SOCOM M4A1 useless (or not) info

[JEVapa]

I saw a thread about Colt SOCOM M4A1s and something about how to know if it is or value or some shit and it made me think. A comment made was "SOCOM" would be roll marked on the lower. This is untrue. The lower will be marked almost exactly like they were when issued to the GOV with a serial number.
Like this
PROPERTY OF THE US GOVT
M4A1 CARBINE
CAL. 5.56 MM
########
I've owned a couple of them. The only thing that makes them "special" is they have a 14.5" barrel P&W, a RIS - maybe KAC or maybe another vendor and a Matech BUIS.

FYI, The US Army is the proponent for the M4A1 and always has been but other services could dictate procurement, accessories blah blah blah. The SOCOM M4A1 is a modification kit called SOPMOD (Special Operations Peculiar MODification). For the Colt repops, it's a "SOPMOD Block one" setup with RAS, an Army rear sight (Matech) and a standard M4A1 14.5 barrel and an extended A2 flashhider. The actual Colt SOCOM M4A1 Repop is in reality an as-issued to Army rifle. The config they are in is the same config the Army adopted as their Primary service rifle after the M16A2 right so it's not really a SOPMOD gun.

An actual real life SOPMOD BLK 1 M4A1 pretty much only had a removable carry handle for an iron sight...the available sights based on the units BOI from Crane were the KAC 300m (Which I have never seen on an M4 until SOPMOD BLK II; the Navy cats would get them, not Army), LMT, ARMS #40 which mostly went on MK18s and MK12s/MK11s (these also used KAC 600m BUIS). Occasionally they found their way onto somebody's gun but that was usually a hookup. There weren't any real BUIS issued to SOPMOD until Block 2 (in 2005ish the Army issued to Army SOF the Matech). We always had issued Smith Enterprise's or ARMS carry handle rails.

SOPMOD BLK 1 M4A1s used a Knight's Armament RIS/RAS and a KAC flashhider for a KAC QDSS NT4 suppressor. They came with and without SOCOM heavy barrels, depending on where the upper came from. If it came from Crane, there was a good chance it might be an HB. If it came from Colt or the Army, it was always the standard 14.5" M4 barrel. Eotechs weren't rolled into SOPMOD until BLK II but were issued by Crane, and the Surefire M900 was an additional non SOPMOD accessory from Crane...it may have got rolled into SOPMOD at some point but they had a bunch of stuff as accessories.

 

[Beautiful Mulberry]

Sound good to me! I learned something new.
My grandpas brother was in the navy and was issued a m1 carbine and a colt 1911.
After the war he kept them. (Not sure how)
After his brother passed grandpa took them to the antique roadshow 90s,(it was and old tv show) and asked what they were worth at first they didn’t believe him once they looked up the serial numbers they discovered he was telling the truth.
His was not marked US GOVERNMENT

 

[HoLeChit]

What was the point of a P&W flash hider? Was it just to prevent loss in the field or loosening when used with a can?

 

[JEVapa]

What was the point of a P&W flash hider? Was it just to prevent loss in the field or loosening when used with a can?

The P&W is what FN and Colt do for their M4A1s to use a 14.5” barrel for civilians/commercial sales. Like ones you can buy online. They were not P&W for issued guns…that would be dumb

 

[SoonerP226]

The P&W is what FN and Colt do for their M4A1s to use a 14.5” barrel for civilians/commercial sales.

Yeah, all the P&W AR barrels I ever saw were done to get them over the 16” minimum to avoid NFA entanglements. Back in the day they were CAR-15/XM-177 clones.

 

[HoLeChit]

The P&W is what FN and Colt do for their M4A1s to use a 14.5” barrel for civilians/commercial sales. Like ones you can buy online. They were not P&W for issued guns…that would be dumb

Ahhh I guess I misread, thought you were referring to issued weapons being p/w. Thought that was kinda weird.

 

[KurtM]

I'm pretty sure that the block 1 SOPMOD was one of the first introductions of the Knights FMD. Also I note the inclusion of the "self adjusting" Trijicon Reflex sight, which I told them how to fix which led to a Trijicon sponsorship for a while. Love me the TA-11!!!!!

 

[JEVapa]

Yeah. It's been on those guns since at least the late 90s. Same with the RIS I think. The poster is from around 2002 or 2003ish. They updated them every time they added stuff or revamped the kit. In 2000, it was a PAQ4 and not PEQ2 for lasers. I'm gonna see about digging up as many of those posters I can. We had some C-More looking reflex too. Like four in 2000.

 

[KurtM]

Kind of like an Israeli eye of the Falcon? Or was it a C-More. I know Cooley was big on the C-More and he was big as a trainer with CAG.
(disclaimer, Cooley is a very good amigo of mine but I never warmed up to the C-More)

 

[JEVapa]

Kind of like an Israeli eye of the Falcon? Or was it a C-More. I know Cooley was big on the C-More and he was big as a trainer with CAG.
(disclaimer, Cooley is a very good amigo of mine but I never warmed up to the C-More)

I don't remember the nomenclature. I didn't use it. I used the CompM and the ACOG mostly. The Trijicon reflex had no batteries; it was kinda like a Meprolight.

 

[KurtM]

The reflex was a good attempt, but ended up as a non starter. They would self adjust while shooting in the vertical plain to the tune of 5-15 MOA. when I first ran into the Military sales guys at Trijicon, the very first thing I told them was they had designed it wrong....great ice breaker
They had put the spring loaded detent that controlled the vertical adjustment click wheel directly in front of the sight in line with recoil. Inertia would pull the detent away from the serrated wheel that held the spring loaded vertical adjustment allowing for the vertical adjustment to free wheel. I told them how to fix it and also told them the retro fix I came up with, which save one of their larger French military contracts.