UPDATED WITH ALL THE TEXT

The link has one photo.

https://www.military.com/daily...early-next-year.html

Army to Receive 7.62mm Squad Marksman Rifles as Early as Next Year

12 Jul 2019
Military.com | By Matthew Cox

Heckler & Koch Defense Inc. will soon begin delivering thousands of 7.62mm squad-designated marksman rifles to the Army to give infantry and other close-combat units a better chance of penetrating enemy body armor.

H&K will deliver "between 5,000 and 6,000" variants of the G28 rifle, which the Army plans to issue as its new squad designated marksman rifle (SDMR), according to a July 12 H&K news release.

Under the agreement, the rifles will be manufactured by H&K in Oberndorf, Germany, and will begin to arrive in the H&K-USA facility in Columbus, Georgia, early next year, according to the release. Once there, H&K-USA workers will install scopes and mounts purchased by the Army under a separate agreement.

"This is a significant achievement for Heckler & Koch," H&K-USA's chief operating officer, Michael Holley, said in the release. "The HK SDMR system will add much-needed capabilities to virtually every squad in the Army. We are honored by this opportunity."

Under the agreement, the rifles will be manufactured by H&K in Oberndorf, Germany, and will begin to arrive in the H&K-USA facility in Columbus, Georgia, early next year, according to the release. Once there, H&K-USA workers will install scopes and mounts purchased by the Army under a separate agreement.

"This is a significant achievement for Heckler & Koch," H&K-USA's chief operating officer, Michael Holley, said in the release. "The HK SDMR system will add much-needed capabilities to virtually every squad in the Army. We are honored by this opportunity."

The new SDMRs are part of an interim effort to make squads more lethal ahead of the Army’s fielding of the Next-Generation Squad Weapon system sometime in 2022, service officials have said.

In May 2017, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Milley told Senate Armed Services Committee members that the service's current M855A1 Enhanced Performance Round will not defeat enemy body armor plates similar to the U.S. military-issue rifle plates such as the Enhanced Small Arms Protective Insert, or ESAPI.

As a short-term fix, the Army selected the G28 as its M110A1 Compact Semi-Automatic Sniper System in 2016, to be used with the service's new 7.62mm enhanced performance round to give squads more penetrating power.

In the past, the Army relied on the Enhanced Battle Rifle, or EBR, 14 -- a modernized M14 equipped with an adjustable aluminum stock with pistol grip, scope and bipod legs -- to fill the growing need by infantry squads operating in Afghanistan to engage enemy fighters at longer ranges.

But the EBR is heavy, weighing just under 15 pounds unloaded. The M110A1 weighs about 11 pounds.

In the long term, the Army is working with gunmakers to develop the new Next Generation Squad Weapon (NGSW) that is slated to fire a special, government-produced 6.8mm projectile that promises higher velocities at greater ranges, service officials say.

The program is being designed to produce an automatic rifle version to replace the M249 squad automatic weapon and a carbine version to replace the M4 carbine.

Army officials said recently that they expect to begin receiving prototypes of the NGSW in July and August and that the weapon could be fielded to units beginning in late fiscal 2020.

-- Matthew Cox can be reached at matthew.cox@military.com.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Sigmund,

quote:

The program is being designed to produce an automatic rifle version to replace the M249 squad automatic weapon and a carbine version to replace the M4 carbine.

Wait - isn't this more or less an "M27+" program? Why did the Marines catch so much grief?

quote:

Originally posted by Il Cattivo:

quote:

The program is being designed to produce an automatic rifle version to replace the M249 squad automatic weapon and a carbine version to replace the M4 carbine.

Wait - isn't this more or less an "M27+" program? Why did the Marines catch so much grief?

Poor writing in the article. The Next Generation Squad Weapon (NGSW) is different than the SDMR. The NGSW is what will replace the M249 not the SDMR.

Then again, who knows these days.

^^^^

The quoted portions of the article didn't include this paragraph above the quoted section:

quote:

In the long term, the Army is working with gunmakers to develop the new Next Generation Squad Weapon (NGSW) that is slated to fire a special, government-produced 6.8mm projectile that promises higher velocities at greater ranges, service officials say.

So the M4 and M249 replacement is neither a variant of the H&K M28, nor is it an M27 as the Army is working with multiple "gunmakers" on a completely new weapon.

The M27 got grief for being magazine and not belt-fed with no quick change barrel system...things old-school machine gunners and IN officers like me tend to think are optimal for sustained rates of fire.

quote:

Originally posted by Strambo:
^^^^

The quoted portions of the article didn't include this paragraph above the quoted section:
...

The OP now has the entire article. Maybe they added to it after I posted, or (more likely...) I missed a couple paragraphs in my copying and pasting. Sorry.

Ok, I get it.
A lot of guys down range paint their rifles.

But sweet Christ-on-a-cracker, ya think H&K could turn out a rifle with one constant color? Bronze this, yellow that, brown, light brown...

Oh, the SCARs were like that, and they looked like shit, but they sold (because SEALs liked them), so now H&K is going to follow suit?

The British Army and Royal Marines bought the Lewis Machine Tool 'designated marksman' rifle, and are were/are VERY pleased with it.

Will this new gun have an American-made scope? Bipod? Anything?

So why can't America buy American, like WE did?

The scope is a Sig optics low power variable (which makes sense for the role) and the predecessor rifles were all American made KACs.

Can't say why H&K vs. LMT, but the MWS would likely be heavier.

quote:

Originally posted by tacfoley:
The British Army and Royal Marines bought the Lewis Machine Tool 'designated marksman' rifle, and are were/are VERY pleased with it.

Will this new gun have an American-made scope? Bipod? Anything?

So why can't America buy American, like WE did?

I hear what you are saying, but I don't think Brits even have a choice to buy a modern British Military semi auto rifle, since none are even made anymore..? I mean unless you want SA80s tuned by HK...

quote:

Originally posted by RHINOWSO:

quote:

Originally posted by tacfoley:
The British Army and Royal Marines bought the Lewis Machine Tool 'designated marksman' rifle, and are were/are VERY pleased with it.

Will this new gun have an American-made scope? Bipod? Anything?

So why can't America buy American, like WE did?

I hear what you are saying, but I don't think Brits even have a choice to buy a modern British Military semi auto rifle, since none are even made anymore..? I mean unless you want SA80s tuned by HK...

The H&K redesigned L95A2 is a good rifle, so I'm told, since all the mods happened after I left the Army, but the LMT arm is NOT for general troop use. It is the slightly-less than sniper duty designated marksman arm for use by the individual designated marksman who does not necessarily have the use of a dedicated spotter at this side.

Same/same deal with the USA Army.

quote:

Originally posted by tacfoley:
The British Army and Royal Marines bought the Lewis Machine Tool 'designated marksman' rifle, and are were/are VERY pleased with it.

Will this new gun have an American-made scope? Bipod? Anything?

So why can't America buy American, like WE did?

H&K pays better...