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56 X 45mm: 1957-1962 A Chronology of Development by Daniel Watters 1957... January: The ORO publishes "SALVO Rifle Experiment: Preliminary Results." The BRL reprints "The Theory Of The Motion Of A Bullet About Its Center Of Gravi ty In Dense Media, With Applications To Bullet Design." CONARC Board No. 3 is officially renamed the Infantry Board. February: Fairchild/ArmaLite officials receive their first official briefing on the 1956 SALVO trails. March: CONARC HQ sends a letter to the Infantry Board titled "Study of Military Characteristics for a Rifle of High Velocity and Small Caliber." The BRL's Donald L. Hall and Billy S. Campbell publish "Upon Selecting an Optimu m Rifle Round." The study indicates that a projectile which tends to yaw soon af ter target impact also tends to result in greater kill probabilities. As a concl usion to this study, it is shown that a .22 caliber projectile weighing 50 grain s could be made to result in good wound ballistic performance if the transverse moment of inertia is sufficiently low to encourage yawing immediately after impa ct. This results in the recommendation of a .22 caliber, 50 grain lead core proj ectile. AAI files "Final Report - Small Arms Cartridge" concerning its flchette developme nt efforts. The report claims that a high velocity 10 grain flchette is equally l ethal as the .30 M2 rifle bullet out to 600 yards. Yet in terms of cartridge wei ght, five rounds of the saboted flchette cartridge could be fired for each indivi dual .30'06 cartridge. However, even at this early date, the issues of cartridge cost and individual accuracy are noted as potential problems. Fairchild President Richard Boutelle goes on an African safari with US Air Force Strategic Air Command (SAC) commander General Curtis E. LeMay, radio and televi sion personality Arthur Godfrey, and James Shepley, the head of Time-Life's Wash ington bureau. Spring: The Infantry Board extends the original 300 yard "ideal" to 400 yards in order to pacify certain CONARC members, and once again to 500 yards, to insure acceptance at the Pentagon. The finalized request calls for a 6 pound, select-fi re .22 caliber rifle with a conventional stock and a 20 round magazine. The prop osed chambering has to penetrate the issue steel helmet, body armor, and a .135" steel plate at 500 yards, while maintaining the trajectory and accuracy of M2 b all from a M1 rifle, and equaling or exceeding the "wounding" ability of the .30 Carbine. At ArmaLite, Stoner is more interested in developing 7.62mm NATO weapons, and is already working on the design of what was to become the AR-12 rifle (the father of the AR-16 and grandfather of the 5.56x45mm AR-18). Sources disagree as to wh o designed ArmaLite's first SCHV prototype, the AR-11 (AKA: The "Stopette"). Ess entially a scaled down version of Stoner's 7.62mm AR-3 rifle chambered for the c ommercial .222 Remington, the AR-11 is alternately credited to 'Doc' Wilson and Robert Enewold (who is also credited with the ArmaLite/USAF AR-5 .22 Hornet airc rew survival rifle). The AR-11 proves to be too light, which combined with a hig h cyclic rate and the requested conventional stock, leads to difficulty in contr

olling automatic fire. Ultimately, the AR-11 prototype is wrecked when its barre l extension fails during testing. It is later claimed that the barrel extension was scaled down too far, weakening it. Remembering General Wyman's favorable ben t toward the AR-10 design, ArmaLite had also begun work on a scaled down version of the rifle. But this design, credited to John Peck, also uses the same small barrel extension as the AR-11. After the failure of the AR-11's barrel extension in testing, work is discontinued on Peck's design. Robert Fremont and L. James Sullivan are eventually tasked with starting from scratch in scaling down the AR -10 to .222 Remington. Concurrently, Earle Harvey of Springfield Armory (father of the 7.62mm NATO cart ridge) designs a lengthened .222 Remington case to meet the new 500 yard require ment. Remington loads 10,000 unheadstamped .224 Springfield cartridges: 9500 wit h 55 grain projectiles and 500 with the 68 grain "M1 ball homologue." Albert J. Lizza designs a rifle around the cartridge, using the best features of Harvey's 7.62mm NATO T25 and T47 rifle prototypes, along with items inspired by the T22 ( a full-auto variant of the M1 Rifle) and the T44 (pre-M14). It also appears that a T25 may have been converted to chamber the cartridge. Once Dr. Carten learns of Harvey and Lizza's development, all further work on the .224 Springfield is o rdered to cease. Ironically, Dr. Carten cannot claim that Springfield Armory is not in the weapon building business as he did two years earlier with Aberdeen. H owever, Carten is busy shepherding the T44 rifle into what is now known as the M 14. No competition for resources (or attention) could be brooked. April: George Sullivan files a patent application for the use of aluminum receiv ers in the design of a firearm. May: Stoner provides a brief live-fire demonstration of the prototype AR-15 for General Wyman. CONARC formally requests the purchase of 10 test rifles for the I nfantry Board (five days after the 7.62mm NATO M14's official adoption is announ ced). After a visit to Fort Benning, Stoner begins to tweak the .222 Remington r ound to fit the Infantry Board's penetration requirements. First, Stoner and Sie rra's Frank Snow modify the .224" 68 grain "M1 ball homologue" to 55 grains by s hortening the bearing length and the boattail, while maintaining the original 7caliber ogive and 9-degree boattail. The new projectile is also produced by Sier ra. Robert Hutton uses Speer's Ballistic Calculator to estimate the muzzle veloc ity need to provide the desired performance at 500 yards. The results indicate a muzzle velocity of 3300fps with the 55 grain bullet will be required. Hutton be gins load development with IMR 4198, IMR 3031, and an unnamed Olin ball powder. Using a Remington Model 722 with a 22" Apex bull barrel and a Lyman 25x scope, H utton successfully perforates US helmets at 500 yards during a public demonstrat ion. However, testing also indicates that the .222 Remington cannot achieve the required velocity without excessive chamber pressure. Stoner contacts Winchester and Remington about increasing the case capacity; Remington accepts the request . (This refusal is hardly surprising since Winchester had their own SCHV rifle a nd cartridge in the works.) The resulting cartridge is designated the .222 Speci al. George Sullivan files a patent application for the forearm assembly used on the early AR-10 and AR-15 prototypes. The T44E4 and T44E5 rifles are adopted as "US Rifles, 7.62mm M14 and M15." (None of the heavy barrel M15 will ever be produced for issue prior to the M15 being declared obsolete in December 1959.) The USAF is the only service to decline use of the M14, and instead retains the M2 Carbine. June: Springfield Armory publishes the report "Chromium Plating of Caliber .22 B arrel Bores." Springfield fabricates barrels for .22'06 simplex and duplex cartridges. These c

artridges are based on the .30'06 case necked down to .22 caliber. The barrels a re fitted to M1 rifles. Psychological Research Associates publishes "Psychological Effects of Small Arms Fire on Combat Experienced and Non-Experienced Infantrymen" and "Psychological Effects of Platoon Weapons - A Questionnaire Study." Summer: CONARC invites Winchester to develop and submit a competing SCHV rifle. Ralph Clarkson, a member of Winchester's in-house design team which developed th e M1 Carbine, takes the assignment. Clarkson borrows heavily from David "Carbine " Williams' shelved .30 Carbine design (completed two months after the adoption of the M1 Carbine). Working with David Mathewson, of the Mathewson Tool Company, Clarkson is able to complete the first firing prototype of the rifle in less th an two months. July: The Infantry Board forwards a letter to CONARC titled "Draft Military Char acteristics for a Rifle of High Velocity and Small Caliber." Psychological Research Associates publishes "Psychological Effects of Patterns o f Small Arms Fire." September: Laurence F. Moore of Aberdeen's Infantry and Aircraft Weapons Divisio n's Development & Proof Services (D&PS) publishes the report "A Test of SALVO Ri fle Materiel." October: Clarkson's design, the Winchester .224 Light Weight Military Rifle (LWM R) is demonstrated at CONARC headquarters. Aberdeen's BRL publishes "Penetration of an Experimental .22 Cal. Bullet in Gela tin." The study involves a 50gr bullet fired at ~3,950fps. November: The US Army Chemical Warfare Laboratory (CWL) publishes "Wounding by S alvo Bullets." November-December: The LWMR is demonstrated to the Infantry Board at Fort Bennin g. The success of this demonstration leads the Ordnance Weapons Command and CONA RC to order fifteen LWMR for further testing. However, it soon becomes clear tha t the new .224 Winchester cartridge will not meet the Infantry Board's updated p enetration requirements. Like its competitors, the .224E1 Winchester uses a leng thened .222 Remington case; however, the cartridge has a fairly short overall le ngth (OAL). The stubby 53 grain projectile simply cannot retain enough velocity at longer ranges. As Stoner and Hutton had experienced before, Clarkson finds th at he cannot load his .224E1 cartridge to a high enough velocity without encount ering dangerously high chamber pressures. Around the same period of time, the Infantry Board decides that Winchester and A rmaLite should cooperate to make certain that their ammunition will interchange between the competing rifles for future testing. The .224E1 Winchester's case ne ck is lengthened to provide extra volume, and Winchester even chooses the same D uPont IMR 4475 powder used in the .222 Special. (At the time, DuPont owned a maj ority interest in Remington, while Olin owned Winchester.) However, the resultin g .224E2 Winchester cartridge retains the same short OAL from the .224E1 in orde r to feed in Clarkson's LWMR. Despite the fact that the .224E2 Win's case is sli ghtly longer than the .222 Special, ArmaLite is able to chamber their updated AR -15 to feed and function with both cartridges. In contrast, the Winchester entry can only feed their .224E2 cartridge. Subsequent trials are thus run using the Winchester cartridge. December: SALVO II trials begin at Fort Benning. Among the weapons and cartridge s tested are modified M1 rifles chambered for .22'06 simplex and duplex cartridg

