Cybergun Colt CAR-15 (Variants) GBBR

The AR-15 was first designed by Eugene Stoner and L. James Sullivan in 1959, with the rights sold to Colt and advertised as made with modern materials, lightweight, with higher stopping power, and requiring little to no maintenance, the AR-15 It was adopted by the United States Military as the M16 in 1964 during the height of the Vietnam War to replace the heavier, more rugged M14 rifle. Pushed by government higher-ups with not much knowledge of the capabilities of the M16 in jungle warfare and with the misinformation to front-line troops that thought the rifle was "self-cleaning" due to Colt's advertisements in the day, the M16 started off its military service with a rocky start, with many soldiers experiencing malfunctions during firefights as the rifles did not have the anti-corrosion properties needed in humid jungle conditions and the lack of service and cleaning by the soldiers themselves due to fact they thought it was themselves -cleaning and lacking the proper cleaning kits. 

This prompted the US government to launch a Congressional Investigation into the matter and in response, in February 1967, the XM16E1 was made and sent to Vietnam for more specialized troops to field and test. Later on, the improved XM16E1 was standardized as the M16A1. The new rifle had a chrome-plated chamber and bore to eliminate corrosion stuck cartridges, and other minor modifications. New cleaning kits, powder solvents, and lubricants were also issued. Intensive training programs in weapons cleaning were instituted including a comic book-style operations manual. As a result, reliability problems were largely resolved and the M16A1 rifle achieved popular acceptance by US troops in Vietnam. This gas airsoft gun is a faithful replica of the experimental rifle and the immediate predecessor to the legendary M16A1 rifle.

The VFC Colt XM16E1 gas airsoft rifle is fully licensed by Colt and Cybergun, adding to their collection of historical AR15 platform gas airsoft rifles. After the launch of their M733 XM177E2 gas airsoft rifles, this one is not a CAR-15 style short-barreled rifle but a full-size, 20-inch barreled M16 style rifle that also happens to model the experimental rifle mentioned above, that being said this rifle is not heavy at all. At first glance, the VFC Colt XM16E1 looks big and bulky, but once you carry it, you will notice this gas airsoft rifle with a 20-inch barrel is actually lighter than a modern 14.5-inch MK16 URG-I rifle. The XM16E1 is the direct predecessor to the M16A1 rifle that is known and loved, unlike the first M16 which many Vietnam War veterans hated. Being that this airsoft replica is fully licensed by both Cybergun and Colt you can expect that it has all the correct and period-correct markings and features. 

Externally, this XM16E1 has all the M16A1 style furniture and features or should we say the , A1 style steel dust cover, tear-drop style forward assist, A1 style lower receiver, A1 style pistol grip and of course an XM16E1 style buttstock without the trap door. The attention to detail doesn't end there as it has period correct, early styled deep engraved Colt AR-15 markings on the receiver as well as on the bottom of the 20-round gas magazine that it comes with, to top it all off , the receiver has ED coating from the factory to mimic the original color as best as they could.

This all makes this rifle a perfect collectible for the Vietnam War enthusiast, but this gas airsoft rifle is made by VFC so it isn't just a wall hanger. Internally this bad boy runs on the tried and tested VFC V3 M4 / AR 15 gas system and it has a VFC V3 steel valve knocker, steel hammer set (fire control group), VFC M4 V3 feed nozzle, a bolt carrier with silver coating and Of course as mentioned earlier, a VFC 20 round V3 gas magazine to feed the system. In simple terms, this rifle is ready to be fielded like any other VFC-made M4 / AR-15-styled gas airsoft rifles that came before it and it will perform superbly and you also would not have to worry about aftermarket parts or accessories as there is plenty to go for and it will not cost you an arm or a leg like the rifles DNA offers.

If you are looking to complete your Vietnam War larp, ​​look no further, there are no better gas airsoft rifles on the market now that could beat the VFC Colt XM16E1 gas airsoft rifle to complete your US GI look.