Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Everybody remembers the M16 to M4 switch as a barrel length story. Paul Benfield says the barrel was the least of it.
He carried M16s through ROTC, basic training, and his first years as an admin soldier in the 82nd Airborne. Then he got to JSOC in early 2001 and everyone already had M4s, before 9/11 had even happened. But the change he actually remembers is the rail system, because it did not just add an optic. It made the rifle a platform.
Within a couple of years lieutenants were walking into gun shops and putting thousands of dollars of their own glass on an issued weapon.
In this segment:
-Why special operations had already transitioned before the rest of the Army
-The rail system, and why it changed more than the carbine did
-Junior officers buying commercial Leupold scopes for combat deployments
-Whether any of that was actually useful in Sadr City
-Early EOTech and ACOG reticles, and what he preferred in an urban fight
-The honest verdict on gear for the sake of gear
Full episode: Gun Owners Radio 522, with retired US Army Major Paul Benfield.
New episodes premiere every Sunday at 5 PM PT.
More at gunownersradio.com
#GunOwnersRadio #M4 #AR15 #RedDot #MilitaryGear
Like, subscribe, and share to help restore the Second Amendment in California!
Join this channel to get access to perks:
youtube.com/channel/UCNcb7PYnVE5ewRqA7Jlb0iw/join
Make sure Big Tech can't censor your access to our content and subscribe to our email list:
gunownersradio.com/subscribe
#2a #guns #gunowners #2ndAmendment #2ACA #ca42a #gunownersradio #gunrights #gunownersrights #rkba #shallnotbeinfringed #pewpew
--
The right to self-defense is a basic human right. Gun ownership is an integral part of that right. If you want to keep your Second Amendment rights, defend them by joining San Diego County Gun Owners (SDCGO), Orange County Gun Owners (OCGO), or Inland Empire Gun Owners (IEGO).
sandiegocountygunowners.com
orangecountygunowners.com
inlandempiregunowners.com
Support the cause by listening to Gun Owners Radio live on Sunday afternoon or on any podcast app at your leisure. Together we will win.
SUPPORT THE BUSINESSES THAT SUPPORT YOUR SELF DEFENSE RIGHTS!
Get expert legal advice on any firearm-related issues: dillonlawgp.com
Smarter web development and digital marketing help: sagetree.com
Clean your guns easier, faster, and safer! seal1.com
Get your cases & outdoor gear at C.A.R.G.O in El Cajon or visit them at cargostores.com
Everybody remembers the M16 to M4 switch as a barrel length story. Paul Benfield says the barrel was the least of it.
He carried M16s through ROTC, basic training, and his first years as an admin soldier in the 82nd Airborne. Then he got to JSOC in early 2001 and everyone already had M4s, before 9/11 had even happened. But the change he actually remembers is the rail system, because it did not just add an optic. It made the rifle a platform.
Within a couple of years lieutenants were walking into gun shops and putting thousands of dollars of their own glass on an issued weapon.
In this segment:
-Why special operations had already transitioned before the rest of the Army
-The rail system, and why it changed more than the carbine did
-Junior officers buying commercial Leupold scopes for combat deployments
-Whether any of that was actually useful in Sadr City
-Early EOTech and ACOG reticles, and what he preferred in an urban fight
-The honest verdict on gear for the sake of gear
Full episode: Gun Owners Radio 522, with retired US Army Major Paul Benfield.
New episodes premiere every Sunday at 5 PM PT.
More at gunownersradio.com
#GunOwnersRadio #M4 #AR15 #RedDot #MilitaryGear
Like, subscribe, and share to help restore the Second Amendment in California!
Join this channel to get access to perks:
youtube.com/channel/UCNcb7PYnVE5ewRqA7Jlb0iw/join
Make sure Big Tech can't censor your access to our content and subscribe to our email list:
gunownersradio.com/subscribe
#2a #guns #gunowners #2ndAmendment #2ACA #ca42a #gunownersradio #gunrights #gunownersrights #rkba #shallnotbeinfringed #pewpew
--
The right to self-defense is a basic human right. Gun ownership is an integral part of that right. If you want to keep your Second Amendment rights, defend them by joining San Diego County Gun Owners (SDCGO), Orange County Gun Owners (OCGO), or Inland Empire Gun Owners (IEGO).
sandiegocountygunowners.com
orangecountygunowners.com
inlandempiregunowners.com
Support the cause by listening to Gun Owners Radio live on Sunday afternoon or on any podcast app at your leisure. Together we will win.
SUPPORT THE BUSINESSES THAT SUPPORT YOUR SELF DEFENSE RIGHTS!
Get expert legal advice on any firearm-related issues: dillonlawgp.com
Smarter web development and digital marketing help: sagetree.com
Clean your guns easier, faster, and safer! seal1.com
Get your cases & outdoor gear at C.A.R.G.O in El Cajon or visit them at cargostores.com