es. The CWL publishes "Incapacitation Criteria for Salvo Bullets." On behalf of the US Army, Albert J. Lizza files a patent application for the sto ck and action clamp of the Springfield .224 rifle. Winchester ends contractual work on the double-barreled SALVO rifle. 1958... January: General Wyman sends a letter to General Maxwell D. Taylor, Chief of Sta ff of the US Army, recommending caution in overselling the M14 rifle to Congress during the Fiscal Year (FY) 1959 budget hearings. The letter indicates General Wyman's support of the small caliber rifle: "As you know, in April 1958 we will receive two types of small caliber rifle s, an Armalite and a Winchester, for evaluation at the USA Infantry Board. Shoul d these rifles be found superior to the M14, as I am almost certain they will be , it would be most unfortunate if the Army had committed itself before Congress to irrevocable support of the M14 rifle. Disregard of the potential presented by the small caliber rifle at this time might well preclude Army exploitation of a superior rifle system which could conceivably appear on the developmental scene at an early date." On behalf of the US Army, Albert J. Lizza files a patent application for the ope rating system of the Springfield .224 rifle. February: Earle Harvey's .224 Springfield is introduced commercially as the .222 Remington Magnum. (Robert Hutton has claimed in print that this was the first t ime he and Gene Stoner were made aware of the cartridge.) CONARC sends the directive "Evaluation of Small Caliber High Velocity Rifles." The Infantry Board submits their test plan for evaluation of the SCHV rifles. Springfield fabricates a Mann accuracy test barrel for one of the .224 experimen tal cartridges. It is fitted to a Remington M1903A3 action. Department of Defense directive 5105.15 is signed, establishing the Advanced Res earch Projects Agency (ARPA). The directive gives ARPA the responsibility "for t he direction or performance of such advanced projects in the field of research a nd development as the Secretary of Defense shall, from time to time, designate b y individual project or by category." It is originally intended for research and engineering projects regarding spacecraft, ballistic missiles, and nuclear weap ons. However, it will come into play later in conventional warfare research. Ordnance Technical Intelligence publishes "A Test of Gun, Light Machine, 7.62mm Model RPD, Soviet and Gun, Light Machine, 7.62mm Mod 52 Czech." March: Ten AR-15 rifles chambered in .222 Special are delivered to Fort Benning for the Infantry Board field trials. Due to the changes required for the new .22 4E2 Winchester cartridge, the Winchester LWMR is not ready. However, a number of new T44E4 (pre-production M14) rifles are included as a control. Stoner is allo wed to participate since no instruction manuals are yet available for the AR-15. Embarrassingly, the T44E4 rifles turn in a malfunction rate of 16 per 1000rds. In contrast, the AR-15 displays a malfunction rate of 6.1/1000. Oddly, after all of the trouble to coordinate the development of the competing cartridges, the . 224E2 Winchester still fails the 500 yard helmet penetration requirement. The te sts are re-run with the .222 Special, which succeeds.

Engineering tests for the SCHV candidates are assigned to Aberdeen despite effor ts by Dr. Carten to have them performed at Springfield Armory. Laurence F. Moore of the D&PS is assigned to conduct the tests, and William C. Davis volunteers t o participate in firing testing. In addition, examples of the candidate rifles are sent to Fort Greely, Alaska fo r Arctic testing. The ORO publishes "SALVO II Rifle Experiment: Preliminary Results." April: Aberdeen's BRL publishes the report "A Comparison of Proposed Small Arms Weapon Systems," concerning SALVO and SCHV developments. The authors conclude th at a lightweight .22 caliber rifle with a 50 grain projectile will result in a c onsiderably greater effectiveness than the other weapon systems compared. The BRL also publishes the report "Retardation and Velocity Histories of an 8-Gr ain Flchette." The report is intended primarily to cover issues related to multip le flchette canister cartridges. May: The Infantry Board publishes the report "Evaluation of Small Caliber High V elocity Rifles - ArmaLite (AR-15)." The Infantry Board concludes that: The AR-15 is a potential replacement for the M14 rifle; The AR-15 equipped with a bipod and hinged butt plate should be a potential replacement for the M15 rifle; and The penetrating capability of the .222 Special and .224E2 Win are significan tly less than that of the 7.62mm NATO and should be improved. The Infantry Board recommends that eight AR-15 modified to correct the deficienc ies reported (three of these rifles to be equipped with hinged butt plate and bi pod) be furnished for service testing. Development should be expedited to provid e a round for the AR-15 that has greater resistance to bullet disintegration and better penetrating characteristics. June: The Infantry Board sends the memo "Estimated Requirements for Service Test of ArmaLite Rifle." The Chief of Ordnance, MG John H. Hinrichs, informs General Wyman that during ra in tests at Aberdeen, two AR-15 experienced burst barrels. The combination of wa ter in the bore and the heavily fluted barrels used by the rifles prove too much . (Later, the same occurs with the Winchester LWMR, but with less fanfare. Both manufacturers respond by providing unfluted barrels for subsequent prototypes.) CONARC orders the Infantry Board to conduct duplicate rain tests with the AR-15 to see if the same results occur. The Infantry Board subsequently duplicates the problem. Seizing upon the issue, Dr. Carten begins a campaign to support develo pment of an alternate .258 SCHV cartridge. (The eventual pair of 6.35mm alternat es are based on the .25 Remington case.) CDEC publishes "Armalite Experiment Summary Report." Winchester experiments with a 38 grain steel projectile for their .224E2 cartrid ge. The velocity is credited as 3,618fps. July: The Infantry Board informs CONARC of the results of their duplicate rain t ests. CONARC orders the Infantry Board to prepare a supplemental report, in coor dination with the Infantry School, which will re-evaluate the AR-15 rifle in lig ht of the results of the rain test. Winchester finally delivers their LWMR to Fort Benning for testing.

The Infantry Board publishes the report "Evaluation of Small Caliber High Veloci ty Rifles - Winchester." One of the authors is Captain Herbert P. Underwood. The Infantry Board concludes that: The Winchester rifle is a potential replacement for the M14 rifle; The Winchester rifle equipped with a bipod and hinged butt plate should be a potential replacement for the M15 rifle; and The penetrating capability of the .224E2 Win is significantly less than that of the 7.62mm NATO and should be improved. The Infantry Board recommends that eight Winchester rifles modified to correct t he deficiencies reported (three of these rifles to be equipped with hinged butt plate and bipod) be furnished for service testing. Development should be expedit ed to provide a round for the Winchester rifle that has greater resistance to bu llet disintegration and better penetrating characteristics. Trading is suspended briefly for Fairchild common stock on the New York Stock Ex change. The price of the stock plummeted after Fairchild President Richard S. Bo utelle revealed that the company would have a first-half loss of about $5 millio n. The losses are in part due to the high costs of tooling up for production of the F-27 aircraft and slow sales. Liberty Powder Defense Corporation's Robert R. Buell receives US Patent #2,843,5 84 titled "Method of Reclaiming the Constituents from Double Base Smokeless Powd er." August: The results of the Infantry Board's supplemental testing of the AR-15 ar e discussed in an additional report titled "Evaluation of Small Caliber High Vel ocity Rifles - ArmaLite (AR-15)." The Infantry Board concludes that: Surface tension and capillary attraction will retain sufficient quantities o f water in the barrel of a fully loaded AR-15 to cause excessive overpressure wh en the weapon is fired; The retention of the water in the barrel of an AR-15 is a major deficiency. However, because of its other favorable characteristics, the AR-15 remains a pot ential replacement for the M14 and M15 rifles; The effect of the deficiency of the AR-15 may be avoided by taking proper pr ecautionary measures such as partially extracting the cartridge from the chamber when draining; Retention of water in the barrel due to surface tension and capillary attrac tion is not peculiar to the AR-15; and Weapons of approximately .25 caliber or larger do not retain water in their barrels due to surface tension or capillary attraction when the rifles are fully loaded. The Infantry Board recommends that SCHV rifle research continue and that the curement of additional AR-15 be made for service tests. The rifles should be ified to eliminate the possibility of burst barrels. However, if this cannot done, training should be modified to deal with possible water retention, and earch should be conducted to determine the minimum caliber at which water is longer retained in the barrel. pro mod be res no

CONARC sends the letter "Directive for an Experiment with the Rifle Squad Armed with a Lightweight, High-Velocity Rifle (LWVR)." General Wyman retires. The CWL publishes the report "Wounding By Flechettes."

September: CONARC issues their final judgment regarding the Infantry Board's tes ts in the report "Evaluation of Small Caliber High Velocity (SCHV) Rifles." Both SCHV rifles are judged to be superior to the M14 in terms of lightness and ease of handling. It is noted that for the same weight, a soldier with one of the SC HV rifles could carry ~650 rounds of ammunition versus ~220 with the M14. The AR -15 is judged to be superior to the M14 and the Winchester LWMR in terms of reli ability and ease of assembly/reassembly. However, both SCHV candidates are fault ed on their burst barrels during rain testing. This said, CONARC notes that cont rary to the Infantry Board's proclamation, even rifles of .25 caliber or greater may also suffer burst barrels when retaining water. The .222 Special and .224E2 Win are judged to be inferior to the 7.62mm NATO in terms of their penetration and position disclosing characteristics. CONARC concludes that the SCHV candidat es are not acceptable for Army use at this time. Still, the report recommends th at both manufacturers be allowed to submit 16 improved rifles and 96,000 rounds each for further testing by the Infantry Board and the Arctic Test Board. Winchester chooses to decline further development of the LWMR. Deputy Commanding General of CONARC, General Herbert B. Powell assembles a gener al board to investigate the Army's various rifle research and production program s. (Sources disagree as to whether this was ordered by General Wyman as his last act prior to his retirement, or by his successor, General Bruce C. Clarke.) Meanwhile, Cooper-Macdonald, Inc, the sale representatives for ArmaLite, Colt, a nd Remington in Southeast Asia, encourages a manufacturing license agreement bet ween ArmaLite's parent company Fairchild Engine & Airplane Corporation and Colt for the latter to manufacture the AR-10 and AR-15 rifles. Fairchild has been unw illing to allow ArmaLite to start their own production line, and is more than ha ppy to pass future development risks on to Colt. Confident of pending success, R obert W. Macdonald cuts an individual deal with Colt providing for Colt to pay C ooper-Macdonald one dollar on every AR-10 and AR-15 rifle and two percent for sp are parts produced by Colt for a period of 20 years. October: Fred A. Roff, Jr., Colt's Vice President and Director of Sales, sends R obert Macdonald a signed copy of the previous month's agreement between Cooper-M acdonald and Colt. November: The ORO publishes "Multiple Flechettes for Small Arms." Fairchild President Boutelle reports an operating loss of $9,211,000. December: Stoner is asked to deliver replacement parts to the Arctic Test Board trials at Fort Greely. To his surprise, Stoner finds that many of the rifles hav e had parts substituted. In particular, the front sight assemblies have been rem oved from the barrels, and when reassembled, some of the tapered pins have been inserted in reverse while others have been replaced by pieces of welding rod. Th e upshot of this tinkering is that the front sight assemblies are very loose, an d do not quite line up with the barrel's gas port. Stoner is subsequently requested to give a presentation on the AR-15 before the Powell Board. At the presentation, Powell inquires about the Arctic tests. Belie ving that the testing had only just begun, Stoner refers to minor problems that have been rectified. However, the Powell Board already has possession of an Arct ic Test Board report critical of the AR-15's cold weather accuracy and reliabili ty. Meanwhile, the US Army's Combat Development Experimentation Center (CDEC) begins mock combat trials of the AR-15, Winchester LWMR, and the M14. Conducted at For t Ord, California, the tests cover the effects of the new weapons on squad tacti cs and organization. More than 500 firing runs are made on two attack ranges and

one defense range. Different fire techniques and combinations of techniques are studied, and four different squad sizes are examined to accumulate data bearing on the appropriate size for squads using these weapons. Fairchild President Boutelle is fired. Fairchild's losses have been compounded b y the recent cancellation of US Air Force contracts for the Goose missile and it s J83 engine. Concurrently, Boutelle is elected Vice Chairman of Fairchild's Boa rd of Directors. He quits just over a month later. Watertown Arsenal publishes the report "Terminal Ballistic Study of Flchettes." W hile inspired by research supporting multiple flchette canister cartridges, the a rmor penetration characteristics should be applicable to individual flchette cart ridges. 1959... Fearing the confusion of so many "Triple Deuce" nomenclatures, the .222 Special is renamed the .223 Remington. AAI receives two additional Ordnance contracts for flchette cartridge R&D. Picatinny Arsenal, which conducts ammunition R&D, is merged to the existing Ordn ance Ammunition Command to create the Ordnance Special Weapons Ammunition Comman d (OSWAC). Word leaks of Remington and Smith & Wesson's joint development of a SCHV revolve r cartridge. Winter: Colonel Neilson retires. Robert Fremont leaves ArmaLite to join Colt. January: The Powell Board concludes its investigation and issues its report prio r to the release of final reports from the Aberdeen engineering tests and the CD EC trials (which are not yet complete). The board approves of the SCHV concept, and recommends that 750 AR-15 rifles be purchased for extended trials. However, no further consideration should be given to the .223 round as a potential replac ement for the 7.62mm NATO. Instead, the board recommends development of an AR-15 type of weapon, chambered for a .258 caliber cartridge, be expedited to replace the M14 in the rifle role. However, the M14 rifle should be retained for the au tomatic rifle role. Upon review of the Powell Board's report and urging by the OCO, General Taylor r ules that production of the M14 will continue as scheduled. Furthermore, any add itional Army purchases of the AR-15 should be canceled. The 7.62mm NATO will rem ain the standard cartridge, and all further product improvements will retain the caliber unless a new concept offers a very significant improvement. Finally, th e development of the All-Purpose Hand-Held Weapon (APHHW) is approved. ArmaLite protests General Taylor's decision to Senator W. Stuart Symington (D-MO ). Symington enters the protest in the Congressional Record but declines to push the issue any further. Within days of Taylor's decision, Colt and Fairchild finalize their licensing ag reement. Colt pays a $75,000 lump sum, plus a 4.5 percent royalty on future prod uction of the AR-10 and AR-15. AAI submits "Proposal for Special Type Small Arms Ammunition, Continuation of De velopment."

February: The final report "A Test of Rifle, Caliber .22, AR-15; Rifle, Lightwei ght Military, Caliber .224; and Pertinent Ammunition" from the Aberdeen engineer ing tests is finally released. Moore's recommendations and conclusions are missi ng, reportedly excised on the order of Dr. Carten. Fred A Roff, Jr., now Colt's President, sends Cooper-Macdonald an advance paymen t of $5,000 to begin promoting the AR-10 and AR-15. During the following "world" tour (primarily Asia), Robert Macdonald finds that there is very tepid interest in the AR-10. In contrast, the smaller AR-15 is an immediate hit. Small orders for the AR-15 come in from Malaya, India, Australia, Burma, and Singapore. Howev er, some interested buyers, such as the Philippines, are ham-strung by their mil itary assistance pacts with the US. While the AR-15 is an American rifle, it isn 't a US military issue rifle; thus, US military aid funds cannot be used to purc hase the new rifle. March: CDEC ends its comparative trials of the AR-15, the Winchester LWMR, and t he M14. AAI files "Proposal for the Development of a .22 Caliber Fin-Stabilized Armor Pi ercing Round." AAI proposes an armor piercing flchette made of tungsten carbide. Spring: AAI proposes the construction of a "burst simulator" comprised of five s ingle-shot fixtures bundled into a Gatling-type assembly. The individual fixture s are triggered electronically in a short sequence to simulate a high-cyclic rat e burst from a single barrel rifle. This is intended to provide experimental dat a on optimum burst spread until AAI can construct an automatic weapon for its flc hette cartridges. April: The Arctic Test Board publishes "Evaluation of Small Caliber High Velocit y Rifles." Oddly, in one phase involving the firing of 40 cartridges, the AR-15 is charged with 48 malfunctions. The ORO publishes "Design of Experiment for Effects of Weapon Configuration, Wei ght, Sights and Recoil on Rifle Accuracy" and "Range Estimation for Infantry Squ ad Weapons." Ordnance Technical Intelligence publishes "Wound Ballistics Tests of the Soviet 7.62mm Bullet." May: CDEC publishes "Lightweight High Velocity Rifle Experiment." The final report of the CDEC trials, "Rifle Squad Armed with a Lightweight HighVelocity Rifle," is released. It projects that a 5-7 man squad armed with AR-15 rifles would have a higher number of hits and kills than the then current 11 man squad armed with M14 rifles. The report particularly praises the reliability of the tested AR-15 rifles, and suggests that a SCHV design such as the AR-15 or L WMR should be further developed as a replacement for the M14. The ORO publishes the papers "Optimum Duplex Spread" and "Optimum Dispersion for Gaussian Salvo." At Springfield Armory, David C. Fletcher and Herman F. Hawthorne publish the rep ort "Feasibility Study of a Caliber .222, Salvo Type Shoulder Rifle." The rifle under study has three fixed barrels and uses a rotary feeding mechanism. Without muzzle brakes, the rifle will have twice the recoil of a M1 rifle. Muzzle brake s will reduce recoil to less than that of the M1 rifle. June: The ORO publishes "SALVO I Rifle Field Experiment." Springfield Armory publishes the report "Water Drainage Characteristics of Calib

er .22/06 and 7.62mm Barrels." General Taylor retires at the end of the month. July: Springfield Armory approves AAI's "burst simulator" design and grants a co ntract for the manufacture of two units. While operations manager for the Dardick Corporation, Melvin M. Johnson, Jr. com pletes an outline of various weapon concepts using the Tround principle. These i nclude a Tround-firing Gatling (the "Dispenser") and military rifles, all using a "super-velocity" .224 caliber cartridge. September: The US State Department's Office of Munitions Control approves of the sale of 25 AR-15 to Malaya. Gene Stoner receives US Patent #2,903,809 titled "Cartridge Magazine of Aluminum or Magnesium." The new Army Chief of Staff General Lyman L. Lemnitzer reaffirms General Taylor' s earlier position in regard to the small arms situation. October: CONARC HQ sends the Infantry Board a directive titled "Evaluation of Si ngle Flchette." The Infantry Board is to conduct testing to determine whether the single flchette has sufficient military value under temperate weather conditions to warrant further development. A similar directive is sent to the Arctic Test Board. The USAIB publishes "Draft Military Characteristics for All-Purpose Hand-Held We apon." The Combat Operations Research Group publishes "Infantry Small Arms Weapons. Tec hnique for Evaluation and Application to the All-Purpose Hand-Held Weapon." November: The OCO sends the Office Chief of Research and Development (OCRD) "Dev elopment of All-Purpose Hand-Held Weapon." The Chief of Ordnance LTG Hinrichs pr oposes to the Chief of Research and Development (CRD) LTG Arthur G. Trudeau that development of the APHHW system be initiated, using single flchette ammunition i n the direct fire role. The Infantry Board receives AAI single flchette ammunition for testing. On behalf of the US Army, Albert J. Lizza receives US Patent #2,912,781 titled " Stock and Action Clamp." December: The US State Department's Office of Munitions Control approves of the sale of 23 AR-15 to India. Gene Stoner files a patent application for the trigger mechanism of the AR-15. AAI publishes the report "Final Report - Research and Development Activities on Flchette Ammunition Test Rifles." For the purposes of testing, ten Winchester Mod el 70R bolt-action rifles had been modified to fire individual flchette cartridge s. The Infantry Board concludes testing of the AAI single flchette ammunition. The B oard sends a preliminary report to CONARC HQ, concluding that single flchette amm unition has the potential for fulfilling the requirements of the direct fire amm unition for the APHHW. 1960...

