United States Military Grade Small Arms Weapons

Military small arms have changed dramatically in the last 100 years. Weapons are now lighter and more powerful, with improved chemical propellants. Small arms do not include infantry support weapons or weapons that need a crew of more than one person to operate.

Small Arms

Small Arms weapons include a number of weapons that are small enough for a single person to carry. They may also be called infantry weapons, because they are carried by soldiers fighting on foot. Examples of small arms weapons include:

• assault rifles

• carbines

• hand grenades

• light machine guns

• medium machine guns

• pistols

• revolvers

• rifles

• shotguns

• squad automatic weapons

• submachine guns.

Military History - GI Weapons

The term "GI " or "G.I. " is often used to refer to the equipment carried by members of the military. Although this term often is thought to mean "Government Issue " or "General Issue, " it actually refers to "galvanized iron. "

Types of U.S. Small Arms: Machine Guns

The first machine gun was invented by Sir Hiram Maxim in 1884. Machine guns are fully automatic firearms made to fire rifle cartridges at a rate of several hundred rounds per minute. Machine guns refer to fully automatic firearms, as well as components that modify firearm weapons into fully automatic firearms.

Types of U.S. Small Arms: Hand Grenades

Hand grenades are explosive devices small enough to fit in the palm of your hand. They are used both for destructive purposes and for signaling or generating a smoke cover. The standard military grade hand grenade is the M67 fragmentation grenade. Grenades have been used since the Byzantine era, with gunpowder packed into ceramic containers.

Types of U.S. Small Arms: Sniper Rifles

Sniper rifles are a type of gun designed for precise firing from a long range. These guns usually have telescopic sighting devices and are fired by a trained sharpshooter from a concealed location. Snipers are depicted in the films Shooter and Jarhead.

Examples of Current U.S. Army Small Arms

U.S. army small arms and U.S. military experimental small arms include:

• M16A2 rifle: The M16A2 was first used by the Marine Corps in the mid 1980s, and the Army began using it in the late 1980s. It has a thick barrel that allows it to be fired for longer periods of time without overheating.
• M-4 carbine: A shorter and lighter version of the M16A2 assault rifle. This was first used by the Army in 1997.
• M-24 sniper weapon: A military and police sniper rifle with a detachable telescopic sight. The M-24 was first used by the Army in 1998, and will soon be replaced with the M110 semiautomatic sniper system.
• M40A1 sniper rifle: A modified Remington 700, used by the United States Marine Corps.
• M-249 SAW: A squad automatic weapon (SAW), made in the United States. This weapon has been used since 1984. It is gas-operated and can fire both magazine ammunition and linked ammunition.
• M-240 machine gun: A general-purpose machine gun used extensively by infantry foot soldiers, on watercraft and on aircraft.
• M-2 machine gun: A heavy machine gun used since the 1920s. This small arm has been used longer than any other weapon in the history of the U.S. inventory.
• M-9 handgun: A pistol that replaced the M1911A1 as the primary handgun of the U.S. military. It has been used in service since 1990, including the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
• M-1014 joint service combat shotgun: An Italian made semi-automatic shotgun.
• MP-5 submachine gun: A 9mm submachine gun first built in the 1960s.
• M1911 semiautomatic handgun: The standard-issue pistol used by the armed forces until 1985. Still used by some U.S. armed forces.
• AR-15 assault rifle: A civilian version of the M16 and M4 carbine assault rifles.