Reviews - Carbine

 

Tokyo Marui - Colt XM-177e2(AEG)
American Experimental Helicopter Special Forces Carbine!

DolphiN#1

The XM was born out of the need for a Shorter rifle for Helicopter and tank crews in the Vietnam war. 

Infantry units had taken to the M16vn, Tank crews had got bored and pulled out some dusty M3 grease guns. 

Helicopter crews usually had M60's 

However the Special Forces units still needed something... Something special. And out of this need Armalite came out with the XM-177e2, the X standing for experimental.

"Special Forces" cachet

The XM is one of the japanese skirmishing publics favorite AEG. Due to its "Special Forces" cachet. It has also been one of the most popular due to the fact that it is ergonomically superior and a great all round.

The XM is based on the M16VN, And utilises the same reciever, However it differs in several major departments, The Barrel is considerably shorter and is covered by a "new style" Foregrip.
The butt is also a specially designed telescopic skeleton version that ratchets back into position.
This of course made it a much shorter weapon compared to the M16 VN and made it much easier to pack into the confines of special forces Hueys.

easier to handle

The XM is a favorite of many airsofters due to several of its qualities. The fact that it is much Shotter and smaller then the full size M16 means that overall it is easier to handle. 

In CQB situations, the Stock can be retracted allowing for a smaller profile and enhanced manuovreability.

In Continuous engagements the XM's lack of bulk, especially with the new style, shortened foregrip, means the centre of gravity is much further back towards the users body. This makes the whole weapon feel a lot lighter.

This of course lets you run around it, without getting too tired
 

Range wise the XM does suffer

Range wise the XM does suffer when compared to its older brother, This is due to the shorter barrel length.

The XM uses the large size hi caps as opposed to the 190 round small size magazines as used on the XM.

In the past the XM was the premier Skirmishing varient of the AR15. Nowadays we have the M4a1 and the Knights SR-15a as well as the M4a1-RIS. All of these varients are essentially Modern day versions of the XM.

Is there any reason to buy the XM in the face of such awesome competition?

Well in actual fact yes there is. 
The XM used to have the low power eg560 motor installed. Last year a new batch of XM's were produced by Tokyo Marui that contained the eg700. This has made the XM once again competitive. Although you don't have the raw power of eg1000, You can still lay down a hefty curtain of fire when needs be.

a hefty curtain of fire

The newer AR15 carbines may have more metal on them but this means that they are also much heavier. If you are unfit and have arms like Calista Flockheart then the XM will be much more comfortable and easier to use compared to the newer versions.