L. James Sullivan leaves ArmaLite. January: On behalf of the US Army, Albert J. Lizza receives US Patent #2,920,538 titled "Bolt Mechanism for Firearms." CONARC issues "Approved Utility Characteristics for All-Purpose, Hand-Held Weapo ns." February: AAI's first firing "burst simulator" is shipped to Aberdeen's BRL. Aft er initial adjustments, the device could simulate a cyclic rate of 2,300rpm. Aberdeen's BRL publishes "Provisional Estimate of the Wounding Potential of Flche ttes." The CWL publishes the report "Studies in Wound Ballistics - Temporary Cavities a nd Permanent Tracts Produced by High-Velocity Projectiles in Gelatin." In these experiments, .30-06 M2 AP and M2 Ball, 45 grain .22 Hornet FMJ and JSP bullets, .30 caliber fragment simulators, and 1/4-inch steel spheres were fired into cyli nders of 20 percent gelatin. Of note, energy absorption and momentum transfer in 20 percent gelatin are determined to be independent of temporary-cavity formati on. March: The US State Department's Office of Munitions Control approves of the sal e of 1,250 AR-15 to Indonesia. The USAIB publishes the report "Evaluation of Single Flchette." The report covers testing of AAI's "Arrow" flchette cartridge using the modified Winchester rifles . For comparison purposes, both the short and long variants of the 6.35mm Simple x cartridges and 7.62mm NATO M59 Ball are also tested. Poor base accuracy, which deteriorated even further during use, is noted for the flchette rifles, along wi th excessive muzzle flash and poor penetration against wood and sand. Comments a re also made concerning the downrange hazard presented by the discarding sabot t o friendly troops. The flchette cartridges were found to be so lightly constructe d that the case walls could be bent during handling. The cartridges had to be ha nd chambered individually, lest they be deformed during feeding from a magazine. On the positive side, the flat trajectory of the cartridge would require no sig ht setting changes out to 400 meters. Moreover, the future APHHW is projected to weigh roughly 3.5 pounds and possess a cyclic rate of 2,000rpm. Based on the pr ojected characteristics, the flchette is deemed to have a greater potential than the 6.35mm and 7.62mm NATO cartridges. The OCRD reports back to the OCO "Approval of MCs for APHHW." Gene Stoner files a patent application for a magazine design utilizing a constan t force spring. April: CONARC forwards the Infantry Board's report on flchette cartridge testing to Army CRD LTG Trudeau. CONARC concurs with the Infantry Board's conclusions, a nd recommends that development of single flchette ammunition be continued and dir ected toward, but not limited to, the correction of deficiencies listed in the r eport. Moreover, the improved ammunition should be submitted to the Infantry Boa rd for further testing. May: The US Army Arctic Test Board publishes the report "Evaluation of Single Flc hette and 6.35-MM Simplex and Duplex Ammunition." In these follow-up tests, AAI' s "Arrow" flchette cartridge, now designated the 5.6x53mm XM110, has been pitted against duplex and simplex versions of the short 6.35x48mm cartridge, 7.62mm NAT O M59 and M80 Ball, and even the defunct .224 Springfield (.222 Rem Mag). (Addit ional details concerning the latter were excised.) The duplex 6.35mm cartridge i

s dismissed as having insufficient military value, and while the same complaints noted by the USAIB are repeated, the XM110 cartridge is deemed to be the superi or choice for future development. AAI's second "burst simulator" is shipped to Springfield Armory. On behalf of Winchester, Stefan Janson receives US Patent #2,935,915 titled "Gas -Operated Automatic Rifle Having a Plurality of Barrels." June: Colt requests new Ordnance testing of their improved AR-15 rifle. Dr. Cart en refuses the request, citing the lack of military requirement for such a rifle . Colt President Roff sends Cooper-Macdonald copies of the wire message from Dr. C arten denying Colt's request for testing, a letter from Charles Dorchester outli ning potential arguments for getting Carten's decision overturned, a Congression al report with helpful statements made by Army CRD LTG Trudeau, and an Aberdeen test report. Gene Stoner files a patent application for the triangle pattern forearm assembly . The ORO publishes "Battle Sight Setting." The Infantry Board publishes "Evaluation of 6.35MM Simplex and Duplex Ammunition ." AAI publishes the report "Final Summary Report - Small Caliber Demonstration Gun s." July: In hopes of generating interest (and royalties) in the AR-15, Macdonald in vites General Curtis E. LeMay, then Vice Chief of Staff of the US Air Force, to a combination 4th of July celebration/birthday party for former Fairchild presid ent Richard Boutelle. Boutelle and LeMay are long-time friends and fellow firear ms-enthusiasts. In fact, LeMay had previously attempted to have ArmaLite's AR-5 survival rifle adopted for the USAF. At the party, LeMay is conveniently given a n opportunity to shoot a new Colt-production AR-15 at a trio of watermelons. Aft er bursting the first two melons at 50 yards and 150 yards, LeMay is suitably im pressed with the terminal results. (Note: The third melon is spared the firing s quad and is subsequently eaten.) LeMay offers to recommend the AR-15 as a replacement for the USAF's aging stock of M2 Carbines, and it is arranged for three Colt AR-15 to be sent to the Air Fo rce Marksmanship School at Lackland AFB for testing. LeMay also holds a meeting with the Army CRD LTG Trudeau, and representatives of Cooper-Macdonald. As a res ult, the OCO is asked to complete additional tests of the AR-15 rifle for the US AF. Colt President Roff writes Cooper-Macdonald confirming Colt's authorization for Cooper-Macdonald to represent Colt in attempts to get the AR-15 tested and appro ved by the US Government. August: At the first of the month, the USAF Marksmanship School receives an addi tional five AR-15. Testing is conducted with Lackland Military Training Center's commander General Robert M. Stillman, his Staff Officers, and Air Police person nel in attendance. Testing is conducted with both Remington and Norma ammunition . Accuracy testing is conducted using a mounted scope; however, there are proble m with a loose scope mount. The AR-15's ability to launch rifle grenades (both a nti-personnel and anti-tank) is demonstrated. Gene Stoner and Charles Dorchester participate in the testing, and an AR-10 is demonstrated for comparison purpose

s. A week later, Major Burton T. Miller of the USAF Marksmanship School sends the m emo "Evaluation of AR-15." Within, Miller notes that 10 AR-15 are now on-hand an d that 5,000 rounds are scheduled for delivery. However, he anticipates that a t otal of 50,000 rounds will be needed, and wonders who is going place the order f or additional ammunition and who will pay for it. Approval is requested to work out a test evaluation program with the Air Police School and the 3720th Basic Mi litary Training School wherein a representative number of trainees will utilize the AR-15, firing the exact courses currently required for M2 carbine training. However, given the limited number of rifles, the AR-15 will need to be shuttled between the trainees and the range test staff conducting penetration, accuracy, and function testing. During a staff meeting late in the month, General LeMay notes that a requirement exists for a better small arm for Air Force security forces to replace the M2 c arbine. LeMay orders that an all-command survey be taken to validate the require ment and to determine the exact number of replacement rifles needed. Fairchild Secretary Paul S. Cleveland writes Cooper-Macdonald laying out the rel ationship between the two companies. Cooper-Macdonald will attempt to secure an order and possibly a manufacturin g license for ArmaLite weapons from India; Cooper-Macdonald will also attempt to secure approval from the US Government for sale of ArmaLite weapons to Military Assistance Fund (MAF) clients; In return, Cooper-Macdonald will receive 10 percent of any down payments and royalties from Indian licensing, and 10 percent of royalties from sales to the US Government and MAF clients; and The same terms as India's will apply to any other foreign licensing deals ma de via Cooper-Macdonald's efforts. September: The USAF Marksmanship School publishes "Evaluation Report of the Colt -Armalite AR-15 Automatic, Caliber .223." General LeMay is briefed on the latest small arms development programs of the De partment of the Army. Dr. Carten is ordered to provide testing of the Colt AR-15 for the USAF. Ironically, the testing is requested to coincide with Ordnance te sting of Dutch-production AR-10 rifles. Moreover, General LeMay, Army CRD LTG Tr udeau, and other representatives from the USAF and Army will be in attendance fo r part of the testing. Mr. Sloan, a representative from the Federal Bureau of In vestigation (FBI), also attends. Among the other observers are Gene Stoner, Robe rt Macdonald, and Gerald Gustafson, representing his current employer, the USAF Armament Laboratory. Gene Stoner receives US Patent #2,951,424 titled "Gas Operated Bolt and Carrier System." November: Ordnance releases the Aberdeen D&PS test results on the AR-10 and AR-1 5 in separate reports. Once again, Laurence Moore's recommendations and conclusi ons are missing. However, the remaining data is encouraging. For instance, the C olt AR-15 displays a malfunction rate of 2.5/1000 rounds (less than half of the 1958 Fort Benning tests). In a report to the OCRD, Dr. Carten summarizes the AR-15 results as "reasonably satisfactory." Thus, the Colt AR-15 is approved for USAF trials. Colt Chairman Sidney A. Stewart writes Cooper-Macdonald to propose the following commissions to be paid on AR-15 rifles sold to the US Government: Rifles Sold Royalty Per Rifle

