Why hasn't the XM8 rifle been put into service?

warp2002

if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

they already have thousands of functioning M16, M4, M1A1, and AK73 rifles in service, so they don't see the financial need to get better guns. The government will only get off it's checkbook if there is proof that an enemy country has better weapons, so as long as the M16 remains the most versatile rifle ever made, the U.S. isn't going to fund the development of new guns. the development of the XM8 was only funded up to the point where they had built the machines required to mass produce and had functioning prototypes, why? So that if someone gets a better gun than us, they can all be hauled out of storage and fired up to replace our current weapons in the drop of a hat, but since that costs money, they won't do it a second earlier.

the bottom line is, the company that designed these guns got the shaft, the only way that the government is ever going to begin building large numbers of XM8's is if there's a major war, and in that case, the government can seize their equipment and they won't get a dime for the guns produced with it. sounds evil, but that's how politics work.

hochi1942

because if you read the article the project was canceled on Oct. 31 2005

Read the article it's all in there *sigh*

Dan

The XM8 has recently finished heavy testing. The next step is going to be to equip two full brigades with the weapons. Iâ€™ve been unable to learn which brigades get to be the lucky ones to try a new standard weapon out for the purposes of working out all the bugs. Maybe they havenâ€™t been determined yet. Iâ€™d suggest that, in addition to the the big tests, some individuals or small units deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan get them. We must learn how these things really perform, and testing and simulation can teach as many lessons as a few minutes on a real live battlefield can.

For all the apparent good news surrounding the XM8, one basic issue remains, the caliber of round our troops need to be firing at the bad guys. The XM8 will fire the NATO standard 5.56Ã—45mm round, the same as the M4 and M16. There is a lot of grumbling among the troops that this round is insufficient, especially when fired from an M4â€™s shorter barrel. The standard XM8â€™s barrel is two inches shorter than the M4, so this issue will be even more pronounced.

This is a very controverisal subject, with feverent believers on both sides. Many who think that a larger round, like the 6.8mm or the good olâ€™ 7.62mm, is needed admit that the 5.56 might be sufficient if the type of ammunition was altered instead of the size. There have been many reports from Iraq, Afghanistan, and Somalia that the current round just doesnâ€™t cut it. I donâ€™t know enough to have an opinion on the matter, but it certainly seems that something needs to be done.

Airborne Combat Engineer had a post back in November about the XM8 and the ammuntion debate. He notes that weâ€™ve already got so much refinement and investment in the current M16 and M4 that it seems like a waste to start over with a new weapon. He asks why the current weapons canâ€™t just be up-gunned with the new 6.8mm uppers that will soon be hitting the market. Thatâ€™s a very good question, and one that I hope our military seriously considers.

Back in August I thought the same thing. But, if the XM8 performs in the field like itâ€™s performed in the tests, we might be better off in the long run if we make the change. The cost, reliability, and adaptability of the new weapon may outweigh our experience with the current one.

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