The M249 SAW

The M249 SAW (squad automatic weapon) was once known as one of the best light machine guns in the american military.  Known for its fast fire rate and reliability, the SAW had earned its right to be part of almost all infantry squad/ fire-teams on the front lines.  With that said, that was back in the 90s with its belt fed only design, but now, the M249 has only gone down hill since.  The current version of the SAW is no longer as reliable as it once was.  The designer had come up with the idea to turn the weapon system into a magazine fed weapon as well as belt- fed in order to increase economy of rounds throughout a fire-team.  With the new magazine feed system, the bolt carrier group was opened up more and has cause it to be very loose around bolt and chamber.  This causes rounds to easily get jumbled around inside which increases the likelihood of jamming.  Along with the jamming problem, the lack of range has created an issue in the middle east due to rounds not being able to hit targets effectively in the mountainous regions.  Even with these issues, the M249 is still widely used throughout all branches of service with rifleman squads in order to effectively suppress enemy combatants in firefights.