1-25,000 25,001-50,000 50,001-100,000 Over 100,000

$1 $1.50 $1.75 $2.00

The ORO publishes "Rifle Accuracies and Hit Probabilities in Combat." December: Ten AR-15 are sent to Lackland AFB for additional testing. George Sullivan receives US Patent #2,965,994 titled "Gun Forearm." The US Army Chemical Research and Development Laboratory (CRDL) publishes "Wound Ballistics Assessment of Winchester-Western Caliber .25 Salvo Ammunition." 1961... USAF testing at Lackland AFB continues, pitting the Colt AR-15 versus the M2 Car bine and the M14 rifle. 43 percent of the AR-15 users score "Expert" in marksman ship qualifications versus 22 percent of the M14 users. Using the AAI "burst simulator," Aberdeen's BRL estimates that the proposed APHH W could produce three times the enemy casualties versus the M14 per engagement. Based on equal rounds expended, the APHHW could be up to seven times more effect ive than the M14. First Half 1961: Springfield begins design of two weapon concepts to fire the XM 144 flchette cartridge. January: Aberdeen's D&PS publishes another report titled "A Test of Rifle Calibe r .223, AR-15." Colt Chairman Stewart writes Cooper-Macdonald to confirm increase in commission from $1 to $1.25 on all AR-15 sold to the USAF. The BRL publishes "Dispersions for Effective Automatic Small Arms Fire and a Com parison of the M14 Rifle with a Weapon Yielding Effective Automatic Fire." February: Fairchild allows ArmaLite to split off into a separate company. ArmaLi te's management team purchases the right and titles to all of the ArmaLite desig ns with the exception of the AR-10 and AR-15. Around the same time, Gene Stoner leaves ArmaLite. Aberdeen's BRL publishes "An Investigation of the Wounding Potential of Flchette Rounds When Fired from a Multi-Barreled Test Gun." Experimental firings were con ducted with the five-barreled test gun firing single flchette cartridges in singl e shots and in bursts at a rate of 2,680 rounds per minute. Observations from th e targets and photography indicate that most flchette yaw in flight regardless of how they are fired. Those fired in salvos yaw much more than those fired in sin gle shots. Yaw may be induced by transverse forces set up by the motion of the g un tubes, blast from adjacent muzzles, shock waves from other flchette, and inter ference from the sabots. Frankford Arsenal publishes "An Effectiveness Analysis of Spin-Stabilized Rifle Systems, Based on a Caliber .17 Projectile." March: General LeMay sends a letter to the OCO requesting cost and availability figures for both the M14 and AR-15. General LeMay is briefed on the Air Staff recommendations on selection and procu rement of a new weapon for the USAF. Following the briefing, LeMay directs that

the Air Staff select the weapon, and that the Air Force Materiel Command be dire cted to procure the weapon at the rate of 19,000 a year. LeMay further states th at he felt that the AR-15 rifle is the weapon that should be procured. The ORO publishes "Casualty Probabilities of Gaussian Salvos." On behalf of the US Army, David C. Fletcher receives US Patent #2,976,770 titled "Operating Mechanism for a Plural Barrel Rifle with a Feeding Rotor." The .22 Remington Jet is officially introduced by Remington and Smith & Wesson. The final cartridge is based on a necked down .357 Magnum case. Spring: ARPA's mission is reoriented to include research regarding the conduct o f counter-insurgency warfare. Project AGILE is approved to further this new miss ion. Combat Development Test Centers are thus opened in Bangkok and Saigon, the respective capitals of Thailand and South Vietnam. Project AGILE member, Colonel Richard Hallock (US Army), is lobbied by Robert Ma cdonald regarding the virtues of the AR-15 rifle in the hands of small-statured troops. April: The Office of the Chief of Research and Development (OCRD) responds to Ge neral LeMay's request in a memo titled "Replacement of .30 Caliber Carbine for U SAF." The memo points out the logistical difficulties which will ensue if a new rifle and cartridge are introduced. Instead, it recommends that the USAF conside r the folding-stock M14E1, examples of which could be available for testing as e arly as June 1961. ArmaLite's George C. Sullivan files another patent application for design princi ples for using aluminum in a firearm's receiver. On behalf of the US Army, David C. Fletcher receives US Patent #2,981,156 titled "Firing Mechanism for a Salvo Gun." The CRDL issues the report "Wound Ballistics of the 7.2 Grain Steel Flchette." May: The USAF validates the quantitative requirement for procurement of the AR-1 5 and its ammunition. Colt President Roff writes Cooper-Macdonald to confirm increase in commission fr om $1 to $1.25 on all AR-15 sold to the US Government, not just the USAF. The ORO publishes "SALVO II Rifle Field Experiment." May-June: CDEC conducts field experiments in support of the study "Optimum Compo sition of the Rifle Squad and Platoon." June: General LeMay is appointed Chief of Staff of the Air Force. The ORO's administrative organization, Johns Hopkins University, and the Army mu tually agree to terminate the contract funding the ORO. This change is made so t he Army can fire the ORO's director, Dr. Ellis A. Johnson. Dr. Johnson had long fought to keep the ORO's research from being a mere intellectual rubber stamp fo r existing Army orthodoxy. Despite Army pressure, Johns Hopkins was not willing to remove Johnson without cause. Second Half 1961: Springfield supplies Aberdeen and Frankford Arsenal with test weapons and ammunition to enable continuation of feasibility and development stu dies of micro-caliber weapon systems proposed at Springfield. Micro-caliber cart ridges are considered a back-up to the XM110/XM144 flchette cartridges. Terminal

ballistic tests at the BRL confirm the feasibility of micro-caliber systems as i ndicated initially by lethality tests at the Chemical Center's Wound Ballistics Laboratory. Springfield completes the design and fabrication of one of its two weapon concep ts to fire XM144 ammunition. AAI continues the development of small arms mechanisms to fire XM110 ammunition. In addition to increasing mechanism reliability and development of a high capac ity magazine, AAI directs development efforts toward reduction of automatic fire dispersion. Winchester, under contract to Springfield, designs, fabricates, and develops a s mall arms mechanism incorporating an unique "soft recoil" mechanism. A request i s made for funding of an additional contract to conduct additional dispersion an d accuracy tests. A contract is also negotiated with Winchester to modify the .224 LWMR to fire XM 144 ammunition. Summer: General LeMay requests 19,000 AR-15 rifles in the USAF's budget proposal for the upcoming fiscal year, with the ultimate goal of procuring a total of 80 ,000 in successive years. Initially, funds for procurement of the AR-15 rifle ar e withheld by the Department of Defense (DOD). The reasons given are that: 1) in troduction of another rifle of different caliber and characteristics into DOD in ventories is not desirable; 2) adoption of a .223 caliber rifle for the USAF is not consistent with NATO standardization objectives; and 3) Army and USAF depots hold large quantities of M1 and M2 carbines, which are still usable despite the ir age. July: General LeMay is informed that the Offices of the Director of Defense Rese arch and Engineering (DDR&E) and the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Installatio ns & Logistics) - ASD(I&L) had not agreed to USAF procurement of the AR-15. With in days, LeMay confers with the executives of these offices. It is agreed that a study should be made of the entire matter to serve as the basis for a decision by the Secretary of Defense. By the end of the month, the study is complete. It recommends that the USAF be allowed to procure the AR-15 rifle. ARPA selects the AR-15 as the weapon with the most potential for being compatibl e with small statured South Vietnamese soldiers. ARPA purchases ten AR-15 rifles out of their available funds. August: After several exchanges between the USAF and the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD), a meeting is held to discuss the procurement of the AR-15. De puty Secretary of Defense Roswell L. Gilpatric chairs the meeting. DDR&E Harold Brown and ASD(I&L) Thomas D. Morris support the USAF position. However, Assistan t Secretary of Defense (Comptroller) Charles J. Hitch opposes the procurement of the rifle. The results of this meeting are contained in a memorandum to Secreta ry of the Air Force Eugene M. Zuckert, stating that the request for procurement of the AR-15 rifle is not approved. The prime reason given is the problem of jus tifying to the Bureau of the Budget or to Congress a proposal to procure another new weapon in view of the Army's rifle program. General LeMay continues to hold conferences with the Deputy Secretary Gilpatric to determine the best course to follow to obtain the rifles. From these and othe r meetings within the OSD, it is concluded that procurement of the new weapon de pends on how the House Appropriations Committee feels about the matter. At the f irst approach, Representative George H. Mahon (D-TX), chairman of the House Appr opriations Subcommittee on Defense, is not sympathetic with the proposal, and th is information is presented to the LeMay along with the recommendation that the

