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US Musket Model 1795
The first weapon to be produced by Eli Whitney and sold in the US. they were manufactured in the armories at Springfield, Massachusetts and Harper's Ferry, Virginia. It featured all of the latest technological features at the time, such as a round hammer face and a slanted pan. This was important to American history because it started the evolution of technology in the American military. -
Interchangeable Parts Introduced
The first weapon made at the Harpers Ferry and Springfield Armories with fully interchangeable parts was the US Model 1842. It was also the first regulation musket made in the percussion ignition system by the national armories and was the last of the smoothbore .69 caliber muskets. This was important because it introduced interchangeable parts to weapons, which makes it easier and cheaper to produce them. -
The Caliber .54, Model 1841 Rifle
This weapon was the first rifle made in the percussion ignition system at a national armory. Prior to the Mexican War, it was only produced for militias in various states. The Model 1841 was made by Harpers Ferry Armory from 1846 to1855, producing about 25,296 arms. -
New Production
In 1855, Secretary Jefferson Davis authorized the production of a new .58 caliber musket rifle. It was the first general use rifle produced for the US military. A rifle version of this weapon also replaced the M1841. -
Civil war usage of weapons
The Cavalry used the carbine. There were three types they used primarily used; The Sharps, which fired a .54 Caliber paper combustible cartridge or could be loaded with a bullet and loose powder; The Spencer, which was a magazine weapon that held seven rounds of .56 caliber metallic cartridge in a tube in the buttstock; and the Burnside, which which used a unique tapered .54 Caliber metallic cartridge fired with a standard percussion cap. Of these, The Spencer was the most popular. -
Consistencies
Up until at least 1905, the .45 caliber trapdoor rifle remains in use by the National Guard. The Army stopped using it a few years prior. The most used model by both the Army and the National Guard was Model 1884 with the long-range Buffington rear sights. Soon, socket bayonets began to dwindle. The last 1884 to be produced had a ramrod bayonet. -
Changes
In 1896, the .45 caliber Model 1884 carbine was replaced by a .30 caliber carbine version of the Krag-Jorgensen. The Army made this change almost immediately, but the National Guard didn't switch over until the early 20th century. The new carbine was used by the cavalry of the Regular Army and the majority of Volunteer cavalry units during the Spanish-American War. -
Carbine in the Philippines
A small number of 1898 carbines were produced and issued during the war. Soon, it would also be replaced by a newer model: the Model 1899 carbine. This would be used to revolutionize the way we fought against insurgents in the Philipines. -
BAR
The Browning Automatic Rifle was designed as a replacement for the French light-automatic rifles by John M. Browning. The BAR was a .30 caliber, gas-operated, select-fire, air-cooled, automatic rifle that fired from an open bolt fed from a 20-round detachable box magazine. -
Thompson Submachine Gun
The Thompson Submachine Gun was originally designed for trench warfare, but by the time it was completed, it was too late to take it into the war. It was designed by General John T. Thompson who started the Auto-Ordnance Corporation in 1916 to develop the gun. It was the first weapon labeled and marketed as a submachine gun. -
Garand Rifle
The United States Rifle, Caliber .30, M1 was the first semi-automatic rifle in the world to be generally issued to the infantry. At the end of World War I, the Army started looking for a replacement for the M1903. There were many upsets and difficulties designing the new weapon, but on November 7, 1935, a new rifle was cleared for production and on January 9, 1936, it became Army standard as the M1 rifle. Soon after, they redesigned the barrel and gas cylinder assembly. -
M1's
An M1 is a semi-automatic rifle. It had an eight-round clip and gave the US an advantage because it fired more rapidly than their weapons. It was the most popular infantry weapon used in WWII and Korea. -
Grease Gun
The M3 submachine gun, most commonly referred to as the "Grease Gun", was produced by the Guide Lamp Division of General Motors Corporation. It was an automatic-only blowback operated weapon that fired from an open bolt fed from a 30-round detachable box magazine. When it was being developed, its design focused on simplified production, using metal stamping, pressing, and welding. -
M79
The M79 tried to increase firepower by using an explosive projectile that was more accurate and with a further range than a rifle grenade, but more portable than a mortar. The Army ordered it in 1960 and it was put into use in 1961. It was very popular. It could consistently drop grenades into a 24-inch circle that was 150 yards away. -
M16 Rifle
The M16 was first used by the US Air Force. It was constructed of steel with an aluminum alloy receiver and a composite plastic stock. It was lightweight, 5.56 mm caliber, air-cooled, and gas-operated with a rotating bolt actuated by direct impingement gas operation. -
Replacement
Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara wanted something better than the M14. He employed the M16 as that replacement. The Army objected to this, but he ignored them. They began to field the XM16E1, an M16 with a forward assist feature, in late 1965. Most went to Vietnam. There were many complaints about the weapon, including jamming, malfunctions, and poor penetration. Training in cleaning reduced this but did not solve them completely. -
M16A2
The M16A2 fired a NATO standard Belgian-designed M855 or M856 5.56mm cartridge. It could fire semi-automatically or in three-round bursts. The burst-fire mechanism used a three-part automatic sear that fires three rounds for each fire. The mechanism is non-resetting, which means that if you fire a two-round burst and release the trigger, it will fire a single round the next time you pull the trigger. This conserved ammo. -
Combinations
The M16A2 Rifles were consistently being replaced by the combination of the M16A4 and M4 Carbine in the US Army. The M16A4 incorporated a flattop receiver unit and a handguard with four Picatinny rails for mounting optical sights, lasers, night vision devices, forward handgrips, removable carry handle, and flashlights. The M4 was a carbine version of the M16A1 with small retractable stock and shorter barrel. The M4A1 could fire completely automatically. -
A problem
In 2006, there was a problem in the US Army with a lack of stopping power. They were using 9mm ammunition at the time and they also had problems with the magazine. Testing showed that the 9mm magazines failed due to the heavy phosphate finish the government wanted when used in the environmental conditions in Iraq. Almost two million new magazines were distributed without any further malfunctions. -
M249 Squad Automatic Weapon
The 5.56mm M249 Squad Automatic Weapon (SAW) was a fully-automatic, gas-operated, magazine or belt-fed weapon. It filled the void left by the death of the Browning automatic rifle in 1960, which previous weapons had failed to do. The M249 could also be used as a light machinegun when fired from a stable position and not required to maneuver.
