Stoner 63

Stoner 63
The Stoner 63 assault rifle
Type	Assault rifle Light machine gun
Place of origin	United States
Service history
In service	1963–1983 (U.S.)
Used by	United States Navy SEALs United States Marine Corps
Wars	Vietnam War Invasion of Grenada
Production history
Designer	Eugene Stoner L. James Sullivan Robert Fremont
Designed	1963
Manufacturer	Cadillac Gage NWM De Kruithoorn N.V. (prototypes only)
Produced	1963–1971
No. built	Approx. 4,000 (both versions)
Variants	See Variants
Specifications
Weight	LMG, MMG: 11.68 lb (5.30 kg) FMG: 10.31 lb (4.68 kg) Commando: 10.50 lb (4.76 kg) AR: 10.19 lb (4.62 kg) Carbine: 7.90 lb (3.58 kg) Rifle: 7.75 lb (3.52 kg)
Length	LMG, MMG, AR, Rifle: 40.25 in (1,022 mm) Carbine: 36.68 in (931.7 mm) stock extended / 26.60 in (675.6 mm) stock collapsed Commando: 35.95 in (913.1 mm) FMG: 30.38 in (771.7 mm)
Barrel length	LMG, MMG, FMG, AR, Rifle: 20 in (508.0 mm) Carbine, Commando: 15.7 in (398.8 mm)
Cartridge	5.56×45mm NATO
Action	Gas-operated, rotating bolt
Rate of fire	LMG, MMG, FMG: 700–1,000 rounds/min AR, Rifle, Carbine, Commando: 700–900 rounds/min
Muzzle velocity	LMG, MMG, FMG, AR, Rifle: 3,250 ft/s (991 m/s) Carbine, Commando: 3,050 ft/s (929.6 m/s)
Effective firing range	200–1,000 m
Maximum firing range	2,653 m
Feed system	LMG, MMG, FMG: Disintegrating link belt AR, Rifle, Carbine, Commando: 20- or 30-round detachable box magazine LMG: 75-, 100-, 150-round drum magazine (post–Vietnam War model, rare, used by SEALs).
Sights	Iron sights

The Stoner 63, also known as the M63, XM22, XM23, XM207 or the Mk 23 Mod 0 machine gun, is an American assault rifle that was designed by Eugene Stoner in the early 1960s. Cadillac Gage was the primary manufacturer of the Stoner 63 during its history. The Stoner 63 saw very limited combat use by United States forces during the Vietnam War, including the Navy SEALs and Marine Corps. A few were also sold to law enforcement agencies.

Soon after leaving ArmaLite, Eugene Stoner, one of the United States' most prolific modern military small arms designers, responsible for the design of the AR-15/M16 assault rifles, AR-10 battle rifle and AR-5 survival rifle, among others, devised a concept for a modular weapon that would be built around a common receiver and certain interchangeable components and could be transformed into a rifle, carbine or various machine gun configurations by simply fitting the appropriate parts to the basic assembly.

Stoner managed to solicit the help of Howard Carson, in charge of Cadillac Gage's West Coast plant in Costa Mesa, California (where Armalite was also located), in convincing the company's president, Russell Baker, of the feasibility and commercial potential of his new weapons system. Russell obliged and Cadillac Gage (a subsidiary of the Ex-Cell-O Corporation) established a small arms development branch in Costa Mesa. Stoner then recruited his two principal aides at Armalite: Robert Fremont and James L. Sullivan (who would later go on to design the Ultimax 100 light machine gun for the Chartered Industries of Singapore).