whole matter be dropped. A week later, LeMay again broaches the topic of AR-15 procurement in an OSD staf f meeting. It is suggested that the request be resubmitted on the basis of a nee d for new weapons for special warfare. Upon presentation of the new approach to Rep. Mahon, Mahon suggests that there should be no Congressional objections to p rocurement of the AR-15 for special warfare purposes. The Air Staff is instructe d to submit a new request for a lower number of AR-15 rifles for use by Composit e Air Strike Forces and other USAF personnel assigned duty in Southeast Asia. Od dly, while the idea was originally suggested by OSD staff, some in the OSD now v oice objections to the approach. Following successful demonstrations of the AR-15 rifle in South Vietnam, ARPA re quests 4,300 AR-15 for testing with South Vietnamese troops (ARVN). This request is denied on the grounds that M2 Carbines were available from surplus. September: Upon review of the USAF's latest request for only 8,500 AR-15 rifles and 8.5 million rounds of ammunition for test, training, and unconventional warf are, Deputy Secretary Gilpatric authorizes funding the same day. A few days later, the Chief of the Military Assistance Advisory Group in Vietnam , LTG Lionel C. McGarr, requests 4,300 AR-15 rifles for combat testing by the So uth Vietnamese. The request suggests three alternatives involving approximately 1,000, 2,500, or 4,300 rifles, and cites the political and psychological advanta ges of providing advanced weaponry for use by the small statured Vietnamese in t heir counterinsurgency war. DDR&E Brown and other members of the OSD staff brief Rep. Mahon on the entire effort in Vietnam. Mahon promises his support in the p rocurement of the rifles. Deputy Secretary Gilpatric sends a letter to Congress supporting the USAF's proc urement of the AR-15: "Subsequent to Congressional action on the Defense Department budget, the Ai r Force introduced an urgent requirement for equipping a portion of its forces w ith the AR-15 Rifle. The Department of Defense has investigated thoroughly and concurs with the n eed for the rifle. The necessity for it has been personally justified to me by t he Chief of Staff of the Air Force." Rep. Mahon allows only seven minutes for discussion of the AR-15 proposal before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense. Funding is withheld pending c onsideration of additional data. Days later, Mahon writes Secretary of Defense R obert S. McNamara stating that the Subcommittee has voted to deny funding for th e USAF's AR-15 purchase. However, they are willing to give the matter further co nsideration when Congress reconvenes in January 1962, if requested to do so. The Army establishes a new research organization called the Research Analysis Co rporation (RAC). The RAC takes over the ORO's pre-existing projects, property, a nd most of its former staff. One wag jokes that RAC is short for "Relax and Coop erate." October: President John F. Kennedy reportedly tells General LeMay to quit badger ing the Army about the AR-15. After conducting a limited test in Saigon with their 10 AR-15, ARPA resubmits th eir request for AR-15 rifles with the additional data. They further note that th e requested rifles will be evaluated only in terms of their usefulness for ARVN units and their US advisors, not for general US military issue.

Aberdeen's BRL publishes the report "An Interim Report on the Study of Parameter s that Affect the Accuracy of Automatic Rifles." This report is a brief summary of the work being done for the All-Purpose Hand-Held Weapon (APHHW). It gives so me ideas of the present trends of thought and some indications of ways to improv e the accuracy of automatic fire. The CRDL issues the report "Wound Ballistics of High-Velocity Flechettes for Han d Held Weapons." Mel Johnson, with assistance from MBAssociates, designs a rocket-propelled flchet te weapon. Johnson converts a Smith & Wesson Model 29 revolver to serve as the t est bed. Later dubbed the "Discharger," it fires three rocket flchette from each cartridge fed by belt through an open chamber "star-wheel." November: CDEC publishes "Optimum Composition of the Rifle Squad and Platoon. Fi nal Report of Experiment." The findings indicate that all members of a squad, ex cept machinegunners, should carry the APHHW. While AAI had finally built APHHW p rototypes, a burst control device had not yet been designed or incorporated. Bur st length had been simulated by loading only the required number of rounds for a given "burst" into the magazine. Late: Springfield performs preliminary investigations concerning the effect of w ater in the bore of small caliber rifles. December: Fairchild sells Colt an exclusive license to the patent rights related to the AR-15 rifle. The license will last up to the expiration date of the last -to-expire patent. The agreement includes the right to grant sub-licenses, but d oes not cover the right to reassign the patents or the agreement. The purchase p rice is based primarily on subsequent sales by Colt of AR-15 weapons and parts i ncorporating the above mentioned patent rights. The Director of ARPA, Jack P. Ruina, sends a memo to McNamara titled "AR-15 Arma lite Rifles for Test in Southeast Asia" recommending approval of the request for 1,000 AR-15, necessary spare parts, and ammunition. General LeMay makes a personal appeal for the USAF's rifles in a meeting with Pr esident Kennedy. Again, the request is denied. McNamara approves the ARPA request, allowing for the purchase of 1,000 AR-15 rif les, accessories, and ammunition. The USAF classifies the status of the .223 Remington cartridge as developmental. The US Army Chief of Staff's Office (OCSA) receives a fact sheet titled "ArmaLit e Rifle (AR-15)." Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) Chairman General Lemnitzer sends President Kennedy a memo titled "ArmaLite (AR-15) Rifle." The chiefs of the Technical Services are formally briefed as to McNamara's plann ed reorganization of the Army. McNamara himself even appears for a time to take questions. While some like MG Frank S. Besson, Jr., the Chief of Transportation, embrace the plan, others such as the Chief of Ordnance LTG Hinrichs, and the Ch ief Chemical Officer MG Marshall Stubbs are vehemently opposed. The BRL publishes "Effectiveness of Proposed Small Arms for Special and Guerilla Warfare." 1962...

Gene Stoner joins Cadillac Cage to begin work on the 7.62mm NATO Stoner 62 syste m. At the World Shooting Championships in Cairo, the Russian "Running Deer Match" t eam uses the 5.6x39mm cartridge. It is based on the 7.62x39mm M43 cartridge case necked down to .22". World Records are tied and broken for individual and team scores respectively in the two-shot event. (One source claims that the cartridge dates back to at least 1957, but the earliest found examples bear 1961 headstam ps.) Remington begins development of a bolt-action pistol chambered for a SCHV cartri dge. Wanye Leek heads up the development team. Initial efforts center on the .22 2 Remington, but it is discovered that the cartridge is not as efficient as desi red in a 10" barrel. Experimentation then begins with shortened .222 Remington c ases. First Half 1962: Springfield continues to supply Aberdeen and Frankford Arsenal with various small arms mechanisms for lethality, accuracy, and dispersion tests . These include multiple and single-barrel test mechanisms to fire micro-caliber , and the XM110 and XM144 flchette cartridges. Springfield completes the design and fabrication of both of its SPIW mechanism c oncepts. The function and development testing of these mechanisms are seriously delayed because of XM144 ammunition development problems, which remain to be res olved. The design, fabrication, and initial testing of a three shot, pump action grenade launcher are also completed. Springfield completes its preliminary investigations regarding the effects of wa ter in the bore of small caliber rifles, and a report is written. These tests ha ve been conducted with the XM110 ammunition. Preparations for more extensive wat er-in-bore tests are also completed. Three commercial rifles are modified to fir e XM144 ammunition. Each are fitted with three barrels of different wall thickne ss for the water-in-bore tests. Testing is scheduled to begin in mid-July and aw aits a sufficient supply of XM144 ammunition, along with FY 1963 funding. AAI continues development of small arms mechanisms to fire XM110 ammunition. The major portion of AAI's work is devoted to decreasing the dispersion of short bu rst fire in preparation for a series of dispersion tests at Aberdeen. The result s of these tests are quite favorable and are indicative of the feasibility of th e single-barrel, serially fired approach. Winchester completes the development of its first "soft recoil" mechanism protot ype. While excessive clearances between the barrel-receiver group and the mechan ism frame produce wide dispersions, the test results are encouraging regarding d ispersion pattern and total recoil distance of barrel-receiver group. Winchester also completes modification of five LWMR to fire Frankford Arsenal XM 144 (FA-XM144) ammunition. (Sometime in FY 1963, Winchester will receive another contract to modify one of the five LWMR rechambered for FA-XM144 to accept Winc hester's own XM144-WE4 ammunition. At the completion of the contract, the modifi ed rifle is then loaned back to Winchester to support a Frankford Arsenal contra ct.) Winter: Rep. Mahon and the Deputy Secretary Gilpatric are guests at the USAF fir epower demonstration at Eglin Air Force Base. Both are impressed by a demonstrat ion of the AR-15 rifle. A similar demonstration is later arranged for President Kennedy. January: Secretary of Defense McNamara abolishes the statutory positions of the Technical Service chiefs, transferring them to the Secretary of the Army subject

to Congressional approval of his sweeping reorganization plan for the Army. McN amara proposes the creation of an Army Materiel Command and a Combat Development s Command (CDC). The new commands will be raised to the same level as CONARC. Th e responsibilities and subordinate commands of the formerly independent Technica l Services (Ordnance, Chemical, Quartermaster, Transportation, and Signal Corps) will be divided among the three major commands. The Technical Services will los e their materiel functions to the Army Materiel Command, their training function s to CONARC, and their doctrine formulation functions to the CDC. The Offices of the Chief of Ordnance and the Chemical Warfare Services will be abolished, and their staff functions will be transferred to the office of the Army's Deputy Chi ef of Staff for Logistics (DCSLOG). The Corps of Engineers and the Surgeon Gener al remain for the most part untouched. When Congress reconvenes, Air Force Secretary Zuckert visits Rep. Mahon, and one of the items discussed is the AR-15 rifle. Mahon advises that unless the USAF A R-15 rifles are in the budget, it will be better not to bring the matter to the attention of Congress. The USAF classifies the AR-15 as a standard weapon for its inventory. ARPA receives the first shipment of their 1,000-rifle order. In the letter "SPIW - Initiation of Project and Recording of Approved Military C haracteristics," the OCO approves formal specifications for the new Special Purp ose Individual Weapon (SPIW). The SPIW combines the point-fire capabilities of t he APHHW with the area-fire capabilities of the 40x46mm grenade launcher. The CRDL issues the report "Wound Ballistics of the 1.7 Grain Steel Flchette." Mel Johnson and Jack Fitzgerald, representing Advanced Developments Inc (ADInc.) , meet with ARPA Director of R&D, Dr. William H. Godell and other ARPA staff to discuss ADInc. projects. These concentrate on the rocket flchette "Discharger" an d a .22-caliber "Quick Fix" conversion for the M1/M2 Carbine. On its own, ADInc. obtains two M1 carbines for conversion, plus additional 15 and 30 round magazin es. A third carbine is later ordered along with spare barrels and 1,000 rounds o f .30 Carbine ammunition. February: Project AGILE begins operational testing of the AR-15 in Vietnam. Hill AFB conducts testing to determine whether the .223 Remington cartridge is o f sufficient quality to justify complete testing and development for USAF use. Congress approves McNamara's reorganization plans for the Army. Carrying out the reorganization is the responsibility of the Department of the Army Reorganizati on Project Office (DARPO). MG Besson is chairman of DARPO's planning group for t he Army Materiel Command, then tentatively called Materiel, Development, and Log istics Command (MDLC). US Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV) is formed. General Paul D. Harkin s is its first commander. Mel Johnson completes an outline of an ARPA proposal titled "Advanced Light Guer illa Cal. .224 Sub-Rifle System for Short Lead-Time, Lost Cost and Advanced Perf ormance." Johnson estimates a budget of $200,000 for prototype fabrication and t esting. In addition, Johnson asks for a $18,000 fee to be paid to ADInc. Weeks l ater, ARPA Director of Special Projects COL Thomas W. Brundage (USMC) declines s upport for Johnson's Sub-Rifle and Discharger proposals. March: McNamara orders Secretary of the Army Elvis J. Stahr, Jr. to accelerate t he Army's reorganization so that the new Army Materiel Command will be in full o

