Is Colt the only manufacturer that has M4 feed ramps? Thanks

Glockdog

Airborne!!

Yes, they are patented. For how much longer, I don't know.

No, Armalite has them too and so does DPMS.  

So does LMT and Diemaco.  Seems like a lot of people are jumping on that band wagon, just wish they had done it sooner cause it has caused some people hardship trying to attain them in the past.  I still want to know why the recent change to more than Colt to have them now.

It's simple, really. FN beat Colt out on the M16 contract, so Colt had to come out with something FN couldn't copy, to get the M4 contract. As far as I can tell, this was done with the connivence (sp?) of the Army Ordnance people.

The reason some of the other makers of commercial ARs are copying the cuts with impunity is that Colt doesn't care about the commercial market numbers, with the possible exception of Bushmaster (who does not put the cuts in). It's all about the big bucks federal contracts.

Yes, the aftermarket folks who are doing the cuts are violating Colt's patent rights, but it almost certainly would cost Colt more to sue them than they are losing in sales revenue.[:D]

Thanks for the correction!

bushmaster does them too.

Really? Is this something they only offer on uppers with govt. bbls. or is it standard on all their uppers now? Just curious.  

My RRA M4 Entry has M4 feed ramp cuts as well.

Just to make sure we are on the same page, please check [url]http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=3&f=12&t=159623&w=searchPop[/url] - good picture of the M4 feedramps compared to the standard feedramps.  The M4 are cut into the upper.  I know this has been a mistake in the past - I was sold an upper which was reported to have M4 feedramps, but it did not; it simply had the standard ramps in the barrel extension.

Ditto was Iron said. I have M4 cuts on my RRA 16"SS upper as well.

A web search on these basic terms "M4 Feed Ramps Colt FN" will take you to the specifics of lawsuit/appeal whatever that took place.

My KAC SR15 M-4 has them also.

No they do not.  I have a government contract M4 with 1/7 twist and it does not have them nor have I ever seen a Bushmaster with them. Please cite your source.

My RRA M4 Entry and my Bushmaster DIssipator do not.

Only my REAL Colt M4 has them.

My bushmaster M4 does have the M4 feed ramp cuts. look at a bushmaster and see for your self.

ArmaLite is doing a little work on one of my AR-10's and that rifle will have feed ramps when it returns.

Looks like something that can be done with a good file and some moly coat.

CJ

Thanks for posting that pic Troy. I rechecked my RRA 16" SS pre-ban upper and found that the feedramps do in fact extend into the upper reciever area, but more of an in-between of the two pixs posted.
Id like to see a pic of the BM M4 feedramps.

It'd be interesting to do a patent search on the M4 ramps.

Patents are in force for only 17 years.  After that, the design is fair game.

CJ

My bushmaster M4 feed ramps look just like the colt M4 feed ramps.does anyone else have a bushmaster M4 so thay can verify this?

I just got a new Bushy M4 and it has the standard feed ramps just like my other two Bushys.

mine must be a fluke then. I swear I do have the M4 feed ramps.

Well the me-toos, brand-x's, and other assorted knockoffs riding Colt's coattails have been copying Colt for decades now. Does it really come to anyone as any big surpise that they are still copying the original and best?

To TROY and DEVL you both are right I just got my 3rd Bushmaster over the weekend and it does not have nor my first 2 have the extended ramps unless someone at the factory happened to do them on a receiver not meant to go out or the Dealer did them but no extended ramps on any of my rifles.

mine came from the factory that way. if its the only one like that is it a colectors item?

Please post pics of your Bushmaster feed ramps, the markings on the barrel, the marking on the upper, etc.  I have owned 2 Bushmasters and 3 barrels and none have  extended feed ramps.  I have never heard of one and the government rifles from Bushmaster dont have the extended feed ramps either.  

When did you purchase the rifle?  What configuration is it?  Where did you buy it?  New or used?

Unless something changed recently I dont see how your rifle can be a real, unmodified factory Bushmaster.  

This is very intersting.

I got it from a dealer about 6 weeks ago at a gun show he said it was new. it still had the warranty card with it and it looked unfired. you could be right the dealer could have done it. the barrel has the typical bushmaster markings BMP 1/9 twist 5.56 nato. I can`t post a pic right now but i will try to later.

could you just use a file to extend the feed ramps into the receiver? looks like it's an easy thing to do. like polishing the feedramp on a 1911 barrel. any reason why you can't just add the ramps to an old style receiver?

Yes, you can.  I used a dremmel tool.  They came out quite nicely.  Not as pretty as the ones I had done by KKF, but definately get the job done.


.

I also used a dremmel on my DPMS Lo-Pro and made very nice looking extended feed ramps.  [^]

the dremel is WAY too handy a tool. sounds like i have something to do when my EGW upper comes in on friday.

thanks

Boomer,
ArmaLite invented the AR-15 and everything since has been a copy.

Reasonable people can argue which is THE best.

Yup, ArmaLite was the original, which Colt [i]bought[/i] the rights to. The lineage remains pure.

You're not about to go off on some tangent attempting the equate the rebadged Eagle Arms ARs currently passed off as ArmaLites with the original ArmaLite weapons, now are you? [;)]

Edited because I remembered how to activate the links.

For all of Colt's hyped features of the M4, they only have one patent that I know of, and that is for the handguards.

[url]http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&u=/netahtml/search-adv.htm&r=60&p=2&f=G&l=50&d=ptxt&S1=colt.ASNM.&OS=an/colt&RS=AN/colt[/url]

The only other Ar-15 related patents I could find assigned to Colt are the following

[url]http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&u=/netahtml/search-adv.htm&r=62&p=2&f=G&l=50&d=ptxt&S1=colt.ASNM.&OS=an/colt&RS=AN/colt[/url]

[url]http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&u=/netahtml/search-adv.htm&r=81&p=2&f=G&l=50&d=ptxt&S1=colt.ASNM.&OS=an/colt&RS=AN/colt[/url]

[url]http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&u=/netahtml/search-adv.htm&r=103&p=3&f=G&l=50&d=ptxt&S1=colt.ASNM.&OS=an/colt&RS=AN/colt[/url]

[url]http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&u=/netahtml/search-adv.htm&r=207&p=5&f=G&l=50&d=ptxt&S1=colt.ASNM.&OS=an/colt&RS=AN/colt[/url]

Feed ramps, heavy buffers, extractor D-rings, stocks, bolts, etc. are not and never were covered by any patents.  This is why Colt had to go to court claiming irresponsible distribution of the Technical Data Package to barter with the government for a sole source deal on the M4.

I recently wondered about the M4 ramps when, last week, I received a price list from the Canadian distributor of Armalite stuff, that claimed to have M4 ramped uppers.  I knew the ramps weren't patented, so I was wondering why nobody else had been doing them up to now.  Certainly the 2002 price list didn't include M4 ramped parts.  I would guess that Bushmaster, Armalite et al have only started producing these in the last 4-6 months.