Nice Writeup about Eugene Stoner by Mikhail T. Kalashnikov.

[Hobe Sound AK]

In the new Shotgun News Special Kokalis on Machine Guns, on Page 214 There was a fitting Article that was part of a Review on the Stoner 63 Weapon's System's. This Book is a Collection of Kokalis's Articles compiled on Machine Gun's from the Shotgun News. However, I had never seen this little Article which has a Photo of the 2 of them Together holding each other's Rifle's. I never have liked Stoner, His M-16 Series, nor what I considered a Horrid little Caliber. However, it was a fitting tribute from Kalashnikov to his Friend who Died in 1997. They were able to meet Twice before he died, and were on the History Channel Special about the History of the Gun. I shall miss him when he is gone, he turned 93 back in November. We wont have Mikhail too much longer.

[old Grump]

Don't be hard on Stoner. The rifle he designed was not the one given to us in Nam, that was government mandated improvements. You want to cuss somebody cuss McNamara and LeMay. The AR 10 was a 7.62X51 and a pound lighter than the M14 but the 14 won the battle for main battle weapon. We also forced the Brits and NATO to accept the 7.62X51 instead of the .280 the Brits suggested. Then the powers that be decided a smaller bullet in a lighter gun with an effective range of 300 meters was more than plenty for American troops and the M16 was designed around the redesignated gopher round. So we left our allies with our now discarded round and went to the 5.56X45. "Ugly American" came to the lips of more than a few of our staunchest supporters.



:soapbox: okay, rant off, I getting off my soap box now before I write a book.:coffee: