HK fixes the M4!

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Z

Zundfolge

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http://www.hk-usa.com/pages/Military-LE/rifles-carbines/m4.html

m4rightmain.jpg


Basically they took the M16/M4 design and changed out the worse part of the design (the gas system) with a short stroke piston gas system (it must be more like the G36 gas system then).

oh boy I hope this new system becomes available for us civilians ... I'd love to be able to upgrade my Rock River AR15 to this new system!
 
M

Meplat

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There's been a few companies offering "Improved" gas systems for the '15 for a while. Brownell's used to offer a couple, now they're down to one. H&K having something to do with it, while interesting won't have me mailing mine off to be "improved" anytime soon. If I want a tappet operated AR, I'll buy my AR-18 back.

Meplat-
 
S

Soul Assailant

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What have they done to my baby? *weeps* My barrel is gone, and my beautiful front sights are missing. *sniff sniff* But I do like the gas operation fix. Nice.
 
jaunty

jaunty

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They modified the bolt and gas system, trigger group, buttstock and they call it a "monolith" upper receiver, so I doubt it's similar enough to a Colt M4A1 that they could bitch about it. It's not like they're trying to pass it off as an original M4, either. It's quite clearly labelled "HKM4" and is constantly referred to as an improved M4.

Colt might not be happy about it, but I doubt they can do anything legally.
 
S

Spier

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Additional ongoing work:
- Monolithic upper receiver with integral Rail Adapter System
- Improved surface finish, ambidextrous controls
- Safety Blank Firing Adapter and live round excluder magazine
- HK free-floating modular rail system
- Integrated reflex sight with nested IR laser aimer and illuminator
Click to expand...
So, they take the main selling points of the XM8 and slap it into an M4? :con: Effectively making the M4 pretty much an XM8, which means they have just developed two fundamentally different weapon systems that perform more or less the same. It could just be me, but this doesn't make much sense at all.
 
spm1138

spm1138

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Well, presumably it's for people who want the superior reliability of the XM8 combined with the superior/more familiar ergonomics of the M16 family.

What with how widespread the M16 family of weapons is, I can see this making the XM8 a lot more popular.

edit
Isn't that what went wrong with the HK33?

Isn't that why they brought out the HK G41?
 
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W

Wolf Being

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spm1138 said:
Well, presumably it's for people who want the superior reliability of the XM8 combined with the superior/more familiar ergonomics of the M16 family.
Click to expand...

Wouldn't that be like freaking anybody?

Spier's point (as I understood it) being that they just created a direct competitor to their own product. A product which they're having a little trouble selling to the lower-echelon types due to said unfamiliar ergonomics.

This wouldn't be the first military contract where the DOD goes "Well, uh, nevermind." on the last few yards.
 
Z

Zundfolge

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unixman said:
Wha? Isn't this going to cause some kind of patent suit? I would think this wouldn't make Colt/Bushmaster too happy.
Click to expand...

Neither Colt nor Bushmaster own the patents on the original AR design so I don't see what they would have to say about it anyway.

AR = Armalite (they own the patents ... and they licensed Colt, Bushmaster et al to build AR style rifles).


In addition the "M" designation ( M4, M16, M9 etc) is a US Military designation so its not part of the copyright issue anyway.
 
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Puncher

Puncher

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Who cares if the HKM4 is a competitor to the XM8. It's still both by H&K so you still have to buy it from them. The only "loss" is extra R&D, but I'm sure they are smart enough to price it so they'll recoup that with no problem (plus the DOD pays part of the R&D I'm sure, esp. with the SM8).
Actually it probably will probably result in more profit for H&K since those who are unwilling to buy the XM8 can buy the HKM4 instead.
 
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