Specs:
10.3″ barrel
Carbine length gas system
1:7 twist barrel
Buffer that will run (55 gr) ammo
Knights Armament RIS (7″)
Standard front sight tower
Cut down rear carrying handle
Old KAC vertical fore grip
Aimpoint comp M2
Wilcox Aimpoint mount
Surefire 6P wth Wilcox mount
SOPMOD stock
Boonie Packer 2 pt adjustable sling (who else remembers that!!!!)
This was the original set up that we had in the mid 90s when we transitioned from MP5 to M4’s. There aren’t many people in the shooting and gun industry that are old enough to remember this. Most of us guys at Alias are though. This was the first real rifle caliber gun that we had that worked well for commando missions. Before this thing we were hose clamping mag lights onto CAR-15’s and using ACOG’s on top of a fixed carrying handle. This is the gun that both Tier 1 units originally took to war before the HK416. This set up has killed a shit ton of bad dudes. This is the gun that won the war; at least in my opinion. This is what the unit and the command had when we figured out how to fight in Afghanistan. How to do assaults, how to do infiltrations, how to do ambushes, the whole kit and caboodle.
Over gassed, yes. Needs more lube than normal, yes. Sucks for getting dirty when shooting with a suppressor, yes- but….. I’ll put it up against any modern weapon as long as it’s in the right hands.
It worked wet, it worked in the sand, it worked in the dirt, it worked at altitude and it shot out the 200 yards no problem. This was not an Army soldier’s gun, It was not a Marines rifle, It was an Assaulters weapon…Period.
V/R,
Kyle Defoor
“Trainer of Feeders”
Kyle Defoor is a former Special Mission Unit combat decorated Navy SEAL and sniper who served in Afghanistan. Kyle teaches firearms and tactics to military and law enforcement personnel in the United States and worldwide. He also offers marksmanship related open enrollment classes to the public.
Gunfighter Moment is a weekly feature brought to you by Alias Training & Security Services. Each week Alias brings us a different Trainer and in turn they offer some words of wisdom.
I remember that gun well. I also remember the huge Surefire light we had mounted on them. My first kills were taken with that gun and 77 grain Black Hills ammo. I have a clone of that gun, as well.
I carried the same thing; I made a clone with a .22 drop in kit, my original Aimpoint 5000 and original Surefire 6P.
MK18 MOD 0? Or was this a precursor to the CQBR?
When you say “when we figured out how to fight in Afghanistan” and then refer to ambushes, assaults abd infiltrations, was that just meaning the weapo was during the initial operations or that all TTPs had missions that were so well prepared for had to be rewritten even by teir one units that stayed combat ready?
I believe he is talking about the nuances and the fine tuning of the TTP’s from doing actual combat action verses what is in the reference material, only those who have done it and get to that “light bulb moment” will understand.
Before AFG/IRQ we were working with TTP’s from WWII/Vietnam with a few brief experiences otherwise here and there, we worked in a petri dish exposed to no outside influences besides the “what-if’s”, no one “know’s” something until they do it for real, training is one thing, experience is another.
I wondered that. I recall an article by Brandon Webb who was on thr initial Afg campaign saying he was team with a desert AO and they initially had contact drills made for close quarters stuff and then got with the Brits and/or Aussies to learn some contact drill made for more open terrain. I would have figured the Army SF folks who have similar AOs would have already been in that boat also. Really interesting to think about mixing the desert tactics with mountain tactics.
Don’t confuse Army SF, who had decades of desert experience with the platoons B Webb was with who rotated thru OEF in 2001-2002 at the rate of about 1 per month to grab a quick Combat Action Ribbon. SF teams hit the ground in Oct 2001 ready to fight and did some historic traditional SF missions.
Good articles lately, not that they aren’t usually good, but these have been very good! Thanks.
And lest we forget the 2 sided (day/night) DCU Gortex camo suits. Boo-Yah.
Awesome articles. Keep em coming SSD.
Sounds exactly like our old MK18’s! except we had an absolutley garbage single point that worked better at choking you than keep the weapon handy. All in all, it was definitely useful for ship boardings.
Geez, I would give a years pay for that reversible goretex jacket.
Look on ebay under “adventure tech” and “goretex reversible”, they aren’t expensive these days. I have few of these in different camouflages and I like them very much, they feel more breathable than standard issued ones.
Is he wearing an Arktis Vest?
I loved my Boonie Packer sling! A little dated, but way better than any of the single-points Uncle Sugar issued!