closed on the bottom so it would not kick up dirt or snow when being fired from the prone position, and acting as a recoil compensator. The front grip was modified from the original triangular shape to a round one, which better fitted smaller hands and could be fitted to older models of the M16. The new handguards were also symmetrical so that armories need not separate left and right spares. The handguard retention ring was tapered to make it easier to install and uninstall the handguards. A notch for the middle finger was added to the pistol grip, as well as more texture to enhance the grip. The buttstock was lengthened by 5⁄8 inches (16 mm). The new buttstock became ten times stronger than the original due to advances in polymer technology since the early 1960s. Original M16 stocks were made from fiberglass-impregnated resin; the newer stocks were engineered from DuPont Zytel glass-filled thermoset polymers. The new stock included a fully textured polymer buttplate for better grip on the shoulder, and retained a panel for accessing a small compartment inside the stock, often used for storing a basic cleaning kit. The heavier bullet reduces muzzle velocity from 3,200 feet per second (980 m/s), to about 3,050 feet per second (930 m/s). The A2 also uses a faster twist rifling to allow the use of a trajectory-matched tracer round. A spent case deflector was incorporated into the upper receiver immediately behind the ejection port to prevent cases from striking left-handed users.
The action was also modified, replacing the fully automatic setting with a three-round burst setting. When using a fully automatic weapon, poorly trained troops often hold down the trigger and "spray" when under fire. The U.S. Army concluded that three-shot groups provide an optimum combination of ammunition conservation, accuracy and firepower.
M-16a3
[edit]Name: M-16a3
Model: Colt Model 16a3
Caliber: 5.56x45mm NATO
Type: assault rifle
Scale: character
Skill: firearms
Ammo: 30 or 100
Ammo Container: magazine
Weight: 4.0 kg
Cost: $1,800
Ammo Cost per Round: $0.32
Availability: 3
Fire Mode: semiautomatic and fully automatic
Rate of Fire: 80 per round
Range: 1-39 / 195 / 390 m
Damage: 3D+2
Capsule: The M16A3 was a fully automatic variant of the M16A2 adopted in small numbers around the time of the introduction of the M16A2, primarily by the U.S. Navy for use by SEAL, Seabee, and Security units. It features the M16A1 trigger group providing "safe", "semi-automatic", and "fully automatic" modes.
M-16a4
[edit]Name: M-16a4
Model: Colt Model 16a4
Caliber: 5.56x45mm NATO
Type: assault rifle
Scale: character
Skill: firearms
Ammo: 30 or 100
Ammo Container: magazine
Weight: 4.0kg
Cost: $1,800
Ammo Cost per Round: $0.32
Availability: 3
Fire Mode: semiautomatic & 3 round burst
Rate of Fire: 80 per round
Range: 1-39 / 195 / 390 m
Damage: 3D+2
Capsule: The M16A4 is the fourth generation of the M16 series. It is equipped with removable carrying handle, and full length quad picatinny rail for mounting optics and other ancillary devices. The Colt M16A4 model RO945, using safe/semi/burst selective fire, is now the standard issue for front-line U.S. Marine Corps and some U.S. Army units.
Military issue rifles are also equipped with a Knight's Armament Company M5 RAS hand guard, allowing vertical grips, lasers, tactical lights, and other accessories to be attached, coining the designation M16A4 MWS (or Modular Weapon System) in U.S. Army field manuals