What If the M16 Rifle Never Existed?

[Oaktree45]

If I’d a been a year older, I would have voted for him and Goldwater.

I think Goldwater's downfall was his willingness to use nukes to end the Vietnam War. Johnson won the election in a landslide popular vote.

 

[HayesGreener]

I think Goldwater's downfall was his willingness to use nukes to end the Vietnam War. Johnson won the election in a landslide popular vote.

And Curtis "bomb them into the stone age" LeMay scared the Hell out of everyone, but Vietnam would have ended very differently

 

[Biggfoot44]

I suspect that we would’ve gotten a 6-7mm rifle a lot sooner than we have, and .223 would be an obscure varmint round, eclipsed by .222.

Here's the real discussion!

The handwriting was already on the wall since the 1940's for the rise of at least parallel use of some form of Intermeadate Cartridge . But the exact form was still in the air .

A full diameter , but smaller case , in the spirit of the 7.62x39 or 7.9x33 ? A medium bore , smaller case , somewhere between 6mm and 7mm diameter ? Or going whole hog in one swoop to .22 -ish bore ?

We know how it worked out , with USA being the 750 lb Gorilla of Military aid , and influencing NATO standardation . But the medium bore option never got full exploration , and if I had a clean sheet , that's where I'd start looking .