Post by Sgt K USMC on Feb 26, 2008 16:54:35 GMT -5
I figured I would start off this sub-forum with a review of some of the weapons I own personally, giving the pros and cons of each, as well as some of the issues I have run into over the years that can be expected to be run into by the average user on the range.
Going to start with my most recent purchase, the Bushmaster M-4 E3 (Or as it is known in civilian circles, the XM-15 E2S)
While on active duty I carried a Colt Commando variant of this weapon EVERY chance I had as a back up to my sniper rifle, my review of the civilian model will be based as a comparison to the performance of the military model.
First and foremost:
There are a number of M-4 clones on the market at the moment, for the most part they are all the same, with few, if any, physical or mechanical differences to the base M-4 frame. The primary differences are noted during construction in the two main contractors of the M-4, Colt and Bushmaster, and these deal almost exclusively with the level of quality control and tolerance inspections made to non-critical operating parts.
Bushmaster also provides a slightly smaller hand guard, which only has a single layer of aluminum heat shielding as opposed to the Colt, which has wider hand guards and twin heat shields on each half. I personally prefer the smaller hand guards as it allows me to get a tighter grip on the weapon in the kneeling and standing positions.
The most noticeably different M-4 clone would have to be the Rock Creek variant, which is so precisely manufactured and designed that each one comes out of the box as competition ready.
So then… MY M-4
This was the first M-4 I have ever fired that was new out of the box, for those of you who get one new, expect a LOT of jams and malfunctions for those first 50 rounds, regardless of how much lube you put on the operating parts, with a higher than average number of jams and malfunctions remaining the norm throughout the first 200 to 500 rounds as you break in the moving bits.
The trigger pull, while heavier than expected at around 8 lbs, is surprisingly smooth and short in travel time with absolutely NO WIGGLE. The wiggle ALWAYS pissed me off with the military models as it made keeping my finger stable during rapid fire practically IMPOSSIBLE.
Range on this weapon is not limited due to it's size, as is generally the case for shorter weapons, and you can easily still hit targets at the 500 meter line. At our 25 meter indoor range (which will be mentioned later) I was able to hold 10 round groupings within a nickel.
Some downsides:
The weapon has a slightly shorter charging handle than the Commando or it's bigger brothers which has a nasty habit, during a jam, to catch the spent round between the bolt and the front of the charging handle itself. This in turn causes a nasty type of jam that doesn't clear very easily and takes more than just dropping the mag and pulling the bolt to the rear.
If you should encounter this particular jam, and you will know it when you do, you actually perform a slightly different clearing method than is standard for an M-4/M-16.
First, place the weapon on safe and drop the mag. then LOCK the charging handle forward. The bolt will still be hung by the brass, wedged roughly ¾ of the way to the rear, by the changing handle itself. Once the charging handle is locked forward, take another piece of spent brass, place it into the open ejection port on top of the hung round and flick it down and outward rapidly. This will release it and cause the bolt to slide forward.
The second thing I was not happy about was the lack of a concise and clear operators manual, this becomes a big deal when going to zero the weapon, as the owners manual gives one set of instructions for setting a BZO (which are incorrect) their website gives another (which are also incorrect) and neither set of directions are very clear.
When I zeroed the weapon at the indoor range I followed the instructions provided by the website, then I took my weapon to our 200 meter outdoor range, according to the website I should have been on target… I wasn't, I wasn't even close in fact…
Which brings me to my next issue…
The sights themselves have been redesigned from the M-16. First and foremost you will notice that instead of going to 800 meters they now only go to 600 meters, and the increments are now in half inches per click as opposed to inches per click. This half inch per click would be fine… IF the mechanical zero of the weapon was not so far off from a true BZO as to eat up a full quarter of you windage, or up to 10 clicks on the front sight post during BZO.
I called Bushmaster when I BZO'd my weapon with this concern, as my BZO is 9 left and 10 up on the front sight. They advised me that tolerance for the weapon is up to 13 on the windage but only 6 for the front sight and advised me that regardless of what their tolerances were that if I was unhappy, to send it in and they would personally reincrement the weapon for me. I found this to be truly outstanding as most weapon manufacturers don't generally do repair calls for sight adjustments based only on customer request.
Overall I like this rifle and think it stacks up well to the military variant, and even to the larger AR-15 and M-16. The issues mentioned to this point are in my opinion minor and correctable. It is an overall fun shooting weapon, compact, light and easy to learn, with an outstanding customer support team and website that makes finding information and technical details a piece of cake.
The weapon is also easy to accessorize and there is no shortage of dealers and websites that specialize in tools and add on to turn your M-4 basic into something more unique.
Ammo is cheap and even the 30 round factory magazines are now inexpensive at only around 20 bucks a piece.
