That was the rifle I carried in OIF. I have wanted a clone of what I carried for years, but the lack of a PEQ15 and the total costs always put a halt to my plans.
I eventually swallowed the pill though and went forward. This whole build took a full year. The plan was to build it up to look exactly like what I had. This was actually relatively easy because I had tons of pictures of mine and I didn't have to rely on what Google said I should have.
The intent from the get go was to be as correct as possible to my issued rifle. I was not interested in what was right or wrong for an issued A4 because if my rifle didn't have it I didn't want it.
As an example, many people say M16A4s require IUD code stickers but as you can see my rifle did not have one.
Another example of my insanity - the ATPIAL-C comes with black stickers. The PEQ15 I carried had yellow/gold. I actually found an Airsoft replica guy ( https://mod-b.net/index.php/product/...scar-p226-etc/ his website is down as of this posting) that made no fooling identical metal stickers for the PEQ15. So I took off the black stickers and put those on. They are the real deal and he even matched the serial number of my ATPIAL-C. My PEQ15 did have a black ring around the IR Illum lens, but the ATPIAL-C is tan. I won't be painting that bezel as I can't change the pressure pad for black either. I'm also probably not going to put a zip tie around it
As for the rifle itself:
I started out with a BCM 20" Upper and removed the BCM receiver (because that BCM logo will not come off) and replaced it with one without feedramps and laser markings.
Other parts include:
KAC M5 - I had rail panels on my 12:00 rail for quite a long time until a salty Gunner approached me one evening and said I was doing more harm by not letting heat escape.
3pt Sling - This was actually tough to find. These slings are obviously not very popular and took a ton of internet research to find. I knew what kind of sling I had but I had no idea what it was called. Apparently it's called an AF-4111 and I found it on Ebay for $10 brand new.
OKC Bayonet - I never carried my bayonet with me, but I did have one.
TA31RCOA4
Matech BUIS - I actually didn't have one of these on for most of the time I was in OIF because I wanted the ACOG as far back as possible on my rifle due to the eye relief. I eventually put one on after I saw a guy drop his rifle off the turret of a 7 ton and broke the mount (his ACOG still worked though!) He had to borrow a carry handle that wasn't zeroed for a few days.
The lower was annoying to say the least. I was really hoping FN would get it right and release their M16A4 collector's series rifles with proper roll marks. Unfortunately, they really dropped the ball. 5.56MMX45NATO caliber markings, FN15, SAFE-FIRE-AUTO, etc. It was so bad that I had to avoid it based on principal.
I already had an OIF lower from PSA. At least the city/state of manufacture is correct.The lower has actually grown on me a lot, and it now feels more personal to me.
BCM Stock/Pistol Grip - I wish I could find an FN stock. The stock on my A4 was smooth as glass and a very deep shiny black. This stock is textured plastic and almost grey.
DD LPK
I wasted a shit ton of money in this build. It will be shot frequently, but really serves no purpose other than making me happy. While I'm not the "I'm a veteran!" type yet, maybe when I am in my 60s my grandkids will get a kick out of shooting the same kind of rifle I carried "over there". It will surely be interesting to see if the M16A4 becomes viewed as an antique the same way we view the Garand today. Given that even the Marine Corps is transitioning from the M16A4 to the M4 we may be there already...
Thanks for reading
All that's left now is to get it dirty
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I still had a PEQ2!
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