I recall when it was nearly like that; when we all carried M1s and one guy had the heavy old BAR. Somehow. it was usually the lightest guy in the squad.
Then came the best rifle (IMO), the M14...the squad leader could have 1, 2, 3 or no equivalents to the BAR simply by selecting which M14 to switch over. With the M16, lighter cartriges did allow troops to carry more rounds.
From what I understand, the reason for the lighter guns, was to accommodate the small statured allies we had fighting alongside our troops. Early on, they started with the M1 carbines.
Piston upper with a free floating handguard on a select fire weapon. Nothing magical, or cutting edge - just a solid, well proven design. Some folks want to give all Marines a M27, and that would certainly be a game changer.
I first saw the reference to caselessammo in the early 1970s. It has a lot of advantages along with some serious issues. Perhaps the biggest holdback is the paradigm that ammo has to have a case. Kinda reminds me of the handwringing I read about when copper cartridges started to replace muzzle loaders...
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