All in all this weapon is worth every penny you will pay for it, and will continue to be worth it LONG after you have passed it down the family line.
Going to start with my most recent purchase, the Bushmaster M-4 E3 (Or as it is known in civilian circles, the XM-15 E2S)
While on active duty I carried a Colt Commando variant of this weapon EVERY chance I had as a back up to my sniper rifle, my review of the civilian model will be based as a comparison to the performance of the military model.
First and foremost:
There are a number of M-4 clones on the market at the moment, for the most part they are all the same, with few, if any, physical or mechanical differences to the base M-4 frame. The primary differences are noted during construction in the two main contractors of the M-4, Colt and Bushmaster, and these deal almost exclusively with the level of quality control and tolerance inspections made to non-critical operating parts.
Bushmaster also provides a slightly smaller hand guard, which only has a single layer of aluminum heat shielding as opposed to the Colt, which has wider hand guards and twin heat shields on each half. I personally prefer the smaller hand guards as it allows me to get a tighter grip on the weapon in the kneeling and standing positions.
The most noticeably different M-4 clone would have to be the Rock Creek variant, which is so precisely manufactured and designed that each one comes out of the box as competition ready.
So then… MY M-4
This was the first M-4 I have ever fired that was new out of the box, for those of you who get one new, expect a LOT of jams and malfunctions for those first 50 rounds, regardless of how much lube you put on the operating parts, with a higher than average number of jams and malfunctions remaining the norm throughout the first 200 to 500 rounds as you break in the moving bits.
The trigger pull, while heavier than expected at around 8 lbs, is surprisingly smooth and short in travel time with absolutely NO WIGGLE. The wiggle ALWAYS pissed me off with the military models as it made keeping my finger stable during rapid fire practically IMPOSSIBLE.
Range on this weapon is not limited due to it's size, as is generally the case for shorter weapons, and you can easily still hit targets at the 500 meter line. At our 25 meter indoor range (which will be mentioned later) I was able to hold 10 round groupings within a nickel.
Some downsides:
The weapon has a slightly shorter charging handle than the Commando or it's bigger brothers which has a nasty habit, during a jam, to catch the spent round between the bolt and the front of the charging handle itself. This in turn causes a nasty type of jam that doesn't clear very easily and takes more than just dropping the mag and pulling the bolt to the rear.
If you should encounter this particular jam, and you will know it when you do, you actually perform a slightly different clearing method than is standard for an M-4/M-16.
First, place the weapon on safe and drop the mag. then LOCK the charging handle forward. The bolt will still be hung by the brass, wedged roughly ¾ of the way to the rear, by the changing handle itself. Once the charging handle is locked forward, take another piece of spent brass, place it into the open ejection port on top of the hung round and flick it down and outward rapidly. This will release it and cause the bolt to slide forward.
The second thing I was not happy about was the lack of a concise and clear operators manual, this becomes a big deal when going to zero the weapon, as the owners manual gives one set of instructions for setting a BZO (which are incorrect) their website gives another (which are also incorrect) and neither set of directions are very clear.
When I zeroed the weapon at the indoor range I followed the instructions provided by the website, then I took my weapon to our 200 meter outdoor range, according to the website I should have been on target… I wasn't, I wasn't even close in fact…
Which brings me to my next issue…
The sights themselves have been redesigned from the M-16. First and foremost you will notice that instead of going to 800 meters they now only go to 600 meters, and the increments are now in half inches per click as opposed to inches per click. This half inch per click would be fine… IF the mechanical zero of the weapon was not so far off from a true BZO as to eat up a full quarter of you windage, or up to 10 clicks on the front sight post during BZO.
I called Bushmaster when I BZO'd my weapon with this concern, as my BZO is 9 left and 10 up on the front sight. They advised me that tolerance for the weapon is up to 13 on the windage but only 6 for the front sight and advised me that regardless of what their tolerances were that if I was unhappy, to send it in and they would personally reincrement the weapon for me. I found this to be truly outstanding as most weapon manufacturers don't generally do repair calls for sight adjustments based only on customer request.
Overall I like this rifle and think it stacks up well to the military variant, and even to the larger AR-15 and M-16. The issues mentioned to this point are in my opinion minor and correctable. It is an overall fun shooting weapon, compact, light and easy to learn, with an outstanding customer support team and website that makes finding information and technical details a piece of cake.
The weapon is also easy to accessorize and there is no shortage of dealers and websites that specialize in tools and add on to turn your M-4 basic into something more unique.
Ammo is cheap and even the 30 round factory magazines are now inexpensive at only around 20 bucks a piece.
All in all this weapon is worth every penny you will pay for it, and will continue to be worth it LONG after you have passed it down the family line.