Best Assault Rifle

[RuleBritannia]

What are the opinions on assault rifles? Which is the best? Which is the worst? Which have unique advantages?
I quite like the G3 series of weapons, manufactured by HK.

[rangerhopefull_1162]

m4
fn fal

i have heard that the hk jams, the mp5 more specifically, is this true or jus one bad gun

[Lord Barker]

Well it all depends on the job you want it to do really,

The FN FAL and G3 are what are known as battle rifles, in that they are assault rifles, but are built for long range combat in open fields (7.62mm rounds) The problem with these is they are great on the ranges and pack a punch but they are too long, too heavy. Not very good for urban combat, which dominates military operations in our days.

Goind down the spectrum, we have the AK-47, M16 style weapons.
Using the short 7.62mm round or the 'ultimate small arms round' 5.56mm, these weapons can blow decent holes in things at reasonable ranges, but can also be picked up easilt and ran with to asault a posistion. They are designed to be universal, being equally good in open battle, jungle, urban, paradrops, the lot.

Then we have the weapons that arent really assault rifles atall but SMGs, sub machineguns. Such as the aforementioned MP5. They are perfect for urban, being of high caliber, 9mm and being compact, the MP5 is probably the best at this task. They are pretty useless when you get to battle situations.

[HKspectre-A2]

I would have to put my money on the Heckler & Koch G36. I have read over its stats when matched up against other weapons of the same classification, and really I would take this weapon over any other on the battlefield. Here are a couple points about the rifle, the foldable stock is a great addition. Next is an intigrated sight system that comes on all the standers G36 series axcept for the K and C versions. Now, an addition that I really think is a no brainer when designing a battle rifle. It is a clear magazine that "usually" holds 30 7.62 NATO rounds, so you can see how much more ammo you have left. Next is the trigger groupe, which allows the operator to choose from safe/semi/full auto mode in a quick flick of the thumb. The only bad thing that I see with the G36 series, as well as some others from HK, is the charging handle. Is it just me or does this charging system seem very..... oh.....britle?
http://www.hkpro.com/image/G36STRIP.jpg

[Lord Barker]

Yep, G36 is pretty good, it uses 5.56mm, not 7.62mm though.
I like the drum magazine for the MG36 and the inbuilt scope.
One of thing i don't like is apparently it breaks really easy... many of the components look like they could break if they are dropped..

My fav assault rifle is the SA80for pure beat-ability... the only parts you could really break if you hit someone with it is the SUSAT and the dust cover, but i have never heard of that happening..
The plastic parts are chunky and malleable to an extent, so will bend rather than snap, which takes alot of doing. It is easy to strip, unless the TMH pins get stuck, an easy fix is the hitting them with the bottom of a magazine. It is phenominaly accurate being bulpup, although it is weighted towards the but which makes for a loose group if you are a mong and dont hold it properly/ empty a full magazine at once, which is never done, atleast by a british soldier.
The reason there is so much negativity towards it is civilians or third-liners, because it tends to block without simple daily cleaning, which british troops are trained to, and deffinately do carry out on a daily basis.
It is reasonably light and compact, and all of the major problems such as magazine falling out have been fixed long ago.
The L85A2 is deffinately a good weapon and I see no reason for another assault rifle to come through, the next development being something like the OIWC in years to come...

[Lord Barker]

Another thing i like about the SA80 is it's bayonet.. It's scabbard has an inbuilt sharpening stone, wire cutting attachment and saw. Oh and bottle opener.


L85 Bayonet:
http://www.surplusandoutdoors.com/ishop/images/877/SA80-BAYONET.jpg

Far better than G36, AK, M16, sod it, the rest:

http://www.bayo-hunter.com/mycollect/Chinese2.jpg

http://www.uscav.com/prodInfo/images/22199.jpg

[China ownz]

AK-47, it'll split ur head easily..............

[Djwonder]

like Lord Barker said , it depends on the situacion..
todays war are fought in urban territories ,,,so i prefer a lightweight assault rifle like the m-16,, SA80 or the m-4 carbine !!...

