mountain_cowboy
Member
What's the difference in an A3 upper with no front sight and an A4 upper?
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Difference in A3 and A4 Uppers?
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Zach S
Member
I think the M16A3 had 3 round burst, and the M16A4 was full-auto. Since both are flat-tops A3 and A4 are both used by AR manufactures.
You have it backwards. The M16A3 is full auto, and the M16A4 is burst. The M16A3 as far as I know is/was a carry handle upper, not a flat-top. The A3 was the answer to complaints about the piddly burst on the A2.
As far as commercial uppers go, there is no difference between the two. Some call it the A3, some call it the A4. Since burst/auto isn't a factor in civilian models, there would have been no AR-15A4. You'd have AR-15A1 (carry handle), AR-15A2 (carry handle), and AR-15A3 (flat-top). Some makers choose to call the flat-top an A4 since it looks like the M16A4 upper.
As far as commercial uppers go, there is no difference between the two. Some call it the A3, some call it the A4. Since burst/auto isn't a factor in civilian models, there would have been no AR-15A4. You'd have AR-15A1 (carry handle), AR-15A2 (carry handle), and AR-15A3 (flat-top). Some makers choose to call the flat-top an A4 since it looks like the M16A4 upper.
Zach S
Member
Thanks for correcting me. I thought the flattop came before full-auto.
Maybe telling someone the wrong info and getting humiliated on a public forum for doing so will help me remember in the future, lol.
Maybe telling someone the wrong info and getting humiliated on a public forum for doing so will help me remember in the future, lol.
mountain_cowboy
Member
Thanks, I was thinking about the commercial civilian uppers. I mainly see all flat-tops advertised as A4's and wondered what the A3 was.
Aguila Blanca
Member
The flattops could not have come before full auto, because the original M16 (A0) such as what I carried in Vietnam in the 60s was full auto and had a carry handle. I honestly can't remember, but I'm 95% certain that the ones we had back then pre-dated the charge assist handle, too.
The burst mode came about because the weapon isn't very controllable when fired on full auto, and using full auto results in a lot of wasted ammo with not much to show for results.
The burst mode came about because the weapon isn't very controllable when fired on full auto, and using full auto results in a lot of wasted ammo with not much to show for results.
Chipperman
Member
"but I'm 95% certain that the ones we had back then pre-dated the charge assist handle, too."
That is correct. The A1 added the forward assist.
That is correct. The A1 added the forward assist.
Zach S
Member
I was just refering to the A3 and A4 revisions, which I got backwards, as Houndawg pointed out.The flattops could not have come before full auto, because the original M16 (A0) such as what I carried in Vietnam in the 60s was full auto and had a carry handle.
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