It was gas-operated with a vertically sliding chamber and featured ... a 5.56mm round from an M16 moves at about 3,000 feet per second. The rifle had very low recoil and was the cheapest of ...

Summary and Key Points: The M16 rifle, designed by Eugene Stoner and adopted by the U.S. military in the 1960s, has remained a staple due to its reliability, modularity, and effectiveness.