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Posted: 9/9/2007 7:21:41 PM EDT
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I know this is old news but its still interesting. http://www.defenselink.mil/contracts/contract.aspx?contractid=3476 ARMY Bushmaster Firearms International L.L.C.*, Windham, Maine, was awarded on March 12, 2007, a $5,411,132 firm-fixed-price contract for Bushmaster rifle with 20 inch barrels, Bushmaster carbine with 11.5 inch barrel, M16A3 spare 30 round magazines, Bushmaster rifle contractor support package, Bushmaster carbine crates for 11.5 carbines, crates for M16A3 spares, and crates for Bushmaster rifles. Work will be performed in Windham, Maine, and is expected to be completed by Nov. 20, 2007. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This was a sole source contract initiated on Feb. 11, 2005. The U.S. Army Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command, Rock Island, Ill., is the contracting activity (W52H09-07-C-0086). If these weapons were purchased by a foreign military entity (e.g. Iraq) why are they listed as having been purchased by our government? Notice the .mil in the url so this is an official military website. |
Why do we give billions away in foreign aid every year? Where do you think that money comes from? |
We left close to 1,000,000 M16/M16A1 rifles behind in Vietnam, so a few A4's ain't nothing. |
By the time I left Boeing, I had taken part in building over half of the 767s in the air. So, I guesstimated that there was a 30%-40% chance that I had helped make a terrorist cruise missile....that torqued me too. |
Yep. And I've seen recent pictures of some of them in the hands of Hmong that have held onto some of them all this time in the jungle. Bet most of 'em ended up in the Gulf of Tonkin, dumped by the NVA as tools of capitalism. |
That is how the foreign military aid program works. |
Am talking present tense, Iraq is getting FMS M16A4 rifles under contract W52H09-07-C-0117, and Oman is getting FMS flat top 20" rifles under contract W52H09-07-C-0086. These are both FMS rather then MAP. |
Good point, especially if you consider that RIA has conducted at least one FMS to Oman for Carbon-15 rifles. |
Most countries who buy U.S. military hardware do so through the DoD. This includes anything that fits into the category of Foreign Military Sales (FMS). A very few of the more sophisticated countries can contract directly (some NATO, Israel, Japan, etc.). The contracts include a % to cover DoD's contract monitoring costs and other overhead. |
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Does anyone know to what "Standard" the Bushy weapons are being procured?The Gvmt press release calls them "Bushmaster rifles and carbines" or something like that with no reference to M16/M4 and/or their respective Mil-Specs. Old Mil-Spec? New Mil-spec? Bushmaster Spec? Bushmaster catalog #? Not going to lose any sleep over the answer, but curious. |
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Now now! Lets not start the Bushie bashing. I may have just purchased a 6920 (may buy another) but I still think Bushmaster makes a great product. I won't say it is as good as Colt but I have confidence in them. I was at Blackwater back in 02 and saw them in heavy use and I was impressed with them esp. for the money. Of course they have gone up a lot in price since them and for the extra couple hundred dollars I say go with Colt. If for no other reason than the resale value. |
You mean the money we gave them? We could cure cancer, give every child a college education and make sure old people aren't eating catfood bundled in sweaters if we kept a fraction of the money we shovel overseas HERE. I for one am damn tired of the govt spending our money like it's water. Glad to see Bushmaster getting the work, but damn. |
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Yeah I agree with that 100%! Alexander The Great wrote about how dirty, two faced and nasty those people are over there. Those Bulgarian AK47's were just fine for them. Guaranteed that within 10 years those Bushmasters or Colts or whatever they bought will be turned against us. |
| While I was In maine A guy flew in on a float plane to get a cup of coffe. He said he used to be partial owner of bushmaster and he said the poeple he sold it to just bought remmy. He was pretty cool but couldnt hook me up with a free AR. If this Remmy news is old forgive me I just heard |
| Man...that really sucks...one hell of a shit sandwich to eat. I'm not allowed to buy frickin Colt A4 in semi...but...Colt is cool with giving the full happy versions to the Iraqi Keystone Cops. I know there's probably a million reasons why that is...but it still pisses me off. A Colt semi version of the M16A4, lets call it a...6795 while I'm making stuff up...is right at the top of my "how cool would that be" gun list...but Colt can't do that. I love Colt and all but damn. Give us some love before people that stand a very good chance of using that gun put some of our boys in its sights...damn it! |
I would guess that its falls into the FMS (foreign military sales) segment - It lessens the redtape as of export and lets a lot of the smaller states in on the bigger actions, its a bit like a group buy thingie.. |
Because if you sell or give away M16 types, they have to buy ammo from somewhere. And who better to sell them bulk ammo at a great price, including shipping but the US Government. It's all about M-O-N-E-Y. |
It's all about Ockham's razor. But I guess conspiracy theories are more fun however. 
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If you take a look at both contracts you can see that the Iraqis are getting real deal M16A4 rifles, all the way down to the US PROP markings. Oman is getting Bushmasters, not USGI weapons, I see no specs for the weapons spelled out in the contract, but it looks like they are packed and shipped to standard. |
Thx. I'm obviously not a government procurement expert, but assumed that the procurred product had to be tied to something at least semi formal--NSN, Mil-spec, etc.--that whomever accepts these things for the gvmt and OK's payment, could use. Does DCASR accept these things?? Rhetorical question. Same question/curiosity applies to the 20 or 30 other FMS countries that BM claims as customers/users. How about manuals/spares/training. Hard to believe that the little booklet provided with civy Bushys is the only software available for foreign users. Another rhetorical question. I guess the contract could say ".... must meet the requirements of (the appropriate Mil-Spec)...." without violating anyone's proprietary turf, as the Mil-specs for the rifle and carbine are in the public domain, I believe. Anyway, thx again. |
Call me lazy, but am going to give you a link and you can have it: aais.ria.army.mil/aais/award_web_07/W52H0907C0086/000000.pdf I stayed up till 02:00 hrs last night reading USGI contracts and just don't feel up to going through a FMS contract for non USGI items. |
Looks like they are procurred to BM part numbers, with C of C, issued by BM, and source inspection at BM. No NSN. Unit price was $971 and $951 for the rifle and carbine respectively. |
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Because they do not want AKs... They consider it a loser's weapon, innacurate, and obselete... To the Iraqis, the M-4 is far superior, and they want to have some... |
Southern_Cross is this the rifle your talking about? http://www.southernohiogun.com/ar15.htm |
Good thing! Otherwise it would have busted their chops to produce carbines with 1/7 twist barrels and M4 cut feed ramps. 
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None of those fit the bill. But keep em comin...I'd love it someone found a pic of one. There actually was one on paper. I posted about it no too long ago here...I think it was the 6725...turns out only existed on paper or something like that. *** Scott...do you remember what the deal was with the 6725 (Pretty sure that was it). I remember you were the only one, as far as I know, that knew anything about it. Its in TBRII but I've never seen it anywhere else. |
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