M14

Last Updated on Tuesday, 21 July 2009 16:24 Written by Administrator Thursday, 02 July 2009 16:17

The M14 was developed on the design of the earlier M1 Garand in the 1950s. The M14 can be considered as a carbine. The rifle is basically a modification of the M1 chambered for the 7.62x51mm NATO round which was gaining popularity and acceptance at that time. Though the M14 was very tough and reliable like the M1 Garand, the technology it used was already obsolete at that time.

The M14 was designed to fire in fully-automatic mode. It was capable of firing at 750 rounds per minute and thus 20-round magazine proved insufficient to sustain continuous fire at that rate. However, semi-automatic M14s were also designed as the rifle would become difficult to control when used in fully-automatic mode. Production of the rifle ran from 1957 to 1968 after which production was stopped.

When compared with other contemporary rifles in its class or even the decade old AK-47, the M14 was lacking in many regards. None of its features were cutting-edge and it was just an old-style rifle in the age of assault rifles. However, it was used in the Vietnam War. A version of the M14 designated as the M21 was designed to be used as a sniper rifle and proved itself to be very effective.

A far better design was the Ruger Mini-14. This rifle was a designed to use the 5.56x45mm NATO round and was available in both semi-automatic and fully-automatic modes. The Mini-14 was more controllable that the M14 and was thus more popular with both law enforcement agencies and civilians. The rifle also saw military sales to some extent and continues to be used by many gun enthusiasts.

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