Comments by "Shawn R" (@shawnr771) on "Q&A #38: Short-recoil SMGs and Kimber Model 1907 .45s" video.

  1. You mentioned weapons training and weight loads. Years ago the US Military(and I assume every other military) did a study on how much weight soldiers could effectively carry. They found the average soldier(NOT Green Beret, Ranger, SEAL) could effectively carry approx 50lbs of gear while maintaining a 4 mile per hour road march pace over long distances. Increasing the weight load rapidly diminished the speed and range of the soldiers. Also increased number of injuries. For what is called a FORCE MARCH, typically soldiers drop their extra gear and only keep what was available on the LBE or LCE( whichever way you learned it. I heard both.) The speed of a FORCE march was 6 miles per hour. Weapons training doctrine in WW2 and for a little while there after was dominated by the longest shot possible training. Most units trained to shoot targets out to 1000 yards. The reality of combat showed that most engagements were at a much closer range. Shifting the training doctrine to more shooting at shorter ranges. Hitting a 300 yard target repeatedly is better training than hitting a 1000 yard target once. Breeds confidence in skills. Those that shot well were given the opportunity to shoot targets at longer range. Economics being a factor why waste ammo and time on people who may never be able to shoot consistently at longer range targets. Enter the Sniper schools. Only train those that show an aptitude for it. Also after Vietnam during training the Drill Sergeants would many times use the term WEAPONS FAMILIARIZATION. This term is just that. Training that familiarizes a soldier with a particular piece of equipment but not enough to make them an expert. How to safely load, fire, engage targets, clear malfunctions, unload, and clean. FORSCOM TRADOC set the parameters. Soldiers in Combat Arms units in the 1980s qualified twice a year with the M16 platform approx 200 rounds each time Zero through Qualification and with crew served weapons once per year. Non combat MOS soldiers qualified once per year. The level of marksmanship and hand to hand combat training had gone down up until the late 1980s. A period of relative peace for the US Military. The Urban legend of the reasoning was that if there was a war troops who were FAMILIAR(there is that word again) could be trained up quickly during predeployment cycles. If there was no war, when soldiers ETS out of the service their skills would degrade rapidly without training and they would not be a menace to society. I.E. trained killers walking the streets.
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  2.  @Sableagle  In my understanding the M16 is a rifle and the M4 variant is a carbine.
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  3.  @sanguinemoon9201  Yes. I believe the definition is all over the place. More defined by marketers. The waters are muddy. In the 1960s there was also the CAR 15, a shortened version of the M16. Where the C actually stands for Colt. I believe the prototypes were called XM177s. On military paperwork M16A1s were written down by nomenclature. Rifle 5.56mm M16A1 followed by either a National Stock Number or serial number. I saw a couple of leftover CAR 15s that had not been refitted to M16A1 with full length barrels. Prior to the M4 versions. They were issued to LTs and Radio Operators if the unit had them at all. In my mind what defines a rifle and carbine has changed over the years. Now to me it is simple if it fires a bullet it is a weapon. Does it do what I need it to do. Yes. Can I get ammo for it without selling my kidneys. Yes. Sounds like a fine weapon let us go to the range and shoot.
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  4.  @justforever96  either term is applicable depending on the Drill Sargent you heard it from.
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  5.  @StruggleBusOperator  Yep.There is really no rhyme or reason. Hurry up and wait. The proto M4's were generally XM177 better known as CAR15's. Good luck hitting something much farther away than 150 meters.
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