Ideal Assault Rifle

[priler]

holy metal parts batman,looks like we've got a $5000 rifle that's too heavy to use.

the only thing i would change on the m16 is to use the 6.5gredel which to me is basically a larger,heavier 5.45.that would be a good thing.i would also make it piston/carrier operation and a different bolt with less but larger lugs on the bolt....wait a minute,doesn't a rifle kind of like this already exist.

the only thing i would change on an AK would be to make the safety more quiet and maybe place it near my shooting hand thumb...one like this already exist..kind of,but they used 5.56.

....but i can work around all of this.good read and good ideas though but most of it has already been done in one way or another.also,when you try to perfect one thing it often times affect something else.sometimes in a real bad way.it's always a compromise.

 

[goon]

The bullet with a hole in the middle has already been done about 100 years ago.
They used a sabot to make it work then.
IIRC, it held it's velocity well but wasn't so hot on the accuracy. Maybe modern materials could fix that.

 

[cliffy]

An Assault Rifle is fully Automatic Firing

Civilian AR-15s are auto-loading ONLY! They are not full-auto firing! Outside military use, real Assault rifles are not even legal for civilians to own. Only criminals own and use true military assault rifles. cliffy

 

[General Geoff]

cliffy, that's not true. Registered fully automatic AR-15s do exist, and many private citizens do own them.

 

[priler]

i think he was talking about military use.

 

[G.A.Pster]

I have a question for you, what side would the charging handle be on?
Personally I think the trigger system is a nightmare.

...........................
If you do ever design a gun.
Design a single action polymer single stack .45 ACP, pistol that has a protruding threaded non-moving barrel, and the grip angle of a luger.

Another I’d like to see is a pump action box magazine fed bullpup that takes .45 ACP and feeds from standard 1911 magazines.

Another I’d like to see is a .50 BMG sniper rifle with a moving barrel (like a BAR) so it recoils back and takes some of the extreme recoil off, so you could make it lighter, and easily man portible.

 

[MarineNCO26]

I do not ever see the "Perfect Rifle" being created technology changes everyday and eventually the perfect weapon would not be so perfect anymore... I am still an M-14 fan!!!!!!

 

[maddog1775]

The 'heavy is bad' mantra is very important. Have you seen the US individual troop loadout lately? My back cries in agony from just looking at pictures of these guys. Not only do they have to haul that gear, they have to FIGHT in it. Humping a heavy barreled rifle that's arguably no more accurate than the one it replaced doesn't sound like an improvement.

Thank you! There is a reason why we all have bad knees after we get out.

 

[nalioth]

Ideal assault rifle?

I think the Finns have hit a home run with the Rk95


It's based on the Kalashnikov, but isn't one.

Safe - full auto - 3 round burst - single shot selector options.

It's got modern sights.

It's got a suppressor ready flash hider.

45 degree beefy charging handle (not a skinny flesh ripper like the Romanian AIMS-74 has).

Heavy duty side folding stock (one rifle for paratroopers and legs all in one)

. . . and many more 'nice to have' features for an assault rifle.

 

[goobajessa]

ak- based ideal

whatever you do, base the ideal on an ak base. it can get wet and dirty, hot or cold, and feed ANY ammo and just shoot and shoot and shoot Not super accurate I know, but it shoooooooooots.

 

[Glock Glockler]

The Sig 550 is very AK based and is also plenty accurate, if one could chamber a 550 in 6.8spc you'd probably be doing pretty good.

 

[John Wayne]

Wait, you want the receiver stamped and the magazines milled?

 

[gentleman987]

sounds pretty good except for the receiver and the trigger group

also dont like the idea of 90 round magazines. they would be huge

 

[HorseSoldier]

whatever you do, base the ideal on an ak base. it can get wet and dirty, hot or cold, and feed ANY ammo and just shoot and shoot and shoot Not super accurate I know, but it shoooooooooots.

I'll repeat a point I frequently make when the internet-knowing gets too thick -- If you haven't seen an AK jam, you haven't run an AK very hard. They can and they do jam -- it's a rugged and robust design, but it's nowhere near as reliable as the internet conventional wisdom claims.

