Airsoft Forums UK

I see the attraction of the 6.5mm round's introduction as a general purpose rifle munition, as it's a midpoint between 5.56 and 7.62- however 7.62x51 was proven to be a terrible general purpose round in the Vietnam war- the US M14 was uncontrollable when firing in bursts, and a soldier's ammunition capacity was much lower because the rounds were heavy and magazines could only hold 20 rounds.

What's the l129 then? Thought that was 7.62?

the 7.62 has been reintroduced into the military such as the L129A1 and the SCAR variants

and Lozart is correct. A 7.62 round is not a .308, just like a 5.56 NATO round is not like a .223 Remington round.

Rifles chambered in 7.62 tend to be much heavier than their 5.56x45 counter types, as the barrel has to be wider and heavier- as well as a reinforced self-loading system. This is pretty unattractive in a general purpose rifle issued to all troops, as they'd want to be as light as possible while clearing confined spaces and moving across larger areas.

L115 uses the .338 Lapua Magnum round, DEDSEC.

It's a fucking monster round, .308 is truly dwarfed by it.

And josh- the main purpose of the L129A1 and the SCAR H are as DMRs. There is a CQB length version of the SCAR H, however I don't think it's practical at all

I agree the 5.56 is a better option for a general purpose weapon, you can carry more of it and a magazine can hold more. However I was never trying to imply that the 7.62 would be a better option regarding those variable. In a pure gun comparison of shooting accuracy and range it would beat both.

The 7.62 round was not 'reintroduced' either. It has always been used by the US. In WW2, the US used the M1 Garand which used the .30-06 Springfield round (7.62×63mm) along with the 7.62×51mm NATO (.308 Winchester). In Vietnam it was still in service along with the M14 and so on.

Hence why the 7.62x51 is used as the primary DMR calibre. If all infantrymen had completely accuratised, high maintenance rifles all as accurate and powerful as the L129 and US DMRs, then there would be a MASSIVE amount of maintenance and a large cost to the military, as normal 5.56 rifles are much cheaper than DMRs.

@josh95 yes, my comment was aimed directly at you. No one has bought or intends to buy 6.5, same goes for .300 blackout, they're solutions for a problem that doesn't exist. 5.56x45 and 7.62x51 are here to stay as they're the standard NATO calibres and various world militaries have BILLIONS invested in them.

.308 would be a bloody awful round for any kind of fighting rifle other than a sniper's rifle and even then it's outmatched by .338 and .50 for every imaginabl...

7.62x51 is NOT the same as .308 Win. Yes it's close, but it's NOT the same https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20100630075420AA9azYw

and ED sorry to disappoint but the L115a3 can also use a .300 Winchester Magnum round which is a 7.62x67 hence, the L115 fires a 7.62 round.

Alright guys, well its an interesting topic. I didnt mean to rustle anyones feathers, You cant really say that the 6.8 will definitely not see production innovations and new implementations happen everyday.

While you're correct that 6.8 is of interest the simple level of investment required to move away from the current NATO std rounds won't let it get into widespread use.

[Runs out of ink]

and however much is invested in something it doesnt really matter, there are billions of dollars worth of surplus jets sitting in scrapyards because new improved models have replaced them

It won't, although it may be used in a prototype, it would not see service at least not in our lifetimes. Just like Jcheese said, 5.56x45 and 7.62x51 are here to stay. There won't be any alternatives.

@josh95 - by that reasoning the HK416 should have replaced the M4. Except it hasn't, has it? On account of how much is invested in the standard M4 platform and how much it would cost to roll out the HK416. And that's the same calibre. Imagine trying to roll out a whole new system with all new ammo too.

we could all be wrong, we might be using laser guns in 20years , cya later guys