The Shrike 5.56 Advanced Weapons System

[Spr.Earl]

Article about the new assault machine gun.
Pretty impressive.

http://www.military.com/soldiertech/0,14632,Soldiertech_Shrike,,00.html?ESRC=soldiertech.nl

 

[KevinB]

When it works 

If they get the bugs out of it it looks liek an extrmely capable drop in upper for LI/SOC forces etc.

 

[CADPAT SOLDIER]

http://forums.army.ca/forums/threads/26104.0.html

 

[KLAVER]

can you change the barrel?

 

[Blue Max]

Brendo, RTFA or (Read The ****** Article).

The barrel is exchangable like an M60, gas tube included.

Sorry I couldn't resist, bad day at the office. ;D

 

[Infanteer]

This seems to fit the bill for a Automatic Rifle (I see they call it an AMG, whatever) for the squad/section, allowing us to change our approach to the Light Machine Gun, as discussed in the Infantry forum (it was an article in the Marine Corps Gazette).

 

[Bomber]

Seems like a great idea, toss the C9A2, give everyone these things, and have at er.  No more 10 mag nonsense, just give a guy two belts of 200 each.  Then you can use both the utility pouches on your tac vest, and fill the mag pouches with cell phones and chocolate bars.  Seriously though, I dig that piece of kit, time to talk to the Chief and see if he is getting one in anytime soon.

 

[a_majoor]

I wonder about the actual utility of this. There have been previous attempts to make very lightweight and man portable machine-guns (there was a conversion kit for the Springfield '03 as far back as WWI), but weapons like the French Chauchat, Stoner 63 system or the Charter Arms Ultimax LMG never caught on.

Ther Chauchat was a pretty shoddy design anyway, but the small size and light weight of these designs make them hard to control when firing, and the ergonomics are similar to a full sized battle rifle, which is a bit awkward in CQB situations.

If we want to do a one to one comparison, why not take a C-7 and fit one of those 100 round drum magazines instead?

 

[KevinB]

The Beta Co. C-MAG SUCKS - the US Army tested them and seriosuly recommend they NEVER EVER be used for combat.
*several dead SOF troops have been found with dead C-MAG's...

As well the gas tube on the M16 series will not last as a sustained fire weapon - so the barrel and gas tube need QC ability.



It is a potential tool in the tool box

 

[48Highlander]

Seems like a great idea, toss the C9A2, give everyone these things, and have at er.   No more 10 mag nonsense, just give a guy two belts of 200 each.

For CQB maybe.  What's this thing like for longer distances and extended use?  Needs a bipod too.

The picture with the M-203 just looks....

 

[KevinB]

You can mount a bipod to it...

 

[48Highlander]

yeah I know, that part's easy, I'd be more concerned about volume of fire and accuracy.

 

[Britney Spears]

I wonder about the actual utility of this. There have been previous attempts to make very lightweight and man portable machine-guns (there was a conversion kit for the Springfield '03 as far back as WWI), but weapons like the French Chauchat, Stoner 63 system or the Charter Arms Ultimax LMG never caught on.

Ther Chauchat was a pretty shoddy design anyway, but the small size and light weight of these designs make them hard to control when firing, and the ergonomics are similar to a full sized battle rifle, which is a bit awkward in CQB situations.

If we want to do a one to one comparison, why not take a C-7 and fit one of those 100 round drum magazines instead?

It seems a lot of countries in the world are moving away from the heavier belt fed open bolt LMG to the lighter, drum fed, closed bolt automatic rifle. The new US rifle program is supposed to have a requirement to be convertable to an LSW version. Half the weight of a C9 is in the ammo box, and not the gun itself, so I don't think controllability is really a problem. 

The only problem I can see with this Shrike thing is that with a 200rd box, the thing sits like a foot off the ground. You'd have to have a really long bipod. I wonder if theyre might be some way to attach the box, maybe a new box, off onto the side instead of directly below. I don't think anyone would  want to use those hard plastic boxes anyway. It makes that forward carrying handle usless doesn't it?

 

[brihard]

Britney, would the 100rd AUSCAM cloth ammunition bags serve as a suitable compromise for lowering the profile of the weapon and allowing effective bipod use? I realize that with the mag well the ammunition will be suspended relatively lower than on a C9, but perhaps the collapsible ammo bag would herlp to solve this. Just a thought.

 

[KevinB]

Having gotten to handle a Shrike - I can tell you the 200rd box in reality is not as awkward as it may look in the pictures - It is aprox 1" lower than a 30rd C7/8 magasine...  The Rigid/Reinforced Cloth box they has at SHOT was shorter than 30rd mag.

However I think the Mk46 and Mk48 are not going to be easily suplanted in SOF armouries...

 

[Infanteer]

Here's the articles I was thinking about (There from the Infantry of the Future thread)

http://www.mca-marines.org/gazette/2004/04eby1.html

http://www.mca-marines.org/gazette/2004/04eby2.html

 

[Britney Spears]

Brihard, I think everyone can agree that the 100 soft pouches are preferred over the old plastic box for most situations, especially since in complex terrain there will be more firing from positions other than prone. 

 

[a_majoor]

The weapon envisioned would fire 5.56mm ball ammunition, be capable of receiving the M16A2's 30-round magazine, and would possess a selector lever that went from safe to automatic to semiautomatic (in that order), weigh less than 12 pounds loaded, employ sights equal to the M16A2, use clip-on bipods, and have a 450 to 600 rounds per minute rate of fire.

Except for the M-16 magazines and sights, this sounds a lot like the AK-74....

 

[Britney Spears]

Except for the M-16 magazines and sights, this sounds a lot like the AK-74.... Wink

I was thinking RPK/RPK-74 myself. See: Trend towards closed bolt drum fed automatic rifles.