by David Crane david@defensereview.com The following article was written and published in June, 2002. It’s no secret that the performance of both the M4 Carbine and it’s 5.56x45mm caliber have, so far, been somewhat less than outstanding in the war against Al-Queda forces in Afghanistan. In short, the enemy hasn’t been dropping quickly enough when they are hit. Apparently, the …

Ya’ just gotta’ give it up to someone that can invent a better mousetrap. Rich Fitzpatrick of Magpul Industries Corp. appears to have done just that. Fitzpatrick is an ex-Marine who’s never much liked the M4′ carbine’s collapsible buttstock. He’s always felt it’s a bit too flimsy, doesn’t offer quite enough adjustment, and generally sucks ergonomically, thus providing a less-than-ideal …

by David Crane david@defensereview.com Pete Kokalis has written an article in the latest issue of SAR(Small Arms Review) on a new rifle that’s designed to be sort of a quick-fix for the Colt M4 carbine. Anyone intimately familiar with the M4 carbine knows that it has some serious problems. These include reliability problems which involve gas system blow-outs, barrels wearing …

By David Crane defrev (at) gmail (dot) com November 17th, 2002 Every once in awhile, as the editor of Defense Review, I have the rare and somewhat distinct pleasure of handling and firing a firearm that is not only brand spanking new, but actually manages to knock my socks off. Please keep in mind that I did not expect Heckler …