 

[HorseSoldier]

The Sig 550 is very AK based and is also plenty accurate, if one could chamber a 550 in 6.8spc you'd probably be doing pretty good.

Work out some deal to swap the charging handle over to the left side on the 550 series and you'd have a rifle that I think even most serious gunfighters would be enthusiastic about.

 

[SLCscottie]

This thread should go into a gunsmiths engineering design masters degree course. I just read small parts of this thread and know more than I wanted to know. Impressive.

 

[Owen]

there is one school in the western world that teaches gun-gineering.

It's Cranfield University, the Royal College of Military Science, in England. An MSc will run about $125k there.

 

[everallm]

Repeating a point brought up, have a look at the Robinson Arms XCR for the ways they have addressed a number of the issues.

Couple of points.

Flared wells are a good thing in an IPSC pistol where your mag well is never less than 4 foot above the ground but in a combat rifle where you will be grubbing around in the mud, more likely to end up wedged with cack.

The folding stock is going the wrong way. Most folks are right handed so you should fold and open away from, not across your chest or load bearing harness. Folder to the right not the left.

Textured grip is fine but pistol grip back strap changes for different sized grips, including with and without gloves would be more useful.

Magazine releasing the bolt hold open on insert not a good idea. Apart from adding complexity, could really bugger up sound discipline. You've just shot dry, dashed to fresh cover, gone to ground, it's all quiet, you stealthily insert a fresh mag, SPROING..........

Forget the whole, "change the hand guard to one with built in doohickeys", that's why we have 4 sided 1913 rail systems to attach what's needed when needed.

Someone mentioned a reciprocating charging handle......please.....having a rapidly moving chunk of metal flashing in your field of sight is a very bad thing and is going to catch on everything. Ambidextrous OK
Robinson solved this with their handle which also serves as a bolt assist.

Gas system should be adjustable and come as a standard with a suppressor setting on the have it and rarely use it better than not having it principle.

Smooth and streamlined is good to a point, remember it can be too much of a good thing, you need to be able to pick up and use in all circumstances, too slick is not good.....

Counterweight systems to reduce recoil would be a good thing for a competition rifle targeting something 600+ meters downrange. For a combat rifle forget it, just another thing to break. Focus on keeping recoil and working parts all moving in a single straight line. This will assist in rapid, accurate follow on shots.

 

[Owen]

The reciprocating chargin handle doesn't seem to be an issue on the AK/Garand/M14/SKS/auto-shotguns.

 

[everallm]

Having an appendix doesn't seem a problem either, until it ruptures. A "feature" that has operational design flaws is still a design flaw.

 

[gvnwst]

If you want a charging handle with a forward assist, look at the ACR. forward mounted charging handle(non reciprocating), with a built in forward assist.

 

[JImbothefiveth]

Does anyone else think a modified glock action, with a stock and longer barrel would be just right for this? It would be reliable, and could take down without tools.

 

[HorseSoldier]

The reciprocating chargin handle doesn't seem to be an issue on the AK/Garand/M14/SKS/auto-shotguns.

It's not a big issue or flaw, but a reciprocating charging handle does pose some limits on the weapon, in terms of grip and function in (admittedly odd) firing positions. It's definitely not a deal breaker in 99% of use, but if you can address the other 1% by using a non-reciprocating handle, that seems like the preferable way to go if you're building a weapon from scratch.

 

[expvideo]

Sounds heavy and inaccurate, and I'm concerned that your multi-stage trigger would cause more complications with reliability than it's worth.

Complication does not make a rifle better. Simplification makes a rifle better.

 

[Tarvis]

I think you have a good start, but remember that things that look good on paper don't usually turn out as they are planned. It sounds like you have a pretty good start for a crew served MG, but most of the things, as others mentioned, increase weight and cost significantly.

I think, as the military does, that the next generation of assault rifles will need some serious advantages over the M4/M16 platform for it to be beneficial. I'm not sure how far designers will have to go to make something truly innovative and advanced, but it will probably fire a laser and play The Star Spangled Banner every time you get a CK.