[quote=“tango_lima” post=7914][quote=“tmmorris” post=7904]I don’t really agree the LSW is a good support weapon. Firing the thing, prone position, left arm wrapped around to the rear pistol grip and bipod deployed, it’s rather good. But try tabbing with the blasted thing or (worse) advancing with it at low port, and it’s a front-heavy nightmare.
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So it’s a good support weapon, but you need to do more push ups? .[/quote]
No. It’s horrendous. Waste of time money and effort. The major down side being its a “support” weapon with the magazine capacity the same as your rifleman. Give me a Minimi or GPMG instead. Much more effective, and useful weapon as a support weapon.
The only role it is any good at is as marksmen weapon, which we now have the 7.62 marksmen for it.
All the LSWs need scrapped and salvaged, forgotten about and moved on from.
from a warfighting perspective i’d agree with you, but from a cadet perpective the LSW is an excellent choice - its a very easy rifle for smaller, weaker cadets to fire for long periods of time (prone, obviously…), and that makes it safer - no more tired/weak cadets waving the barrel around like a Chechen wedding guest while doing an unload/makesafe/load, and it can also be used to provide a significant proportion of the function of a true support weapon on cadet blank-firing exercices.
its also a lot easier to get hold of from your local armoury - let alone carry - than a GPMG or Minimi…
i was always a fan, but i was using it in the DMR concept in the late 1990’s rather than as a crap GPMG. if it had been available as a 7.62 and with a better sight unit from its introduction we’d still be using it, and it would be the weapon Bn commanders scour the armouries of the UK for prior to a crunchy deployment…
from a warfighting perspective i’d agree with you, but from a cadet perpective the LSW is an excellent choice - its a very easy rifle for smaller, weaker cadets to fire for long periods of time (prone, obviously…), and that makes it safer - no more tired/weak cadets waving the barrel around like a Chechen wedding guest while doing an unload/makesafe/load, and it can also be used to provide a significant proportion of the function of a true support weapon on cadet blank-firing exercices.
its also a lot easier to get hold of from your local armoury - let alone carry - than a GPMG or Minimi…
i was always a fan, but i was using it in the DMR concept in the late 1990’s rather than as a crap GPMG. if it had been available as a 7.62 and with a better sight unit from its introduction we’d still be using it, and it would be the weapon Bn commanders scour the armouries of the UK for prior to a crunchy deployment…[/quote]
It’s a terrible weapon, the SUSAT. Well, less said about that, the better. The entire L85 range… How many millions of pounds to the Germans to make it better?
I would agree and disagree you on the Cadet side, it’s bigger and heavier and very front heavy, and using the bipod will take away from the marksmanship principles. I am not sure if I like the idea of it being a cadet weapon or hate it.
And as for blank firing, ha, fieldcraft and soldiering in the ATC? I thought that was just a standing joke between officers in the mess gobbing off about caviar and aeroplanes. The Air Force is blue don’t you know…
We still use the LSW in work… much more practical than using a gpmg or minimi… you can pretty much bounce from the L85 test to the L86 and have both done in 10 mins
Are you on any medication? The LSW is a terrible weapon for its intended role.
I would rather have the GPMG then the Minimi, or the Marksmen rifle, hands down, no duff, gen dit, forward assist, lanyarded and waterproofed. All far superior, the two guns being belt fed and the MR is a bigger round with more stopping capacity.
The LSW is terrible for a support weapon, it’s 30round magazine for a start, not belt fed. And it’s too accurate so there’s no beaten zone. It’s awkward to carry, the SA80 system is over complicated and fiddly. And the SUSAT is utter utter gash.
It’s alright as a marksmen weapon but even then I would rather take the MR or the LRR. There’s a reason why it’s called the Crow Cannon.
Didn’t use it operationally - I could see that it might have limitations as the field of view was quite narrow. SLR, blade sights, don’t open the action for cleaning (down the barrel if needed + gas plug, etc) = the bee’s knees!
On the other hand, very accurate, but the zeroing process was cumbersome. We used a non-standard zero with scribed marks for a couple of different distances where POA = fall of shot at all but one distance (100m). Got much better groups at greater distances than with open sights. If there was a good mirage, that was visible with SUSAT = good for aim-off estimation. Also had to make sure that the TMH was “rigid” on main body of the rifle rather than wobbling around.
It was terrible. And having to smash your face against it to get a good sight picture wasnt good. Post reticule was awful. The field of view was tiny. the zero process was over complicated, having to unscrew one bit, to tighten t’other.
The new LCAN sights are pretty good. Its possible to complete an ACMT/APWT with just the red dot. No awful post reticule, good eye relief, good clear sight. And ranged marks on the reticule. Now that was Something the officers got right.
alright you come up the dog section and lump a GPMG to put 30 blanks through a dog… it has it uses as i said… rather than spend ages getting the lads on a GPMG course just to blank fire it when i can whip an LSW out and say same drills… Wht done in under 5 mins and we can just pool mags for L85 PWS and L86
In that capacity yea, it would be alright, not exactly the role it’s meant for. And the GPMG is a battle winning asset. On the ground I would take a GPMG or LMG over the LSW hands down, any day of the week and twice on Sunday.
Why not just use the L85 in Bursts? It’s the same magazine capacity. pretty pointless to draw an LSW that has the same magazine capacity as the L85, if your just doing it for the pew pew factor with blanks?
I would gladly sign a GPMG out for that task, I have done it for less. I once signed one out, just the smell the Split collars. Glorious.
I carried an LSW for most of my JL Course, I was the gunner because I was one of the bigger lads in the section. (Looking back, the others must have been midgets, I’m not that big/)
Hated it. you couldn’t carry it on the sling as the swivel was too far away from the muzzle and it drooped, the only way we carried it comfortably was to use a grenade ring on one of the holes at the muzzle end of the barrel to create a front sling swivel, I then attached a Bren clip to the ring to create a movable swivel.
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