[royal marine]

you obviosly aint held an SA80 ....spose i am only 13 though


weak arms





whats that?
its my bren gun
couldnt you bring sumin more practical

[torspo[fin]]

best ? :D


http://tietokannat.mil.fi/kalustoesittely/media/1113200271_IMG_7465.jpg


-= RK 95 TP =-

best AK-47 based modern AR.. (atleast according to Jane's)



worst? donno.. if it works, its good. if it can take some harsh weather like RK... its better.

the old RK 62 is exelent also..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rk_62

[M4M203]

Which country uses the G36 the most?

[torspo[fin]]

Which country uses the G36 the most?

Germany perhaps? :D

[sealteam6]

duhhh, i think america, on account of they have anouced they ar not too arogant to use something that is not theis :D

[royal marine]

is that picture of the russian assault rifle the rifle that has no recoil due to the barrel taking the recoil

[torspo[fin]]

is that picture of the russian assault rifle the rifle that has no recoil due to the barrel taking the recoil

nope.. its Finnish remake of the AK-47 developed and evolved for the years we have hands
in the specs of AK-47 :)

so.. nope not Russian.. Finnish.

and this "no recoill thing" i have to study more... but i dont think that
is applyed in rk-95. only rifle i know that work with such technology is
G-11.. which "dealys" the recoil effect to the last bullet in the burst.

[GunMan]

these are the best assault rifles on the field today from best to worst

the xm8 or also know as the m8
the g36 series
fn scar
m4 m16
fn fal
the worst today is the ak47

[GunMan]

well actually the sa 80 has a bad reputation for being to heavy , inbalanced, no versatile, no realiabilt and inaccurate but comes with nice susat sight and a 40mm greande laucnher probably the only best advantage.. the britsh are most likely trashing the gun and making a contract to have g36 in their military

[Pappy]

is that picture of the russian assault rifle the rifle that has no recoil due to the barrel taking the recoil

No AK-47 variant has no recoil. Yes, the barrel generally doesn't climb, but the gun kicks rearward making the barrel move side to side or up or down as you fire. It most certainly has recoil though ;) The best is to use the recoil to your advantage for fun at the range. Take an AK varient and put it by your hip. Pull the gun forward with your non-trigger hand as you let the gun be pushed into your trigger finger. The kick will make it go back, but if you put constant pressure on pulling the rifle forwards it will fire almost as fast as fully automatic. Sure isn't accurate but it's a load of fun. I recommend utilizing a drum mag for this and make sure it's allowed at the range first. :D


As for the best assault rifle, I quite favor the Springfield SOCOM 16. I suppose more of a battle rifle than assault rifle. But oh well.

http://www.springfield-armory.com/images/rifles/SOCOM16.jpg

[Tacky]

these are the best assault rifles on the field today from best to worst

the xm8 or also know as the m8
the g36 series
fn scar
m4 m16
fn fal
the worst today is the ak47

I have a question for you .. have you even fired the M8? It cannot pass Army trials, so why would you put it above tested and proven rifles? Just curious. I know the hype was large, but it didn't hold up in reality.

[royal marine]

the SA 80 is not heavy unless you are a ***** and is extremely accurate the problems are the reliability not anything what you said...the SUSAT is accurate but has a **** crosshair and the grenade launcher underneath is not good but onlu used when ABSOLUTLEY necassary
dont comment on it mate if you dont know and trust me ive handled it enough to know

[Phisy]

:rolleyes:

The L85A2 (SA80) IS heavy for an assualt rifle. And the grenade launcher is a handy bit of kit, as is the underbarrel light and laser pointer. I've got no idea where the suggestion that the SA80 is inaccurate comes from - because its false to the extreme; I doubt if there is a more accurate assualt rifle on the planet than the SA80.

L85A1 was crap - it would break and have stoppages all the time, the TMH would rattle around in 95% of the rifles, firing pins would break regulary and I'm convinced every rifle was assembled in the 5 minutes before knocking off time in the factory.

