Customer Reviews

History and Development of the M16 Rifle and Its Cartridge

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For any student of modern small arms, and the M16 rifle in particular, this book is utterly indispensable. The author is a USAF veteran that was involved with the M16 from its early days of testing by the air force. This book is a very detailed technical work dealing with the tortured development of the M16, and especially its ammunition. There are an unbelievable amount of detailed official technical drawings of many of the various .223 rounds developed, both by the US and other countries. In fact, the book even includes eight pages of color full-size photographes of the literally hundreds of known variants of the .223, including all the various types of special cartridges such as blanks, dummies, etc. used throughout the world. Of special interest are all the various modifications to the rifle and its ammunition that were developed and experimented with, but never adopted. Although dealing with many technical subjects, the book is written in a style that makes it very easy to understand, and draws the reader right into it. No matter what you think you know about the world of military small arms development, this book is guaranteed to reveal something you didn't know. It's a story that deserves being told and recorded, and Mr. Hughes has done an excellent job at it.

This the first book I turn to when I need information of the design of the 5.56NATO/.223 Remington round as used in the AR/M series of rifles. Hughes did an astounding job of collecting specimens of the various loadings and samples from a wide variety of manufacturers. The color plates are splendid. It is a somewhat dry read but quite full of information; it's definately geared more toward the detail inclined than the weekend Airsofter. It's a must have for serious students of the platform but unfortunately it's become rather scarce. If you find a copy make sure to snatch it up, it was not widely printed and the prices are already outrageous.