Seeking info - H&K417 and LM&T LM7 (L129A1)

[[R-MOD]KP]

Originally Posted by [R-MOD]Bob_Marley

Also interesting that they chose a direct gas weapon. Cleaning it constantly should be lots of fun.

My thoughts exactly.

[[R-DEV]Gaz]

Originally Posted by [R-MOD]KP

My thoughts exactly.

Not a drama. Stringent clean regime with L96, L115 etc. We are anal gits and will spend longer cleaning a long than an L85A2 etc so we are confident there's no barrel fouling etc.

Just one of those things. British soldiers join the army to see the world, and end up cleaning it. Cleaning their rifle makes no change, no matter what it's designation L85A2s still fire dirty (contrary to BS media reports looking for a cack-handed story), and improve after a few rounds go down them, and I'm guessing the trails made sure of this too

[[R-MOD]KP]

I know, I know. The G3 doesn't use a gas piston system either, and it's no problem (but, then, the G3 can take a beating, then a kicking, then get abused, and still drop whoever's on the receiving end ). Just thought they'd go for some sort of gas piston system when they had the opportunity, just for those what if cases.

[[R-DEV]Ninja2dan]

Something I mentioned in our MA section, the L129A1 and LMT LM7 designations are not easy to search for because as of now they have been rarely used. For those wanting to search more information on the subject, you can look up the LMT MWS, or Modular Weapon System. You should find plenty of results in searches then, and you can also find a review here.

It's a great weapon system, shoots very well and feels very similar to other AR-style rifles. I thought the weapon was balanced well, but I'm not a fan personally of their pistol grip. I did like their SOPMOD stock, as well as a few ot their other stocks that I've demo'd. LMT does make gas piston systems, just didn't go with that approach on this specific rifle. You can purchase their 16" version though.


The truth is that a lot of people are hearing negative comments about the normal gas operation systems because of the media and soldiers not taking proper care of their weapons. The fact is that any soldier who performs proper PMCS of their rifle is going to have minimal or zero issues with a regular gas system found on most AR rifles. I have been using the M16 variants for almost 2 decades and have NEVER had a failure or stoppage due to a clogged gas system. Not once in almost 20 years, after hundreds of thousands of rounds.

The majority of people who complain about gas systems are those operating the weapons in fully-automatic without proper cleaning. One thing to remember is that those being issued the L129A1 are not generally going to be operating them in fully-automatic mode, and are going to be cleaning their rifles more often than most line grunts. The chance of a stoppage due to gas tube blockage or fouling is highly unlikely.


The nice thing about these rifles that I really like is the ability to switch between the 24" match barrel to the 16" CQB barrel in about 2 minutes. They even have a 12" barrel, although that's a little too small for my tastes.

[eztonia]

Could I ask, why did they go with the normal gas operation system if the piston technology is there. Is the piston system much more expensive then regular one or does it add more weigh to the weapon? As much as Iv heard, piston system is more like improvement then alternative but I don´t know the details. In short, what are the pros and cons of piston system.

[[R-MOD]Bob_Marley]

LM&T are of the opinion that a direct gas system is inherrently more accurate than a gas piston system.

[BloodBane611]

Thanks for the great info all around. I'm a little curious though, how does one get a short barrel threaded down between all those rails?

[[R-DEV]Ninja2dan]

Originally Posted by BloodBane611

Thanks for the great info all around. I'm a little curious though, how does one get a short barrel threaded down between all those rails?

Originally Posted by [R-DEV]Gaz

http://www.lewismachine.net/media/MR...tionManual.pdf

The short guidebook that Gaz linked to shows how their barrel changing works. They even have 5.56mm barrels as short as 10-1/2", not sure what the shortest 7.62mm length is. But even with a "snub" CQB barrel, it looks like installation is pretty simple.

[Liquid_Cow]

You guys just got a little more famous...

Saw this today on Military.com's Defense Tech section, article on the 7.62 vs 5.56 debate in the MOD and in this passage:

I did a little research and found some info on the LM7 from a random UK-​​based gamer forum. The LM7 looks a lot like a DM rifle in 7.62 with an adjustable stock.

The link to the "random" forum is to this thread!!!!

Full article here: Brits Getting into the 7.62 vs 5.56 debate

Congrats Bob et al, you are now a quoted source on things military!!!

[gazzthompson]

thats epic ^^^