Bill and his M16

Originally written by AirsoftGI Bill

Ever since I started airsofting, I have been a fan of the M16.  Not only because of the long barrel, and large battery space, but to me it is the Genesis of the M4 platform, the one that started it all.  My first venture into airsoft was with an AGM M16, bare bones with no upgrades. Through holidays and using my hard earned cash, I saved and bough and NC Star Red Dot scope which I super glued (yes, you read that right. It was glued) to the carry handle of my gun. You might think this would be a problem when I wanted to change the sight, but in the end I just popped it off with a little extra elbow grease and everything seemed fine externally. At this point I was running that gun with the old school Vietnam style heat shield (Mainly because I loved the movie Predator). Eventually, I purchased a Madbull Noveske Rail System and brought my gun into the “Modern Age”.

About a year later my gun sadly died and it was time for a new one. I saved enough for an ICS M16. I transferred all my accessories over to my ICS and I was ready. I felt unstoppable with that gun. I had finally learned to tech a bit and had installed different gears, a tight bore inner barrel, different bucking, etc. That rifle lasted me a solid 4 years of use and abuse. It had seen the last of its days and it was time to upgrade once again.

This leads me to present day with my Echo 1 Platinum M16, and the end of my days of airsofting with the M203. While the badass factor was over 9000, in a day and age where speed is key, I ditched the grenade launcher for a Magpul AFG instead to play as more of a rifleman and not a grenadier. Internally, the only stock parts that are left are the gears and the piston head. With the internal tuning and tweaking done by Marq, the gun shoots with a maximum variation of 3 fps per shot and over 200 feet with a custom built R-Hopped barrel and Pro-Win hop up chamber. With the addition of a Burst Wizard, I have it shooting just as a real one would, safe, semi and 3 round burst, which adds a challenge to the play style when you have multiple targets to engage.

Externally, I still have the Madbull Noveske Rail I have had for years, a Magpul PTS pistol grip, Magpul USA AFG, Echo 1 Armor Rail Covers, JP Style Flash Hider, and an Aim Sports optic. As green is my favorite color, I have painted certain parts of my rifle, and as a result, the wear from just playing has given it the appearance that you see now. As someone having a larger physical stature and build, I love the M16. The size and layout feels so natural, it’s almost like an extension of my body. I have always loved the M16, and always plan to have one in my personal armory.