The L85A2 is, to be honest, a totally different weapon from a reliability point of view. Every single serving member was cynical about the A2 until they'd used it for a while - but common opinion is that its a great rifle - the only negative being the weight.

The AK is a good assualt rifle - easy to use, easy to maintain, rugged to the extreme, and good for close, dirty, work - i.e. perfect for the lower training levels of a conscript army. Over distance though, every modern assualt rifle should beat it for accuracy.

M16 - showing it's age, its not bad.. but it's not great either.. I am a fan of the M4; although I think it's reliability could be improved greatly from my experience.

G36 - Fabulous weapon, only downside is, from the point of view of an L85 user, I'd prefer a bullpup, as it's easier to use in vehicles, although admittedly, the folding stock goes some way to mitigate that.

FN FAL - No thanks, too big and fires like an elephant gun, grossly overpowered for an assualt rifle, and next to useless on auto (which is why the british SLR only fired semi-auto).

MP5 - Isn't an assualt rifle and doesn't belong in this thread - for what it matters though, I like them - although most of my experience is with the MP5K.

HK53 - nice little 5.56 weapon, although haven't handled it enough to have a informed opinion of it.

[Pappy]

FN FAL - No thanks, too big and fires like an elephant gun, grossly overpowered for an assualt rifle, and next to useless on auto (which is why the british SLR only fired semi-auto).

I've read some very good things about the DSA SA58 Carbine. Smaller and lighter than a standard FAL, and more controlled recoil. I haven't tried it out yet, but I'm a sucker for .308
http://www.dsarms.com/item-detail.cfm?ID=SA58C&storeid=1&image=sa58carbine.gif

MP5 - Isn't an assualt rifle and doesn't belong in this thread - for what it matters though, I like them - although most of my experience is with the MP5K.

Most of my experience with the MP5 is with the PDW. But I have to say that it is my favorite gun to shoot bar none. So smooth, and so easy to shoot incredibly tight groups. But yeah, not an assault rifle and not fit for this thread.

HK53 - nice little 5.56 weapon, although haven't handled it enough to have a informed opinion of it.

Same as you, I haven't shot this weapon much. But my initial impression was that it was harsher than it needed to be.

[Harrington]

I haven't handled any weapons, so taking information from sites, and testimonials from others, I'd have to say the G36 or M4A1

[torspo[fin]]

well.. the champion had it's days..

http://guns.connect.fi/gow/m92psotr.jpg

http://www.defensereview.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=161

http://guns.connect.fi/gow/M95.html

"Omnia praeclara rara"
- all the best things are rare

[ozzi-solja]

Phisy seems to know what he's on about, and i put it to him...

what about the AUSTEYR F-88 Light Infantry Weapon, the Australian standard which has L-MG and Sniper Rifle variants.

i can tell you that it is incredibly light, weighing in at just under 2.5kg, and is very easy to 'bring to sight' and hold steady while firing.

it takes NATO standard 5.56mm ammo by the way, and is strangely not favoured by the Australian SASR, who prefer the M4-M203 US made AR

[torspo[fin]]

if some one fancys bullup designs... how about this one? :D

http://img27.imageshack.us/img27/4700/valmetm824xz.jpg

Finnish Sako M82 bullup.. based in ak/akm design.

[Phisy]

what about the AUSTEYR F-88 Light Infantry Weapon, the Australian standard which has L-MG and Sniper Rifle variants.

Ive never fired/handled one so....

For what it matters, the Falkland Islands Defence Force uses the Steyr after saying the L85A1 "didn't meet their requirments" - even though all British forces out there had to use the L85A1.... :rolleyes:

[Pathfinder UK]

']if some one fancys bullup designs... how about this one? :D

Finnish Sako M82 bullup.. based in ak/akm design.

Oh God, that is hideous. I love bullpup weapons especially the AUGs. I also like the look of the chinese type 95 but when it comes to firing it's probably a lump of crap. I haven't fired any assault rifles myself only bolt action rifles and shotguns so I can't comment reliably on any assault rifle's capabilities.