peration by 1 July 1962, nine months ahead of the previously proposed schedule. Secretary Stahr protests. Macdonald calls to report that he has information indicating that the House Appr opriations Committee is ready to approve the USAF request for the AR-15. The OCO approves the development timeline for the SPIW. Type classification of a SPIW as "Standard A" is projected for June 1966. On behalf of the US Army, Herman F. Hawthorne files a patent application for a t riple-bore Tround, which will be used later by the H&R SPIW. Spring: Remington submits the specifications of the .223 Remington to the Sporti ng Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers' Institute (SAAMI). Mel Johnson finalizes plans for the commercial development of the "Johnson Semia utomatic Sub-Rifle" (JSSR). April: George Sullivan receives US Patent #3,027,672 titled "Firearm with Alumin um Alloy Receiver." The OCSA receives a fact sheet titled "ArmaLite Rifle, AR-15, Cal. .223." McNamara approves a plan by MG Besson to establish early operations of the Army Materiel Command. Upon approval of Besson's plan, the activation of the Army Mat eriel Command is pushed back to August. ADInc. and Interarmco make arrangements for Interarmco to represent ADInc. produ cts overseas, particularly the Sub-Rifle/Guerilla Gun. Interarmco provides two a dditional M1 carbines for conversion to .224. Aberdeen's D&PS publishes the report "Test of Rifle, Assault, 7.62mm, Model 1958 , Czech." May: The American Rifleman publishes an article on the AR-15. From their limited testing during the winter, the authors allege that the rifle/cartridge combinat ion is unreliable and inaccurate. This is primarily attributed to the stability of the bullet under cold weather conditions. They suggest that the rifling twist be changed from 1-in-14" to 1-in-12". The USAF resubmits its request for the procurement of 8,500 AR-15 rifles and 8.5 million rounds of ammunition. During Congressional hearings, the USAF is asked to rebut the American Rifleman article. Members of the Appropriations Committee are suitably impressed with the quality of the USAF's arguments, and within days , the funding is approved. The US Navy orders a small quantity of AR-15 rifles for service testing by its S EAL teams. Ultimately, 172 rifles are ordered for team use. (One source claims t hat SEAL Team Two's Lt. Ray Boehm used the open purchase system to procure 136 r ifles straight from Colt, with 66 going to SEAL Team Two and the remainder to SE AL Team One.) Secretary of the Army Stahr tenders his resignation. The Department of the Army officially establishes the Army Materiel Command (AMC ) as a major field command. MG Nelson M. Lynde, Jr. is appointed commander of the US Army Ordnance Weapons C ommand (OWC).

The Johnson "Guerilla Gun" is publicly demonstrated for the first time at the Am erican Ordnance Association meeting at Aberdeen. Mel Johnson leaves one converte d carbine behind for testing by the Limited Warfare Laboratory (LWL). June: Demonstrations of the AR-15 are held for OSD staff. Those in attendance in clude Systems Analyst Alain C. Enthoven and Comptroller Charles J. Hitch. Attend ees are allowed to test fire the AR-15 along with the M14 and AK-47. The BRL publishes "Estimated Incapacitation Probabilities of Caliber .14 Bullets ." Tests had been ordered on behalf of Springfield Armory, who had developed man ufacturing techniques for micro-caliber barrels. The cartridge, based on a necke d down .222 Remington, launched a 17 grain projectile at 4,400fps. Winchester is awarded a new contract to design, fabricate and test an improved " soft recoil" mechanism to fire short bursts of FA-XM144 ammunition. Second Half 1962: AAI continues development of its small arms mechanisms to fire XM110 ammunition. The contract is extended from August to October, and then to December when it is cancelled. During this period, AAI completes fabrication and limited testing of its Model #4 firing mechanism. Winchester's improved "soft recoil" prototype mechanism contract is extended fro m mid-December 1962 to mid-February 1963. Functional difficulties are experience d. July: ARPA's operational testing of the AR-15 in Vietnam ends. Later in the mont h, ARPA releases the report "Test of ArmaLite Rifle, AR-15." The report conclude s that the AR-15 is superior to the M2 Carbine, and better suited for Vietnamese soldiers than the M1 rifle, the M1918 BAR, and the Thompson SMG. Vietnamese tro ops and their US advisors reportedly considered the AR-15 "the best "all around" shoulder weapon" then in use. ARPA notes that there were no part breakages in n early 80,000 rounds fired, and only two parts were replaced. The report also inc ludes graphic details of the .223 Remington's terminal effects. The results are typically described as "explosive." ARPA recommends that the AR-15 be adopted as the basic weapon for all South Vietnamese forces. No deficiencies are noted, an d only two minor changes are recommended. One is to roughen the texture of the u pper surfaces of the handguard for a more secure grip when a soldier's hands are wet. The second is to add an additional section to the cleaning rod along with a T-shaped handle. Ordnance Weapons Command is renamed US Army Weapons Command (USAWC or WECOM). Or dnance Special Weapons Ammunition Command is renamed US Army Munitions Command ( MUCOM). On behalf of Comptroller Hitch, the Systems Analysis Directorate of the OSD begi ns a study of rifle procurement. Gene Stoner receives US Patent #3,045,555 titled "Automatic Trigger Mechanism wi th Three Sears and a Rotatable Control Member." Department of Defense General Counsel Cyrus R. Vance becomes Secretary of the Ar my. Mel Johnson prepares a detailed cost analysis for JSSR conversions. Johnson also prepares a press package on the JSSR and MMJ 5.7mm for firearm and hunting maga zines. August: The USAF officially awards Colt the contract for 8,500 AR-15 and ammunit ion. Following the procurement of the initial quantity of weapons, the USAF incl udes 19,000 new AR-15 rifles in its FY 1963 budget.

The AMC is activated with LTG Frank S. Besson, Jr. as its first commander. AMC i s organized initially into five commodity major subordinate commands (MSCs); Ele ctronics Command, Missile Command, Munitions Command, Mobility Command, and Weap ons Command; and two functional MSCs; Supply and Maintenance Command (SMC) and T est and Evaluation Command (TECOM). Dr. Carten is reassigned as the Technical Co ordinator of the Weapons Development Branch of the AMC's Research, Development, & Equipment Directorate. ARPA sends to the White House a brief titled "AR-15 Armalite Rifle, Test Complet ion and Adoption for Vietnamese Armed Forces." General Harkins, the commander of MACV, requests a $4.6 million add-on to the FY 1963 Military Assistance Program (MAP) budget. This funding will be used to acq uire 20,530 AR-15 rifles for implementation of the Project AGILE recommendations . The CRDL issues the report "Wound Ballistics of the 15.2 Grain Steel Flchette." September: Secretary Vance requests that the Army reassess the M14 program, taki ng into account the capabilities of the AR-15 and the SPIW. Admiral Harry D. Felt, the Commander in Chief, Pacific Command (CINCPAC), denies MACV's request for AR-15 rifles. While the AR-15 is considered to be an excelle nt weapon, the decision is made on the basis of the cost of introducing the new rifle into the MAP. Moreover, these funds are needed for other projects with hig her priority. The issue of funding is critical as Secretary McNamara had already reduced the FY 1963 MAP budget. The Systems Analysis Directorate of the OSD finishes the report on rifle procure ment requested by Comptroller Hitch. Titled "A Comparison of AR-15 and M14 Rifle s," known hereafter as the Hitch Report, it details the history of intermediate service rifle cartridges and related theory from the .276 Pedersen up to the cur rent AR-15. The study concludes that the AR-15 is superior to the M14 and AK-47. AR-15 equipped squads are theoretically credited with the potential to inflict up to five times more enemy causalities to those issued the M14. The AR-15 is al so credited with being more reliable and durable than the M14. The report furthe r suggests that the M14 is inferior to the AK-47 and even the M1 rifle. Two days after the Hitch Report is released, the OCSA replies to Secretary Vance 's query in a memo titled "Rifle Procurement Program." The memo criticizes the A R-15 on several points. First and foremost is logistics and NATO standardization . It is alleged that it would take 27 months for AR-15 production to meet the cu rrent rate of M14 production (300,000 per year). It is considered undesirable to have Colt as the sole source of production. The American Rifleman article is ci ted for the AR-15's inaccuracy in cold weather, yet changing the rifling twist w ould likely decrease of the rifle's lethality. Furthermore, the M14 is claimed t o already be superior in penetration and lethality to the AR-15. It concludes th at "The AR-15 is not now acceptable for the Army for universal use." WECOM HQ announces the possibility of an accelerated schedule for SPIW. Fall: Mel Johnson finishes work on his MMJ 5.7mm wildcat cartridge and "Spitfire " carbine conversion. Based on a necked down .30 Carbine case, the wildcat was d esigned in conjunction with Lysle Kilbourn (father of the wildcat .22 K-Hornet) and with assistance from H.P. White Laboratory and the Lyman Gun Sight Company. October: After receiving a briefing on the Hitch Report, McNamara sends a memo t o Secretary Vance asking why the "definitely inferior" M14 was being procured wh en the "markedly superior" AR-15 was available? Vance passes the question on to

