Always keep the firearm pointed in a safe direction. Firearms
must be treated as if always loaded and always firing a steady
stream of bullets. Do not point the muzzle of the firearm at any
thing you do not intend to kill or destroy. Never rely on the safety
mechanism. The firearm is safe only as long as you use it safely.
Never load a round into the chamber until you are ready to fire.
Only load a round into the chamber when you have assumed a
stable shooting position and the muzzle is pointed in a safe
direction.
Never walk with a loaded firearm, put a loaded firearm in a
vehicle, store a loaded firearm, or leave a loaded firearm
unattended. Firearms have been known to accidentally fire when
dropped, struck, snagged, etc. Unattended firearms can be stolen or
misused. Never place your finger on the trigger or inside the trigger
guard until you are ready to fire. Before placing your finger on
the trigger or inside the trigger guard, make sure that you have first
assumed a stable shooting position and have your intended target
clearly within your sights.
Always assume a stable shooting position and clearly identify
your target and backstop before you pull the trigger. Rifle
cartridges are very powerful, have a lethal range of many miles, and
can often penetrate hard objects such as walls and metal. Before
you pull the trigger, it is vital that you clearly identify your target
and have a backstop behind the target capable of stopping rifle
4
projectiles. Never fire at hard objects or water, which may cause
3
TABLE OF CONTENTS
SECTON I FIREARM SAFETY RULES …………..4
SECTION II TERMINOLOGY ………………………6
SECTION III SPECIFICATIONS ……………………9
SECTION IV METHOD OF OPERATION …………10
ADJUSTMENT ………………….20
SECTION V BEFORE LOADING ………………….12
SECTION VI LOADING …………………………….13
SECTION VII AIMING & SIGHT ADJUSTMENT …16
SECTION VIII FIRING ……………………………….18
SECTION IX BREAK IN & GAS SYSTEM
SECTION X UNLOADING ……………………...….22
SECTION XI DISASSEMBLY ………………………23
SECTION XII ASSEMBLY ………………………...…31
SECTION XIII MALFUNCTIONS &
TROUBLE SHOOTING…………..38
MODIFICATIONS ………………..45
SECTION XIV MAINTENANCE ………………...…...42
SECTION XV CHILD SAFETY LOCK …………..….44
SECTION XVI ACCESSORIES &
THIS MANUAL.
COMPONENTS OF THE M96 AS THESE TERMS WILL BE USED THROUGHOUT
WITH THE TERMS IN THIS SECTION DESCRIBING THE FEATURES AND
IT IS MANDATORY THAT YOU THOROUGHLY FAMILIARIZE YOURSELF
SECTION II - TERMINOLOGY
6
5
projectiles to ricochet and kill or seriously injure persons and
damage property.
Always wear adequate eye and hearing protection while
shooting. Firearms, upon discharge, are extremely loud, and
violently eject spent cases, hot gasses and particles. Operators and
bystanders must wear adequate eye and hearing protection at all
times while shooting to prevent permanent vision and hearing loss.
Never drop a firearm or allow the muzzle to strike hard objects.
Sharp blows to a firearm my cause it to fire accidentally or damage
it making it unsafe to fire. Always unload the firearm and check
the bore of the barrel to make sure there are no obstructions
after dropping the firearm. Never shoot a firearm which has an
obstructed bore or which has been damaged. If unsure as to the
condition of a firearm, have it examined by a competent
gunsmith before shooting.
Always unload the firearm when finished shooting. While
unloading, always keep the firearm pointed in a safe direction,
remove the magazine, empty the chamber and visually inspect it
to make sure no round is present.
Never use a firearm if you have consumed alcohol, or if you are
taking drugs or medication which could alter or impair your
vision, physical responses, or judgement.
Always store your firearms, unloaded, locked up, and out of the
sight and out of the reach of children and other unauthorized
persons. It is your responsibility to make sure that children and
other unauthorized persons do not have access to your firearms and
that the firearms are safely stored out of sight and in a secure place.
k
Magazine Well; 9) Lower Receiver; and 10) Buttstoc
1) Operating Rod; 2) Gas Tube; 3) Rear Sight; 4) Receiver; 5) Bolt Carrier; 6) Barrel; 7) Hand Guard; 8)
M96 Field Stripped Major Subassemblies
8
7
Rifle is similar to other gas
SECTION IV – METHOD OF OPERATION
The M96 is a gas operated, semiautomatic, sporting rifle. The
action of the M96 Expeditionary
operated semi-automatic rifles. The method of operation is briefly
described below.
To begin the description of the operating cycle, it is assumed that the
following operations have been performed: A loaded magazine has
been inserted into the firearm. And a cartridge has been manually
cycled (loaded) into the chamber. The hammer is held back by the
trigger. As the trigger is pulled, the hammer is released from engagement
with the trigger. The hammer, under the force of its spring, rotates
forward and upward into contact with the firing pin which is
contained in the bolt which is itself contained in the bolt carrier.
As the hammer strikes the end of the firing pin, the tip of the firing
pin is forced to strike the primer of the cartridge causing it to ignite.
The ignited primer causes the powder within the cartridge case to
burn. The burning powder creates gasses that expand under very
high pressures to force the bullet out of the cartridge case and down
the bore of the barrel.
As the bullet passes the gas port in the barrel, some of the gasses are
forced through the gas port into the gas block. Some of the excess
gasses are allowed to bleed from the gas bleed port. The gas block
diverts most of the gasses into the gas tube allowing them to
impinge upon the piston of the operating rod, forcing it and the bolt
carrier assembly to the rear of the firearm against the force of the
recoil spring. As the bolt carrier is forced to the rear, a camed slot in
its side engages the caming lug of the bolt causing it to rotate. The
rotation of the bolt causes the locking lugs of the bolt to rotate out of
engagement with locking lugs of the barrel. The bolt is now
unlocked and may travel to the rear of the receiver with the bolt