Bushmaster XM-15

The Bushmaster XM-15 series (or XM15^[2]) is a line of AR-15 style semi-automatic rifles and carbines manufactured by Bushmaster Firearms International, LLC.^[1] Variants include the Bushmaster M4-type Carbine, Patrolman series, QRC series, Bushmaster XM15-E2S, and the Carbon 15 line.^[1][4]

Bushmaster XM-15
Bushmaster XM15
Type	Semi-automatic rifle/carbine/ AR-15 style rifle
Place of origin	United States
Production history
Manufacturer	Bushmaster Firearms International, LLC
Specifications
Mass	8.27 lb (3.75 kg) (20" barrel, without magazine) ^[1]
Length	38.25 in (97.2 cm) (20" barrel)
Barrel length	20 in (51 cm) (rifle), 16 in (41 cm) (carbine)
Caliber	.223 Remington / 5.56×45mm NATO
Action	Gas operated, direct impingement
Rate of fire	Semi-auto^[2]
Muzzle velocity	3,260 feet per second (990 m/s) (rifle), 3,100 feet per second (940 m/s) (carbine)
Effective firing range	600 yards (550 m)^[2]
Maximum firing range	3,865 yards (3,534 m)^[2]
Feed system	STANAG magazine, 30 rounds^[3]
Sights	A2-style front post^[4]

Variants

The standard XM-15 has a forged 7075T6 aircraft-grade aluminum upper and lower receiver. Barrels of XM-15 firearms have a heavy profile and are hard chrome-lined 4150 alloy steel or 416 stainless steel.^[1][3] In Bushmaster's 2016 sales brochure, all new-production XM-15s are stated to be supplied with a 4150 steel barrel.^[4] The standard barrel has rifling of 1 turn in 9".^[2]

• E2S Series: The basic E2S is fitted with a 16-inch carbine-style barrel.
  • E2S Target^[5] - 20" heavy-barrel target rifle with A2-style stock and carry handle upper, also available with 24" and 26" barrels.
  • E2S Shorty^[6] - 16-inch version with a "shorty" handguard.^[5]
  • E2S Shorty AK^[6] - Shorty variant with 14.5-inch carbine SBR barrel with an AK-74-style muzzle brake permanently welded to the end to increase the overall length to 16 inches.
  • E2S Dissipator^[6] - Variant with a Bushmaster-designed 16-inch "Dissipator" barrel. This mounts a false gas block with a front sight at the 20" position with the real gas block in the carbine position and concealed under a rifle-length 12" handguard.
• QRC Series: Formerly known as ORC ("optics ready carbine"), but now styled as QRC ("quick response carbine"), are flat-top rifles without iron sights, provided with a simple 1x20 red-dot optic. QRC is chambered in 5.56x45mm with a 1:8 twist melonite coated barrel, M16 style bolt carrier group & mil-spec buffer tube.
• Patrolman Series:^[5] - 7" or 10.5" barrel "pistol" version with a free-float handguard and no stock. Also available as a military or LE select-fire version.
• Bushmaster M4-Type Carbine

Main article: Bushmaster M4-type Carbine

• Carbon 15

Main article: Carbon 15

Notoriety

The Bushmaster XM15-E2S "M4 type" carbine first gained notoriety for its use in the October 2002 Beltway sniper attacks.^[7][8]

A Bushmaster XM15-E2S carbine was displayed in a February 2011 video message by Caucasus Emirate leader, Dokka Umarov. Bushmaster rifles were captured by pro-Russian forces during the Russo-Georgian War.^[9]

A Bushmaster XM-15 was used in the December 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.^[10] Just before the two-year anniversary of the massacre, nine families of the 26 victims of the shooting filed a class action lawsuit in Connecticut against Bushmaster, Remington Arms and others,^[11] seeking "unspecified" damages for the defendants' purported negligent entrustment and illegal marketing of the XM-15 rifle.^[12] Plaintiffs argued that both theories of liability fell within exceptions to the 2005 Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, which affords broad civil immunity to gun manufacturers.^[13][14] The case was dismissed in superior court and was appealed to the Connecticut Supreme Court.^[15]

In March 2019, the Connecticut Supreme Court reinstated the wrongful death lawsuit, holding that the plaintiffs successfully pleaded a cause of action for illegal marketing.^[16] Remington appealed to the United States Supreme Court, which denied review on November 12, 2019.^[17] On February 15, 2022, Remington Arms insurers settled with families of Sandy Hook victims and agreed to pay a total of $73 million to families.^[18]

XM-15 rifles were also used in the 1997 North Hollywood shootout,^[19] the 2018 Nashville Waffle House shooting,^[20] and the 2022 Buffalo shooting.^[21]

An XM15-E2 was captured from Islamic State fighters in Sinjar Mountains by Peshmerga during the Iraqi Civil War.^[22]

Legality

As of October 2, 2000, California has banned the Bushmaster XM15 by name in the Kasler v. Lockyer Assault Weapon List, among other AR-style rifles by Armalite, DPMS, Colt, and Eagle Arms, to name a few.^[23]