the newly appointed Army Chief of Staff General Earle G. Wheeler. In response to McNamara and Vance's requests, General Wheeler orders a series of tactical and technical tests of the relative merits of the M14, AR-15, and AK-4 7. Testing is to be performed at bases in the US, Europe, the Caribbean, and the Arctic. Department of the Army representatives contact General Harkins indicting that th ey are now willing to support MACV's request for AR-15. Furthermore, they recomm end suspending the supply of all M1 rifles and carbines in the Vietnam FY 1963 M AP pending the approval of the AR-15. General Harkins resubmits his request. Adm iral Felt again refuses to approve the proposal, stating that the AR-15 has alre ady been considered and turned down. Representatives from the AMC, Aberdeen's BRL and D&PS, TECOM, and the USAIB meet at AMC headquarters for an informal planning conference regarding the ordered r ifle evaluations. A memorandum from the Infantry Board representative states: "The US Army Infantry Board will conduct only those tests that will reflect adversely on the AR-15..." The US Army orders 300 AR-15 and 600,000 rounds of ammunition for test and evalu ation. President Kennedy is briefed on the Hitch Report by science advisor Jerome Weisn er. The Ogden Air Materiel Area sends a letter titled "Production of Cartridge, 5.64 mm, H.V. Ball," which outlines the USAF's additional requirement for ammunition above that already on order. A partial technical data package is sent to Picati nny Arsenal, asking if the Army had any interest. (5.64mm converts to .222" in r eference to the designation .222 Remington Special.) WECOM briefs forty-six companies on the SPIW program. Emboldened by the positive industry response, the anticipated type classification date is moved to June 19 65. Springfield is told that it must eliminate one of its two SPIW designs. November: With President Kennedy's interest peaked after the Hitch Report briefi ng, McNamara demands that General Wheeler provide his conclusions on the rifle i ssue by January 31, 1963. Secretary Vance sends a memo to General Wheeler titled "Evaluation of the AR-15 Rifle." Vance urges that "the CDC test plan be expanded or modified in a manner which will afford further evaluation of the conclusions reached in the...(1959) CDEC report." A meeting is held at Frankford Arsenal with representatives from the USAF. Frank ford Arsenal agrees that they will prepare an initial technical data package for a one-time Air Force purchase of commercial cartridges for use in the AR-15 rif le. LTG Besson approves adding 38 AR-15 to the existing order for 300 rifles. The OSD submits a budget reprogramming action for the procurement of 19 million rounds of .223 ammunition. Frankford Arsenal creates a small quantity of duplex .223 loads. This consists o f a forward bullet of 33 grains followed by a trailing slug of 34 grains. The ve

locity is quoted as 2,760fps. Springfield reviews the SPIW program requirements, formulates a development plan , and down-selects its favored SPIW design for further development. The developm ent plan includes the placement of contracts for support in the design, developm ent, and fabrication of a large capacity magazine, a grenade launcher, and a muz zle device. At the request of WECOM, contract negotiations with AAI are initiated for the fa brication of three of the Model #4 firing mechanisms. In addition to fabrication , the contract calls for additional development of the mechanism to improve func tional reliability. December: Aberdeen's D&PS publishes the report "Comparative Evaluation of AR-15 and M14 Rifles." During testing, the AR-15 produces groups less than half the si ze of the M14 in full-automatic fire. However, the water in the bore issue raise s its head once again. The US Army Arctic Test Board publishes "Comparative Evaluation of AR-15, M14, a nd AK-47 rifles and M79 Grenade Launcher." The CDC's Infantry Combat Developments Agency files the report "Rifle Evaluation Study." The objectives of the study were: to evaluate the employment of small a rms to determine the desired military characteristics of a rifle; to assess the M14, M14 (USAIB), AR-15, AK-47, and SPIW to determine the preferable weapon in m eeting the desired military characteristics; and to make recommendations on rete ntion of the M14, adoption of the AR-15, and development of the AK-47 type and S PIW. The authors conclude that increased emphasis be put on the SPIW program to speed up its development. In the interim, M14 (USAIB) conversion kits should be put into production and be issued as soon as possible to field units. Full or pa rtial adoption of the AK-47 or AR-15 would be unacceptable as they do not meet t he requirements for an Infantry squad weapon. The number of malfunctions by the AR-15 indicates that the AR-15 is not now sufficiently reliable for issue to com bat units. However, considerations should be made for its possible use by Specia l Forces units. CDCEC publishes "Comparative Evaluation of Rifles." The CDC publishes its own report also titled "Rifle Evaluation Study." The autho r concludes that the AR-15 is the best choice for world-wide use, but the rifle is not yet ready for deployment. The report recommends: Continue use of the M14 by US Army Forces in Europe and equip all units earm arked for deployment to Europe with the M14, except airborne and Special Forces units. Correct the AR-15's deficiencies in reliability and night firing capabilitie s. Equip the following with the AR-15 in priority shown: Air Assault units; Airborne units; Special Forces units. Slow conversion from M1 to M14 in other areas. Final decision with respect t o these units can be based on the experience of the units equipped with the AR-1 5. In units armed with the M14, replace the M14 with a version of the M14 (USAI B) for automatic riflemen only. Continue the SPIW program looking toward a long-range marked improvement ove r all other weapons considered. The USAIB issues the reports "Rifle Evaluation" and "Comparative Evaluation of A

R-15 (Armalite) and M14 Rifles." The US Army Infantry School (USAIS) publishes the report "Evaluation Exercise 3 Dec - 20 Dec 62" covering their evaluation of the AR-15. The CDC also publishes the report "Comparative Evaluation AR-15 and M14 Rifles." TECOM issues the report "Comparative Evaluation of U.S. Army Rifle 7.62mm, M14; Armalite Rifle Caliber .223, AR-15; Soviet Assault Rifle AK-47." Laurence F. Moore, at the Army Research Office, publishes the report "Studies of Rifle Effectiveness." Secretary Vance orders US Army Inspector General MG Edward H. McDaniel to review the Army's conduct of the comparative rifle testing. Aberdeen's BRL issues the report "Comparative Effectiveness Evaluation of the M1 4 and Other Rifle Concepts." The study indicates that, in automatic fire, the nu mber of hits per trigger pull for a flchette-firing weapon will be from 10 percen t to 270 percent higher than for the M14 rifle, at ranges between 50 and 300 met ers and in bursts of from 3 to 5 rounds. In semiautomatic fire, the flchette-firi ng weapon will produce about three times as many casualties as the M14 rifle. Al though the incapacitating probabilities per trigger pull are about the same for the two weapons, the flchette-firing weapon will produce 20 percent more casualti es in the same period of time. The hit probability per trigger pull for the flche tte-firing weapon in semiautomatic fire at ranges of from 100 to 300 meters will be between 12 percent and 18 percent higher than for the M14; in automatic fire , the flchette-firing weapon will be about twice as effective as the M14. On the basis of effectiveness per round of ammunition fired, therefore, the flchette-fir ing weapon will be about seven times as effective as the M14. Ten companies provide formal written SPIW proposals. (Next: 5.56mm 1963-1966) by Daniel E. Watters, Small Arms Historian Return to Top of Page TGZ is hosted by TCMi Links 'n' Stuff The Gun Zone 5.56mm 'Prologue' bullet5.56mm 1957-1962 5.56mm 1963-1964 5.56mm 1965-1966 5.56mm 1967 5.56mm 1968-1969 5.56mm 1970-1973 5.56mm 1974-1979 5.56mm 1980-1985 5.56mm 1986-1989 5.56mm 1990-1994 5.56mm 1995-1999 5.56mm 2000-2001 5.56mm 2002-2003 5.56mm 2004 5.56mm 2005 5.56mm 2006 5.56mm 2007 5.56mm 2008 5.56mm 2009

5.56mm Propellant 5.56mm FAQ - v1.14 5.56mm v. .223 Rem Flchette / SPIW Multiplex / SALVO Green Ammo TGZ Blog Tango George Zulu Daniel Watters' suggested syllabus The Black Rifle by R. Blake Stevens and Edward C. Ezell. Second Edition. Collecto r Grade Publications, Toronto, Ontario, 1992. The Great Rifle Controversy by Edward C. Ezell. Stackpole Books, Harrisburg, PA, 1984. The M16 Controversies by Thomas L. McNaugher. Praeger Publishers, New York, NY, 1984. The History and Development of the M16 Rifle and its Cartridge by David R. Hughe s. Armory Publications, Oceanside, CA, 1990. The SPIW: The Deadliest Weapon that Never Was by R. Blake Stevens and Edward C. E zell. Collector Grade Publications, Toronto, Ontario, 1985. Black Rifle II: The M16 into the 21st Century by Christopher R. Bartocci. Collect or Grade Publications, Cobourg, Ontario, 2004. The Last Enfield - SA80: The Reluctant Rifle by Steve Raw. Collector Grade Publi cations, Cobourg, Ontario, 2003. More by Daniel... Other of Watters' learned works-in-progress for TGZ include A Brief History of F lchette and Project SPIW, as well as .30 Carbine Wildcats and Miniguns and the Mo vies. Valued E-mail Utility All E-mail to TGZ is screened by MailWasher Pro for spam and viruses. For a free trial download, click here. Stop unwanted E-mail before it reaches your machine . Strongest recommendation. Document History Publication: 12/10/1998 Last Revised: 05/17/2009 2000-2013 by The Gun Zone All Rights Reserved. TGZ is a wholly independent informational Website hosted by TCMi. This page resides @ http://www.thegunzone.com/556dw-1.html in The Gun Zone! Webs ite Content Protection