12-01-2011, 09:37 AM
stanc Wrote:Must we accept that a 20" barrel is needed? Wasn't the L129A1 (which has a 16" barrel) adopted for the long-range requirement?
I'm thinking that it'd be possible to develop a long range cartridge better than 7.62 NATO for 16" barrel weapons. More importantly, it seems like it'd be far easier to get a 16" carbine adopted by the US Army than a 20" bullpup rifle. Maybe easier to get adopted by the British Army, too, if they've soured on bullpups.
The L129A1 was given a 16 inch barrel because someone involved in specifying the gun thought it would be useful for room-clearing....a DMR, compromised for room clearing? However, you may be right that it turns out to be the most achievable compromise.
Officially the BA is neutral on the bullpup question, but they definitely want to buy off-the-shelf next time and will be looking for a well-tested system to avoid any risk of the problems which beset the SA80. Bearing in mind that the UK is only likely to buy from HK, FN or the USA, what is there in the way of bullpups? Only the FN F2000, and that has handling issues which the small-arms experts in the BA are not happy with. So the next rifle will almost certainly not be a bullpup, simply for that reason.
The best I can hope for is that they go for a modular, multi-calibre rifle which can be acquired in 5.56mm and 7.62mm initially, and is readily adaptable via a conversion kit to any intermediate round.