The True Story Behind the Mattel M16 Rifle

[The Night Rider]

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I am in no way disputing this article.

I remember during the Obama years that several companies were making AR pattern rifles and I remember hearing news reports that they were all back ordered because their suppliers of the individual parts couldn't keep up with demand.

When I worked for Micro Metals in Colorado Springs we made parts for the Trane AC plant in Pueblo. I've never been to the Trane plant. I have no idea what they made on their own but I know that a lot of the parts for their air conditioners came from the other factories.

So it's quite possible that when Colt made the original AR-15/M16 that they were farming some of their parts out.

The rumor that I heard and I've heard it on this forum too, is that Mattel made the plastic parts for the M16. The hand grip the buttstock the guards.


I still don't believe that Mattel ever made parts for M16s.

 

[The Night Rider]

I do know that many were made by General Motors as I carried a couple of them.

GM made approximately 490,000 M16s during the Vietnam war. If I remember right they made M3 grease guns during World War II.

Frankly, guns made by a toy company and a car company didn't instill a lot of confidence in them.

IBM made 1911s Rockola (Juke Box) made some M1 Carbines.

I don't recall having an M16a1 ever fail to fire on me BUT I never fired one any place but a qualification range