M14 Forum

762x51shooter

OK, so I am a bit out of date. Back when I was a 0311 in the Corps we were still issued the M16A1. I know what the changes were made to the M16A2 that came later. What I do not know is the the current configuration of the M16A4 now being used. My interest is in the carry handle rear sight. Does it use the 6/3 elevation drum of the M4 carbines or the older one found on M16A2? The reason I ask is I am building out a civilian version on a 20" BCM upper and want to get the sights right. Thanks for the info.

Semper Fi!!! OOahhh!!

vereceleritas

M16A4's have the 6/3 rear sight on their removable carry handles. 1/2moa elevation adjustments. If you're trying to do a clone of an issued M16A4 it won't even wear the carry handle. It should have a TA31RCO ACOG with a TA51 mount and a PEQ-15 or PEQ-16.

Jet

ditto for what Vareceleritas said

762x51shooter

Thanks. Yes, I know current issue has optics but I also have seen them with carry handle. As the carry handle is cheaper I will get that first and save up for the Trijicon T31RCO ($1400 last I looked ). I just needed the info to get the basic carry handle sights right.

vereceleritas

BCM lists the correct one on their website but its out of stock at the moment.

Whatsinaname181

cant go wrong with a rra.

CE1371

Yut yut.

dprice3844444

e-sarcoinc.com 35 plus shipping i think for the upper a2 handle

jmoore

Have your carry handle do double duty after you get the ACOG. (I just can't bring myself to install a fixed stock!)





Especially with the SOPMOD stock upgrade. (Running a really heavy buffer to get close to weight of the rifle buffer.)

Ragincajun1919

That's an ideal setup there. Love the SOPMOD

82nd ABN

I always though if if had a detachable carry handle it was an A3 or M3

2336USMC

The current 20" rifles with detachable carry handles are referred to as M16A4 by both the Army and Marine Corps.

From my memory back in the late 80's when the Marine Corps was adopting the M16A2, the Army did not adopt it and stayed with the M16A1 because they wanted to go directly from the A1 to a rifle with an integrated optical sight, and their rifle was planned to be called the M16A3. That never came to be and eventually the Army started buying M16A4s.

Your question made me wonder what ever happened to the M16A3 designation. I checked Wikipedia and they claim that the Navy has fielded a very small number of 20" fixed carry handle iron sight rifles like the M16A2, but with the full auto M16A1 trigger group instead of the M16A2 3 round burst, and is calling them the M16A3, so i guess that's where that model number ended up. But there are errors in that article, so take it w/ a grain of salt like everything else om Wikipedia.

Again from my memory, the first M4 carbines had fixed carry handle, and the M4A1 had detachable handle with Pic rail. The last small arms called M3 were the .30 carbine with the gen 0 NV scope and IR spotlight, or a .45ACP SMG commonly known as the Grease Gun.

GARRARD

You're almost correct 2336USMC. The M4's have a removable carrying handle as do the M4A1's. The difference is that the M4 fires 3 round burst whereas the M4A1 is full auto.

2336USMC

This is slightly OT, I hope the OP doesn't mind but it's sort of on his topic of what the correct configurations are...

There were so many variations of the carbines it's hard to keep them straight.

I'm pretty sure there was an early carbine variant, at least in the Marine Corps, that had fixed carry handle, A2 sights, and the typical fat front barrel with M203 cut... what was it if it wasn't an M4? or maybe my memory is just bad and I'm confusing it with one of the Colt commercial models.

In the Marine Corps there was also a carbine, way after the XM177E2, but before the official M4, that had a 14.5" skinny barrel 1:12" twist and A1 sights, that was very limited issue, I think it only went to Force Recon. This was mid-80's time frame. I don't know what the official M number was. It was similar to the Air Force GAU-5.

GARRARD

Are you thinking of the CAR 15 2336USMC?