Light Support Weapons & Infantry Automatic Rifles

[Jarnhamar]

Didn't caseless ammunition fall by the wayside due to issues with, among other things, having to use it by a certain time period once a package was open. I think I remember reading there were issue with ammo getting wet too.

 

[KevinB]

Most of the caseless ammo issues WRT storage and handling has been solved.

The biggest issue is the heat generated - with no brass case, or polymer case to act as insulator/heatsink - the firing heat goes into the chamber with great speed.
  So then your chamber and beginning of barrel needs to be Stellite or something with high heat tolerance, and resistance to wear at those temps.  Or you live with a 30rd cookoff threshhold.

Second issue is chamber fouling - with no case to contain the residue...

CTA offers a way to have no fouling in the chamber, less heat, and lighter and more robust.


If your in the Small Arms field and not working on CTA systems, your wasting R&D dollars.

 

[Kirkhill]

How about that Frag-12 round Kevin?  Do you know anything about it?

 

[KevinB]

Payload issues from the rumors I heard.

 

[Kirkhill]

Makes sense.

12 ga = 19mm vice 25mm vice 40mm

But you could carry a lot of them and fire them quickly.

 

[Colin Parkinson]

All the Powered Rail stuff so far arcs out when wet...

Not good for Mil usage.


It's coming, but not in 5-10 years IMHO.
  At that point you can use the weapon's cycling action to generate electricity...

That's not a bad idea, the M4 tube and buffer could work, the question is would it make enough under normal use to charge the batteries to justify weight and complexity? Possible a solar cell on the gun might also work.

As I understand it the new RCMP patrol carbines (aka assault rifles) optics are meant to be left on and when the rifle is cycled through the workshop every two years the batteries are changed.

 

[Kirkhill]

The big problem I see with the powered rail is that you have to discharge your weapon to recharge your batteries.  Might be a problem if you want to stay quiet or on constabulary patrols (I suppose you could issue blanks but what would the neighbours think if you are patrolling a Green Line).

Electricity is like water it flows and it can be stored.  So why not use big batteries (bladders) to fill little batteries (canteens) to fill smaller batteries (cups and sips)?.

Everybody is carrying batteries now.  Why not issue everyone one radio battery which can be used to supply the radio but can also be used to recharge everything else in the section/platoon?

 

[a_majoor]

Payload issues from the rumors I heard.

Not just payload, but the range of thse things are pretty limited as well. I once saw an impressive as hell demonstration using an automatic AA-12 shotgun showering a target with these things; quite spectacular until you realized that mayhem was only 100m away from the shooter (apparently the max accurate range for the round).

Of course the laws of physics are rigerously enforced at all times and places; getting more range would either require a lighter and less lethal round, or more recoil than the human body wold be comfortable in handling. I actually thought the XM-307 HMG concept was rather sound, where a large weapon absorbed the recoil force of the 25mm frag round (although the overly complex mechanism eventually killed it). Since it weighed 25Kg, it was actually reasonably sized and could be considered "man portable" (it was actually lighter than either the M-2 or the CIS .50). I should also point out the Chinese have a 35mm automatic grenade launcher which is about the same size and weight as a C-6, so with some clever engineering it is indeed possible to have pretty hard hitting weapons right down to the section and platoon  level.

 

[daftandbarmy]

Meanwhile, in the Ukraine...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vF-WvIL82Q

 

[Scoobie Newbie]

Well there goes that grid square

 

[Colin Parkinson]

I think the army would be in for quite a shock against even a vaguely near peer armed with Grads. Been following quite few threads on this and the level of destruction of AFV's and support vehicles is quite high, much less the causalities who reports say most are killed by artillery.

 

[daftandbarmy]

I think the army would be in for quite a shock against even a vaguely near peer armed with Grads. Been following quite few threads on this and the level of destruction of AFV's and support vehicles is quite high, much less the causalities who reports say most are killed by artillery.

A battery of field artillery is worth a thousand muskets.

- General William Tecumseh Sherman

 

[dimsum]

Meanwhile, in the Ukraine...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vF-WvIL82Q

 

[daftandbarmy]

Trivia Tangent:

One of our homies, Tyrone Benskin, played the part of the (soon to be one armed and dead) Persian guy

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

 

[GnyHwy]

Meanwhile, in the Ukraine...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vF-WvIL82Q

Thanks!!! Now I can't stop wringing my hands.

 

[OldSolduer]

Thanks!!! Now I can't stop wringing my hands.

A newer version of Stalin's Organ.

 

[a_majoor]

While rocket artillery is impressive as hell, it is a bit difficult to see how it fits in as a "light" support weapon...

 

[cupper]

While rocket artillery is impressive as hell, it is a bit difficult to see how it fits in as a "light" support weapon...

If that was the case, I'd hate to see the heavies. ;D

 

[daftandbarmy]

While rocket artillery is impressive as hell, it is a bit difficult to see how it fits in as a "light" support weapon...

Sadly, I think this is what our potential opposition views as 'light support weapons'.

 

[medicineman]

Sadly, I think this is what our potential opposition views as 'light support weapons'.

Their version of a supercool 60mm mortar?

MM