As a result of the Sandy Hook school shooting:

• New York State banned the Bushmaster XM-15 series and assault weapons in the January 2013 NY SAFE Act.^[24]
• The XM-15 series is among over 100 named firearms added to the Connecticut state assault weapon ban list in an April 2013 amendment, passed in the wake of the Sandy Hook school shooting.^[25][26]

Users

 

A map with users of the Bushmaster XM-15 in blue

•   Brazil: Federal Police of Brazil^[27]
•   New Zealand: New Zealand Police^[28]
•   Papua New Guinea^[29][30]
•   Poland: Used by JW GROM.^[31]

Non-state actors

•   Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant^[22]
•   Caucasus Emirate^[9]

References

1. McNab, Chris (2007). Sporting Guns: A Guide to the World's Rifles and Shotguns. Macmillan. p. 173. ISBN 978-0312368234.
2. Bushmaster XM15 operating manual, 1999 revision: statistics are for Bushmaster XM15-E2S 2023-06-19 at the Wayback Machine
3. . Archived from the original on 2016-08-11. Retrieved 2016-07-24.
4. Bushmaster Firearms 2016 sales brochure 2023-06-19 at the Wayback Machine
5. Lee, Jerry (29 January 2016). 2016 Standard Catalog of Firearms: The Collector's Price and Reference Guide. F+W Media, Inc. ISBN 9781440244414 – via Google Books.
6. Shideler, Dan (20 August 2010). Guns Illustrated 2011: The Latest Guns, Specs & Prices. F+W Media, Inc. ISBN 9781440216244 – via Google Books.
7. Carter, Gregg Lee (2006). Gun Control in the United States: A Reference Handbook. ABC-CLIO. p. 151. ISBN 9781851097609. Retrieved 24 August 2016. The most infamous example is the Bushmaster ...rifle that John Allen Muhammed and John Lee Malvo use in their October 2002 Washington D.C., killing spree.
8. Harrison, Judy (11 Nov 2004). "Colt's federal suit against rival firearm firm gets moved to Maine". Knight Ridder Tribune Business News. Bushmaster's XM-15 E2s "M4 type" carbine allegedly was used by John Allen Muhammad and has gained notoriety as the weapon used in the Washington, D.C., area sniper shootings, according to the complaint.
9. . Calibre Obscura. December 21, 2021. Archived from the original on December 22, 2021.
10. Lysiak, Matthew (23 Feb 2016). . Newsweek. Newsweek LLC. Archived from the original on June 2, 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2016.
11. ALTIMARI, DAVE. "Sandy Hook Families' Suit Against Gun Maker Will Test Federal Law". courant.com. Retrieved 2019-12-31.
12. Fantz, Ashley (20 June 2016). . CNN. CNN LLC. Archived from the original on March 16, 2023.
13. Terrill, Daniel (2016-02-22). . Guns.com. Archived from the original on March 7, 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2016.
14. Obbie, Mark (17 February 2016). . The Atlantic. The Atlantic Monthly Group. Archived from the original on March 20, 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2016.
15. Johnson, Alex. . NBC News. Archived from the original on March 24, 2023. Retrieved May 2, 2018.
16. Collins, Dave (14 March 2019). . AP News. The Associated Press. Archived from the original on March 10, 2023. Retrieved 5 September 2019.
17. Hussey, Kristin; Williamson, Elizabeth (2019-11-12). . The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on May 16, 2023. Retrieved 2019-12-31.
18. . ABC News. Archived from the original on March 10, 2023. Retrieved February 15, 2022.
19. . 2014-10-21. Archived from the original on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2021-01-21.
20. Amir Vera (April 22, 2018). . CNN. Archived from the original on March 10, 2023. Retrieved April 26, 2018.
21. Whitlock, Craig; Willman, David; Horton, Alex (May 16, 2022). "Massacre suspect said he modified Bushmaster rifle to hold more ammunition". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. from the original on May 16, 2022. Retrieved May 16, 2022.
22. Conflict Armament Research (September 2014). (PDF). pp. 12–14. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2023.
23. Kasler v. Lockyer Assault Weapon List
24. Kaplan, Thomas (2013-01-15). "Tougher Gun Law in New York". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2016-09-14.
25. (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on April 26, 2018.
26. . The New York Times. 2013-04-04. Archived from the original on May 16, 2023.
27. . The Firearm Blog. 2 April 2019. Archived from the original on March 8, 2023. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
28. . Archived from the original on May 17, 2023.
29. The politics of destroying surplus small arms : inconspicuous disarmament. Alpers, Philip. 2010. pp. 168–169. ISBN 978-0-415-49461-8.
30. Under the gun : the small arms challenge in the Pacific. Victoria University Press in association with the Peace and Disarmament Education Trust. 2003. pp. 64–65. ISBN 9780864734532.
31. . Special-Ops.pl - Portal Ludzi Akcji (in Polish). Archived from the original on July 23, 2019. Retrieved 23 July 2019.

 

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