Battle Proven

The battle proven 7.62 mm M60 (MK43) machine gun series has protected the U.S., its soldiers, and its interests for over forty years. It has been involved in virtually every conflict since Vietnam and is currently employed by the United States Navy, Naval Special Warfare, U.S. Army and Army National Guard, U.S. Coast Guard and over 30 countries worldwide. However, in recent years the weapon has proven less than reliable and U.S. Military operators have lost confidence in it. Reportedly, the degradation of manufacturing quality control has resulted in unreliable weapon performance. Regardless, a more serious problem is at hand. The U.S. Military is currently at war! With this being said, our concern is that Soldiers, Sailors and Marines across the world are at serious risk operating with the current M60's (MK43's) that are in the system. The ONLY logical step that can be performed in an efficient manner to support our troops is the remanufacturing process provided by U.S. Ordnance, Inc. www.usord.com . The idea of replacing these weapon systems with another weapon system may be an answer; however it will not and cannot be Researched Developed Tested & Evaluated in a timely manner to support our troops in an immediate crisis. Understanding that a 7.62mm machine gun plays a crucial role in small and large unit tactics and is vital in the protection of military personnel and assets.

Is the M60 (MK43) series a poor weapon system? No, absolutely NOT, we have fired over a million combined rounds operationally and in training courses including several 850 round continuous fire reliability demonstrations. The M60 (MK43) series is a durable and reliable machine gun when it is built to original military specifications. We have proved this over and over in the training programs we have conducted. The Navy SEAL Teams and Army SF Units have a total of 5 conversion kits built by U.S. Ordnance to original military specs and to date report ZERO problems or malfunctions with the converted weapons.

Why not replace the M60 (MK43) with the M240 series weapon? The M240 is a great machine gun but let's start with what FN says about their own weapon “The M240 was adopted by the U.S. Military Armed Forces following a world-wide competition in search for a reliable 7.62 mm NATO machine gun suitable for use as a coaxial weapon for armored vehicle applications.” This weapon was intended for mounted applications. Yes it can be carried and it has a bi-pod (depending on the version) however the cyclic rate of fire, weight and length of the weapon does NOT make it applicable to the single operator special operations type military missions. An example is the Navy missions where there is ONLY one operator (watch stander) operating the “ Crew Served Weapon ”. Most of these missions require a weapon that can be mounted and removed efficiently to be transported from one emplacement to another and operated by one individual. This cannot be performed as efficiently with an M240 due to its weight, size, cycle rate of fire and the fact that the M240N has NO heat shield or bi-pod. Operators, FN and the government do not disagree with this. The proof is in the MK48 http://www.fnmfg.com/products/m249fam/mk48mod0.htm project which to our understanding has not gotten of to a great start. 

What is the best and quickest solution now? U.S. Ordnance Inc. can provide conversion kits for all existing M60 / Mk43 weapons currently in the US Inventory. They can also build new M60/Mk43 Mod1's that meet or exceed military specifications or bring the military's existing inventory of firearms and parts up to federal standards. By returning to quality controlled new production and remanufacturing existing inventories, the U.S. Government will save money, time and possibly lives.  

U.S. Ordnance is a firearm manufacturing company based in Reno, Nevada. In April 2000, U.S. Ordnance entered into an agreement with SACO Defense Corporation, now General Dynamics Armament Systems, and the U.S. Government. This agreement makes U.S. Ordnance the sole manufacturer of the M60 series machineguns and spare parts. This American company uses state-of-the-art machinery to create the M60E4 / MK43 Mod1's for worldwide distribution. The M60E4 / Mk43 Mod1 (7.62mm) is the latest and most advanced version in the M60 series and has evolved from a ‘Crew Served Weapon' to a truly versatile Intermediate Machine Gun capable of mounting to a platform as well as serving as a One Man Assault Weapon.  U.S. Ordnance offers the highest quality firearm production which meets or exceeds military specifications for life saving reliability.  

U.S. Ordnance can offer our government new, quality M60E4 (MK43 Mod1) (7.62mm) Machineguns with mil-spec reliable parts. U.S. Ordnance can also convert the current inventory of M60s & M60E3's to the current M60E4 / MK43 Mod1 (7.62mm) ‘Type Classified' model.  Additionally, ‘Type Classified' mil-spec replacement parts and barrels for all M60 model variations to include the fluted shortened heavy barrel can be provided at a price far below the cost of starting a new line of machineguns that would require new training, new parts inventories, modifications in operational equipment, research and development, as well as other operational testing and assessments.  

Not only is U.S. Ordnance building the new M60E4 / MK43 Mod1 (7.62mm) with state-of-the-art machinery, it has retained the services of Special Tactical Services, LLC to market the Mk43 Mod1 7.62mm Machine Gun and provide the absolute best in operator and armorer training for all of the M60 variants.  This will ensure that those who possess or purchase an M60 series 7.62mm machine gun get a weapon of superior quality as well as the finest professional automatic weapons training available to operate and maintain it. Special Tactical Services, LLC realistically trains many units in the employment and application of various Machine Guns for Combat to include the: M2HB, Mk19, M240 (all variants), M249 / Mk46 (all variants), and the M60 series.

All of these weapon systems provide awesome firepower. However, in our professional opinion no 7.62mm Machine Gun that we have tested is as durable, reliable, or provides the versatility that the new Mk43 Mod1 offers.

We support U.S. Ordnance because we believe in the weapon system that they have built, period! The above idea currently is a far better alternative than scrapping the M60 in favor of an untested, unproven, foreign developed weapon system. There is no doubt that the M240 is continuing to replace the M60 series weapon. But while the MK48 and the ‘M240 shorty' undergo testing and the military continues to look for funding to support the project, it would be quicker and more cost effective to convert the existing M60's in the inventory to a war fighting standard instead of deploying our forces with an out-of-date unreliable system.