The M16's Iconic Journey & Springfield's SA-16 A2 Review!

I carried my M16A2 service rifle through two tours in Iraq. Never had a jam. Never had a malfunction. I took care of her and she served me well. Cpl, USMC Fallujah, Iraq 2004 & 2005

A 20" barrel ain't no joke.

I carried an A2 for over half of my career in the Corps. I was very proficient with it. I would be happy to own one of these rifles.

I carried the M16A1 full auto and A2 burst and .45 ACP Grease gun while in uniform for 23 years.

Anyone who gets into the Vietnam-era criticisms of the M16 really need to read the congressional studies and research ARDEC conducted. As in most things military, is was much more a training and discipline issue than a mechanical issue. Also a logistics issue. All that aside, the M16A2 is an outstanding platform to start basic rifle marksmanship and should be the starting point for anyone wanting to get into the AR platform. I have a RRA A2 clone with the heavier N9 barrel and a RRA NM 2-stage trigger and it's still my favorite 5.56mm rifle in my collection. USGI iron sights, 20" barrel, rifle-length gas system, and plenty of weight to make shooting for the sake of shooting an actual pleasure and helps develop the core marksmanship principles so many skip over these days, including the Army. We don't teach and train BRM in basic training like it should be anymore, it's not developed nor sustained like it should be.

Not all Vietnam vets called it a piece of junk. I loved mine.

Yup. Love mine. Always wanted an M16 like this.

My Dad originally had the M-14 in 1965 in Vietnam ( US Army) .... He liked it but eventually got issued the M-16... He's 75 yrs old now & will still tell you he had NO Issues with his, he always kept it clean & Zero problems & loved he could carry a lot more ammo

My Dad loved his Vietnam M16. He deployed in '68 and did four tours in the Army cleaning out trenches after the Gun Ships came in, all of them with the M16. He said that by '68 the cleaning and maintenance was ironed out and they ran like a freight train. Ironically we (as a family) never owned an AR-15/M16 because growing up in the 70's and 80's they were like a Vietnam-era TIKI IDOL and lots of people saw them as bad juju. Truth is the rifle as everyone knows it (AR15/SA-16 or whatever) is brilliant. The soldiers that had to take them in to battle are heroes and we should all be proud of those soldiers who turned the M16 in to the legend it is today.

It was my issued weapon for 10-years in the Army. Deployed with it in Bosnia Herzegovina in 1996

for those of us who started on the M-16, it was a good rifle. i get annoyed by all the people who never served or carried this machine and always talking about better triggers and better grips. it was built for one purpose and it worked.

Carried the original M-16 in Viet Nam. I'm still here, so it can't be all bad. I had the opportunity to qualify with the A2 when I was a Navy doctor, battalion surgeon assigned to an infantry unit. Shot 229 out of 250 in a driving rainstorm at about 35 years old. It was a fantastic weapon. My favorite was and is still the M-14. Colion, I appreciate all you do. Tom CPL USMC CDR (MC) USNR

I carried the Colt M16A1 in the Corps, and when I decided to get a civilian version, I bought the Colt AR-15 A4. It is the most solid AR-15 that I own. Only issue I have with it is that Colt pussied out and purposely didn't mill out part of the lower, so you cannot add a fun switch without finding yourself a milling machine.

It's *beautiful*. This is the exact rifle that I used to qualify in basic training. Never missed with it, not once. Even those 500 meter silhouettes were not safe when that A2 post was dialed in. The genius is the simplicity. The more you mess with it, the more things can go wrong with it. Stay classy, A2. Or as I like to call her, "My first love."

The carry handle on the older ARs have such personality that modern flat tops lack. Glad that optic heights have changed to the point where a red dot on a carry handle is in line with modern risers.

Takes me back to my days at Camp Pendleton when we switched over from the A1 to the A2 and Billy Idol was top 40.

Thanks on the review. Everyone is so caught up on compact everything not understanding losing the lethality of achieved by having the 20" barrel in which the weapon was designed around. The 300 blackout on the other hand was designed around a compact weapon design from the groundup. A bullpup design is a solution and still have a 20" barrel. Love your content. Keep up the great work

I grew up on the M16A4 in the Marine Corps and it’s my favorite rifle ever. But when I was actually growing up in the 2000’s, the M16A2 was the rifle you saw in every movie and video game, and on the news every night when they would talk about the war in Iraq, the A2 was always there being carried by Soldiers and Marines. So seeing it so much as a kid, I’ve always wanted one

The Marine Corps started issuing the M16-A2 two weeks after I started Boot Camp. Damn glad I didn't get it in Boot Camp because it is a pound heavier than the M16-A1. I got a M16-A2 upper receiver and put it on a built-up lower receiver. Works Great!!!

This was a super smart move my Springfield. Hopefully they keep up with the retro line