Do they still use the 18" barrel on the SAW?

[ABNAK]

Specifically infantry units, be they Army or Marine. I know I've seen many pics in recent years of SAW's and all the rage has been the short barrelled ones for CQB and MOUT-type ops.

I was thinking that the original 18" barrel would provide better ballistics in more open AO's like Afghanistan.

[C-grunt]

My unit was switching to the shorter barreled SAW as I was getting out. During my second tour probably about half of the guys had them. The short barrel also had a different gas regulator that was supposedly more reliable.

We never had a problem with them in Iraq and I was in a very rural AO with lots of open farmland. When shooting them out at our makeshift ranges they had no real problems out to at least 800 meters when compared against the regular SAW.

[Javelin]

My unit did the switch in 2005 to the shorter barrel.

[IZinterrogator]

Barrel length and buttstock are supposed to depend on whether a SAW is listed in the MTOE as a light machine gun or an automatic rifle. In reality, few are set up properly according to MTOE anymore, with most having the short barrel due to high CDI factor.

[Armati]

Interesting question, 12 years of "persistent conflict" high OPTEMPO personnel turnover and competing priorities have caused something of a loss of standards in the Army.

Most units have what they have depending on who was in charge at the time. Some units will have both bbls available, some units will have one bbl or the other stored in the Arms Room but Joe AR does not get to have it. Sometimes they will directed to have one or the other. Some will get a choice. Most troops will mount the short bbl because it is handier in buildings, the DFAC, and vehicles. Very few M249s in theater will have to shoot at anything, much less shoot at something 600m away.