The U.S. Military’s Next Rifle

[wacojoe]

https://nationalinterest.org/blog/bu...its-path-91556

...While the service still hasn’t set official requirements for the system, the NGSAR will weigh less, shoot farther, and pack more punch than the service’s existing infantry weapons, Norman told Task & Purpose. And more importantly, the platform will incorporate a chamber pressure superior to the current system in soldiers’ arsenals to ensure that the rounds can still blast through enhanced enemy body armor at up to 600 meters.

The goal, as Norman put it, is to equip infantry soldiers with an automatic rifle “that fires a small bullet at the pressure equivalent to what a tank would fire.”

...But the real heart of the NGSW program is the fire control system, developed independently from the receiver and chamber. While the Army has spent years evaluating off-the-shelf options for soldiers’ next assault rifle — see the Interim Combat Service Rifle program aborted in November due to weight concerns rather than budget jousting — Norman characterized the proprietary fire-control system as a miniaturized version of the systems utilized by ground vehicles and aviation platforms.

“We’re exploring several options to ensure that what the gun aims at, it actually hits,” Norman told Task & Purpose. “The system will adjust and potentially only fire when the muzzle will line up with its target. It will take into account atmospheric conditions, even automatically center the weapon using an internal system. We’re looking to get these capabilities ready as soon as possible.”...

No word on how the weapon would handle the recoil.

[Truckman]

No word on how the weapon would handle the recoil.

Recoil is a derivative of not only chamber pressure, but also projectile weight which wasn't referenced in the article...Since mass absorbs energy, the felt recoil will also be a function of the weight of the rifle...I can't see the average grunt wanting to carry a heavier rifle, and its accompanying heavier ammo, together with all his other gear on a long hike into battle...My guess is that a weapon of this nature will be assigned to only one or two specialists within a squad, in the same manner as the BAR was usually carried by one man per squad...

It will be interesting to follow this development if it continues......Ben

[CactusCurt]

My speed read says it's a hunting round that they somehow designed to function in an auto. Those pressures are bolt action magnum ish. Think of a gentle shouldered 6.5 creedmore (the favorite new fangled cartridge to be scorned on the internet shooting galleries) that feeds somehow? Without velocity I don't see how it penetrates body armor at 600 yards unless we are talking about a cool magic projectile.

Somewhere I have some 30-06 ball that are armor piercing. They are a tiny (22 cal?) tungsten (?) core inside a typical fmj bullet. They go a long way into a rock and thru a pretty big tree (16"). Note: they do not go straight tru the tree and exit in a different direction. I assumed it was because of the grain.

Hmmm...

[Dave Grubb]

I assumed it was because of the grain.

I think you are correct. Wood is not a homogeneous material.

I mentioned recently about a caribou kill with my 7 mm Rem Mag where the bullet entered the neck on the right side and exited in front of the rear leg on the left side---after hitting the left front leg at the shoulder bone.

[wacojoe]

Recoil is a derivative of not only chamber pressure, but also projectile weight which wasn't referenced in the article...Since mass absorbs energy, the felt recoil will also be a function of the weight of the rifle...I can't see the average grunt wanting to carry a heavier rifle, and its accompanying heavier ammo, together with all his other gear on a long hike into battle...My guess is that a weapon of this nature will be assigned to only one or two specialists within a squad, in the same manner as the BAR was usually carried by one man per squad...

It will be interesting to follow this development if it continues......Ben

I think the article mentioned the weapons would have two in a squad.
Of particular interest to me are apparent plans to incorporate some of the electronic targeting features I have posted in other threads.

[FredK]

Wonder how long until it filters down to the street?

[Truckman]

Wonder how long until it filters down to the street?

Depends on which street you live on, Fred......Ben

[UTAH]

Wonder how long until it filters down to the street?

I worry about that, Fred. Before I retired my wife and I were in command positions. And, as such, we tried to anticipate what bad people may do to our staff. So, though I welcome the new technology, I hope the cons out there will not use it against our brothers and sisters on the street. It's bad enough we now keep running across cons who wear body armor. We'll now have to worry about them out-gunning us as well.

Remember Clyde Barrow? He remained an active criminal for too many years. One of the main reasons he was not stopped earlier was because he had all the local PD's out-gunned. He had mastered the BAR, and used that modern weapon to outshoot the cops. This caused Barrow to be killed in an ambush, because the retired Texas Ranger who caught him knew that getting into a gunfight with Barrow would have been foolish.

Hunter

[CactusCurt]

I seriously doubt your average bad guy is going to pick up a 5 figure military weapon you can’t even get ammo for (ceramic possibly). But what do I know.

[UTAH]

You may be right, Curt. However, I think there are some skilled gun craftsmen out there who will modify weapons for money.

Hunter

[CactusCurt]

Well it doesn't start making its way into soldiers hands for a few years so we have time to plan. Cartels aside (big businesses don't count in my ridiculous argument), someone on this board is more likely to have one before the average criminal. On second thought you might be right

[Mike]

They killed the hell out of Barrow's car, too! I saw the car at the Texas State Fair sometime back in the late '60s. It had more holes in it than a wheel of Swiss cheese.

[Truckman]

It had more holes in it than a wheel of Swiss cheese.

Still does......Ben

[wacojoe]

The Mexican Cartels have all the weapons. They can afford it all. Last week they overwhelmed the Mexican Army in an all-out fire fight in the middle of a city.

[CactusCurt]

Didn't Texas do that to?