XM-8 Demo Link

Looks like a very well thought out piece of kit. I read i't did very well in function testing VS it's contemporaries. I'm not sure who if anyone is currently fielding it....
 
I guess that there are literally dozens of prototype weapons that get reviewed and subsequently sidelined for various reasons. How is the Barrett M468 fairing, any idea?
 
Bolt catch right next to the mag release - looks like it would be fairly easy to intend to close the bolt and accidentally drop the mag.
 
The XM8 was the kinetic weapon portion of the XM29 OICW.... that had turned out to be a flop. The thing weighed as much as a main battle rifle and was much boxier for only marginal increase in performance.

Plus the concept of a fully modular weapon had already been visited once in the Stoner 63 rifle that had seen service with the US Navy Seals in limited use (from all accounts the Seals overall impression of the weapon system was positive).
 
I pulled out some literature I had on the XM8. Turns out that HK did prepare a special set of quad rail XM8's for presentation as a SCAR candidate. They were prepared to meet full SCAR specs. They were turned down for submission because SOCOM changed their minds and decided not to accept Government to Government submissions.

Also the XM8 was a tested in the ATEC Extreme Dust Test (EDT) They tested 10 sample guns from 4 manufacturers. Rifles Tested were the HK XM8, FN SCAR, HK416, and the Colt M4. Each rifle was subjected to frequent "dusting" and cleanings for a total of 6000 rounds each.

The results:
HK XM8 - 127 Stoppages/Malfunctions
FN SCAR - 226 Stoppages/Malfunctions
HK416 -223 Stoppages/Malfunctions (interesting to note here was that 117 of the total HK 416 stoppages was from one weapon).
Colt M4 - 882 Stoppages/Malfunctions

I'd hazard a guess that the XM8 is probably a better weapon system than it gets credit for...
 
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