Hey Guys,
My apologies for the late entrance into this particular discussion. I've been away doing "Army stuff" for the past couple of months, and have been largely off-line. Suffice it to say that notwithstanding some of the questionable comments in this thread to date, this subject is somewhat near and dear to my heart.
"Favourite rifle" is a good choice for the topic, as it opens up the conversation to whatever personnaly turns one's crank. "Best rifle" would have been a huge mistake, as opinions are like arseholes. And truth be told? Most of those weighing in on the latter wouldn't have had a first-hand clue what it is that they were talking about. I'm all about the favourites - I've had several over the years, with the "next best thing" replacing the last. My favourites are/were all based on first-hand experience carrying or at least extensively firing the firearms in question. At the end of the day however, my choices are mine alone. What works for you, may not work for me. And vice-versa.
I used to be a huge fan of the FN-FAL series - no big surprise based on having carried and fired it for 6 years as a Res F infantry NCM/NCO. I still like the FAL, but not so much as I used to. It is heavy, bulky, and somewhat recoil-intensive compared to its contemporaries. I tried the HK G3, and was manifestly disappointed. There's a rifle that truly craps where it eats, has excessive recoil, and an atrocious service trigger pull. Not impressed. The M14? Had one of those as well, and shot it extensively. It didn't do anything an M1 Garand couldn't, with all of the same flaws (exposed receiver internals, etc). The closest that I've ever come to near-perfection in a 7.62mm NATO battle rifle is my original 1960 "Portuguese variant" AR-10. Talk about sweet. 2/3 the weight of its FN FAL or HK G3 contemporaries, 1/3 the felt recoil of its competition thanks to its straight-line design and incredible ergonomics, and MOA performance all day long with decent milsurp ammo.
At the same time, I tried most of the 5.56mm genre. My first Colt "AR-15 Sporter 2" came along in 1986. I still have it. Nice rifle, but not my ideal. I currently carry a C7A2 on duty, and won't go down that road other than to note that "you get what you (aren't willing to) pay for". It is a piece of utter crap. I've otherwise tried the Galil ARM, Steyr AUG, AR-180, FNC, SA-80A1/A2, Colt M4, Robarm M96, PWA "Commando"(CAR 15), etc. Some of the 5.56mm rifles/carbines are better than others, but none inspire total confidence/comfort based on my personal preferences.
So where does this leave me in terms of opinion? Well, having owned a working example of just about every major military battle rifle and assault rifle design at one point or another over the past 25 years, I have finally reached the point of having a near-perfect personal favourite. And that is the AR-10 16" mid-length carbine with infantry-profile barrel. Mine is somewhat "accessorized" to suit my personal preferences, but the base carbine is a truly exceptional platform in and of itself. It handles much like a bone-stock C-8, but is far more potent and accurate. Felt recoil is on par with its 5.56mm bretheren, but it packs a serious punch at typical infantry engagement ranges of max 300m. I could go on, but until you try a decently accessorized/customized current-iteration AR-10 you are really missing some critical judgemental context as far as small arms are concerned. Just say'in....
At the end of the day, opinions are like arseholes. What works for/appeals to me may not be your personal cup of tea for any number of reasons. That's entirely cool - one could reason that this is why there are so many competing designs out there on the market. Everyone has their favorites. My preference doesn't make your's any less relevant, and vice-versa. It is (within reason) all about what works for you personally. All I'm saying is that I have a bit of hands-on experience, and what personally works for me these days is the 16" mid-length AR-10 carbine. Your own mileage may vary.
Oh - experience-based context. Here are a few pics of what I own and fire regularly. Needless to say, my personal collection is not the "end all and be all". I've fired a hockey-sock more than my personal collection contains thanks to some very obliging fellow gun owners and museums over the years. So consider my personal collection just a sampling of what is out there....
And the current favourite:
FWIW. Whatever you prefer, just make sure that you are competent with it. There's an old saying that goes "you don't need to fear the guy with a whole bunch of guns. You need to respect the guy with just one gun - 'cause chances are that he's damned good with it".
Random thoughts....
As far as current in service personal weapons go you connot beat the SA80 A2 fitted with a x4 SUSAT optical sight. It is very reliable, I fired 100's of rounds through mine in Iraq with no stoppages. It's also very accurate and easy to maintain.