[Ruskisniper]

i would have to say its the AK 47/74/101/107 guns they are cheap to make very reliable very very simple fire mechinism ( a rod, a spring and the fire pin ) and they can take the best beatings they could get clogged with sand and still fire and water and mud ect...

[Bobcat3]

Anything that-
1) Works when you pull the trigger, whatever the conditions.
2) Doesn't get tempermental when its dirty or abused when you fall out of a vehicle with it!
3) Can be fired from both shoulders as you don't want to stick your whole body out when firing to the right from behind cover.
4) Is reasonably accurate up to 300m (any more is an extravagance and 200m will do as most firefights are much closer!)
5) Chambered for a decent size bullet. (Call me old fashioned, but 7.62x52 or 7.62x39 still cause damage after they've passed through hard cover. 5.56 tends to fragment. I know you can down a target hiding behind a single brick wall with 7.62, but I've not been impressed with the performance of a 5.56 round after passing through a car door. The reason our local police tactical firearms squad use 5.56 is that there is less chance of collateral damage due to over-penetration. Your average squaddy does not see this as a problem!)
6) Has a butt that doesn't break when you use it as an attitude adjuster.

[RMCommando]

personally i dont like the sa80 the new sa80a2 i say only looks betta but i prefer the m4 or m16a2 i hate the clip at the back of the rifle on the sa80 ....M4 RULES THEM AWL FOR SURE:D

[torspo[fin]]

lets see where we have got so far?

caliber: 7.62 versus 5.56?

cons and pros people?


and the modern rifles fore fathers? ak 47 versus m-16?

the european models?


i'll start again..
as we Finns have a rugged terrain of hill to a lake, (see the land of thousand lakes)
and the harsh winter requirements for a rifle.. we ended up in the battle proven AK desing..
and we bought this lisence from the soviet union. with our tense forests, the 5.56 ammo looses its advatages istantly. (you cant usually see more than 100-400 meters ahead in the finnish forrest which covers the country quite effectively.) so the "far flight" characteristics of the 5.56 ammo are quite useless. we also have a profound battle doctorine, which allows to carry 30 round clips of 7.62 caliber ammunition among other gear. the 7.62 caliber also guarentees better kill/wound probability.

the weather.
here it goes from +30 to -50 celcius. and this means that you need the gear to withstand
it. the obvios simlicity of AK was the starting point of RK.
now we have internationally respected assault rifle, which
can whitstand weather, beatings.. its accurate. what more could you wish from a
assault rifle?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rk_95

anyhows, the caliber is not the best for desert ops. nor any where when the sight range is
free 360degrees and no obsticles.

it is the best ak based rifle there is.. ad i'd dare to claim that it would win the nowadays gear of the coalition forces. on its gruond of origin atleast.

(see also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rk_62)

[RMC]

why dont you like the sa80?
have you fired it or held it?
whats wrong with the mag at the back?

[Paco]

having the magazine behind the trigger group slows ur reloading(not as much but it does)even though the only weapon that i have fired with this feature was a semi-automatic FAMAS


i would say that if i had to rely my life on my weapon, i would choose the m16 or any of its many variants such as the m4a1, many people argue that it has little stopping power since it fires the 5.56mm NATO( i believe the reaon it was chambered for this caliber was so it was more controllable when firing long burst of automatic fire) also very accurate, light, and extemely easy to shoot and keep the sights steady. to increase the stopping power of the 5.56mm use FMJ 77grains black hills,

[Phisy]

RMCommando - How many of those weapons have YOU fired?

[Kaibil1944]

The M16 is one of the best with the M4, but the new Little brother the M16 Viper is really great for close and ranged combat. :)

[JonMan]

Oh God, that is hideous. I love bullpup weapons especially the AUGs. I also like the look of the chinese type 95 but when it comes to firing it's probably a lump of crap. I haven't fired any assault rifles myself only bolt action rifles and shotguns so I can't comment reliably on any assault rifle's capabilities.
The type 95 is ok... it's probably more reliable than an sa-80, but it sucked at long range, but was good for short-range, which is why they started to produce the submachine gun variant.

But I think a good bullpup may be the sar-21(Singapore). It may be the most practical bullpup for combat.

[royalmarinehopefull]

No matter what u say the ak7 will always be better;

its the biggest export out of Ruusia since the 60's
the worlds most used
most reliable
add some technology to it and i think it will sit on the the throne as the god of all guns

[stheath snipper]

i think the m16a1 is the best rifle cas it is powrefull .......... so much better than the ak47

[SniperAlpha1]

A1 was bad, Nam soliers had to piss on em to cool em off. Either you're getting confused or you need to reconsider

[Raptor1987]

SA80 i have to admit is a very accurate rifle even with just the iron sights and being bullpup cuts down on the space quite alot, but being that some idiots dont clean it properly jamming can occur frequently.
LSW is even better when in the prone position (lying down) with the bipod out but in the standing position its a bit of too heavy for long periods as well as u cant fit a bayonet on the end! with all the weight and the extra length ud think it would be better with a bayonet:)

[torspo[fin]]

SA80 i have to admit is a very accurate rifle even with just the iron sights and being bullpup cuts down on the space quite alot, but being that some idiots dont clean it properly jamming can occur frequently.
LSW is even better when in the prone position (lying down) with the bipod out but in the standing position its a bit of too heavy for long periods as well as u cant fit a bayonet on the end! with all the weight and the extra length ud think it would be better with a bayonet:)

what comes to SA80..
what i hear the bayonet can heat up rapidly to the point that it looses its tip and such.
accurate it is... but modern AK based rifles tend to beat it in the other traits
so badly that i'd choose something else.. namely HK G36, RK95tp, HK416
or perhaps AK-101.

id like to hear the MOA of SA80..
RKs in many cases achieve less than one minute of arc (RK-62). now thats in ideal conditions
but it gives some respective.

[Exo1]

SA80 i have to admit is a very accurate rifle even with just the iron sights and being bullpup cuts down on the space quite alot, but being that some idiots dont clean it properly jamming can occur frequently.
LSW is even better when in the prone position (lying down) with the bipod out but in the standing position its a bit of too heavy for long periods as well as u cant fit a bayonet on the end! with all the weight and the extra length ud think it would be better with a bayonet:)

I heard the SA 80 had carbon heavy rounds and a crap rear slide action. One mag in a firefight and your out with the cleaning kit!!.... hope for anybody serving in the BA's sake, they upgraded it since. Saw a stwyer round go through an oak tree once, gave me a real fright, lucky the stupid b*a*t*rd wasnt purposely trying to shoot me, that was my favourite Assault rifle, and is tried and tested in battle conditions, 10 out of 10 in my books. p.s. Didnt read the manual from Stwyer. We go the idiots guide which was range, velocity and assembly. Only got to know her on first shoot, and it was a sweet hold for rapid shot. Single shot range was much better also then previous weapons. Good fire ratio, got that HK feel on auto.

[trig009]

AK-47, it'll split ur head easily..............

first of all any rifle that you get shot with will "rip you a new one" and why do people always say that's final. the gun you use is based on personal preferance and your abilities. for my self i would like to try the AUG A3, first of all it has a rate of fire 680-800 min. that is only limited by the 30 clip, though you can go with a 42 clip as a bonus the A3 is able to switch to 7.62mm instead of the 5.56mm. if you want to you can go with a full scope, granade launcher, 24" sniper length barrel. i have also heard good things on reliability as well as the light weight factor.

[Exo1]

first of all any rifle that you get shot with will "rip you a new one" and why do people always say that's final. the gun you use is based on personal preferance and your abilities. for my self i would like to try the AUG A3, first of all it has a rate of fire 680-800 min. that is only limited by the 30 clip, though you can go with a 42 clip as a bonus the A3 is able to switch to 7.62mm instead of the 5.56mm. if you want to you can go with a full scope, granade launcher, 24" sniper length barrel. i have also heard good things on reliability as well as the light weight factor.


Well said!!... go they upgraded it since my day.... cool!!... its a great weapon, and handles good too.....