US Army Invents New Heavy Barrel for M4

[TZCHRIS]

Not only did I just get to read an awesome patent, I learned about a new-to-me MFG technology. Thanks!

Flowform or roll forming technology is awesome, we made mortar cannons, TOW missile, gun barrels. My job was project manager of the stinger missile rocket motor case, if it wasnt for the 2 hour commute I may still be there.

 

[Mesatchornug]

Flowform or roll forming technology is awesome, we made mortar cannons, TOW missile, gun barrels. My job was project manager of the stinger missile rocket motor case, if it wasnt for the 2 hour commute I may still be there.

Nice. I knew about spinning...seeing how little tweaks to the method becomes shear and then flow forming is super handy.

Too bad they haven't tried to just offer barrels to the commercial market (I'm assuming). If it takes off even a little bit, they'd have reason to spin off a different business unit. Until then, it could just fill some of the ebbs in market cycles...

 

[308rifleman]

That’s not what this barrel is for at all. This is to reduce rapid wear on the barrel or premature destruction of the barrel during high rates of fire. It has nothing to do with the M855A1.

The M855A1 isn’t supposed to hot rod the 5.56 in the sense of making it perform like a larger cartridge. It increases the range of reliable fragmentation due to bullet design, and is more precise than M855. It’s designed for 14.5” barrels rather than 20”, but isn’t supposed to really extend the overall effective range past that of an M16A4. Just optimizations. And the wear on parts from M855A1 only marginally shortens maintenance cycles. And new magazines have also eliminated the minor issue of pitting on the feed ramps.

When you increase chamber pressure from 51,500 (M855) to 61,800 or more (M855A1), something is going to give. No free lunch. Increasing chamber pressure by 10K is hot-rodding as far as I am concerned.

 

[PappyM3]

When you increase chamber pressure from 51,500 (M855) to 61,800 or more (M855A1), something is going to give. No free lunch. Increasing chamber pressure by 10K is hot-rodding as far as I am concerned.

Yes, something does give. They slightly left-shifted the maintenance schedules. It’s really not a big deal. The Army has been using M855A1 for years now and it’s not the durability calamity you’re making out. It’s not like its some wildcat home-brew load that keeps blowing up on people.

If it were causing the problems you say, then they would have kept the bullet and just reduced the powder to get back to M855 pressures.

 

[enbloc]

When you increase chamber pressure from 51,500 (M855) to 61,800 or more (M855A1)

I'm not much of a technical guy () but what is achieved by the increased pressure that would be of benefit to the US Army? Further/Flatter/Harder hitting round in the same small package?
Why not just leave the round alone in that platform and add a M14 (or similar) back into the lineup?

 

[TZCHRIS]

Nice. I knew about spinning...seeing how little tweaks to the method becomes shear and then flow forming is super handy.

Too bad they haven't tried to just offer barrels to the commercial market (I'm assuming). If it takes off even a little bit, they'd have reason to spin off a different business unit. Until then, it could just fill some of the ebbs in market cycles...

I asked boss about selling to general pop, at $1500 per barrel he didnt think it would be profitable. The smaller 5.56 version was in the works but creating a mandrel at that dimension to hold up to production levels at the time was too expensive.

 

[Mesatchornug]

I asked boss about selling to general pop, at $1500 per barrel he didnt think it would be profitable. The smaller 5.56 version was in the works but creating a mandrel at that dimension to hold up to production levels at the time was too expensive.

I suppose 5-8x is a bit of a jump, even for dudes in $250 pajamas...

 

[ThePreBanMan]

I guess it didn't cost enough to machine the old ones.

 

[PappyM3]

I'm not much of a technical guy () but what is achieved by the increased pressure that would be of benefit to the US Army? Further/Flatter/Harder hitting round in the same small package?
Why not just leave the round alone in that platform and add a M14 (or similar) back into the lineup?

The alteration of the pressure curve was to try and get 20” M16 M855 velocity in a 14.5” M4. They didn’t quite hit the benchmark, but it’s a little faster than M855 in an M4. And the M855A1 bullet itself has better consistency, as well as much better external and terminal ballistics than the M855.

 

[308rifleman]

I'm not much of a technical guy () but what is achieved by the increased pressure that would be of benefit to the US Army? Further/Flatter/Harder hitting round in the same small package?
Why not just leave the round alone in that platform and add a M14 (or similar) back into the lineup?

Changing the platform would work. My pick would be a steel-framed (not aluminum alloy) rifle with a roller-locked action. The action would remain locked as the murderous chamber pressures peaked, then unlock to roll back and complete the ejection/reloading process. Question is, with the large numbers of M16s and its variants in the pipeline, would the U.S. military be ready and willing to adopt an entirely new assault rifle and SAW system?

 

[PappyM3]

...
Why not just leave the round alone in that platform and add a M14 (or similar) back into the lineup?

I forgot to mention. SOCOM does have the SCAR-H to fill the battle rifle role. And the conventional Army is currently rolling out the M110A1 for SDM rifles. It’s based off the H&K G28/HK417. The M14 tried clawing it’s way back as a temporary SDM solution in GWOT, but it rightfully was put back in the closet.

Basically, the Army is filling the battle rifle/SDM role, while also enhancing the standard issue carbine performance. There is really little downside to the M855A1. Maybe if you had no supply chain and had to baby your barrel for years then you’d want to stay away. Not a problem for the Army though. M4s get regular maintenance.

 

[enbloc]

Great post. Thanks Pappy.

 

[PappyM3]

Changing the platform would work. My pick would be a steel-framed (not aluminum alloy) rifle with a roller-locked action. The action would remain locked as the murderous chamber pressures peaked, then unlock to roll back and complete the ejection/reloading process. Question is, with the large numbers of M16s and its variants in the pipeline, would the U.S. military be ready and willing to adopt an entirely new assault rifle and SAW system?

Regression then, huh? The Army is looking into new standard issue rifles and squad automatic weapons. Look up the Next Generation Squad Weapon program for a new 6.8 bullet (not 6.8 SPC). Still a long way to go for that though, if it ever happens.

 

[enbloc]

I like the SIG NGSW Rifle. I'm a fan of keeping it close enough to a familiar platform that training is just an extension of what you already know.