The XM556 Microgun made its debut at SHOT Show 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The suitcase-size minigun was a certified crowd pleaser.
The traditional M134 minigun fires the 7.62mm round from a six-barrel rotary machine gun at rate of up to 6,000 rounds per minute.
Engineers at Empty Shell LLC kept all these same characteristics, but designed the Microgun around the 5.56mm NATO cartridge. By doing this, they were able to make the Microgun half the size of the M134. Designed as a defensive suppression weapon, the XM556 can be fired from the hip using a 1,000 round backpack. The gun with loaded backpack weighs less than 100 pounds.
The XM556 can also be mounted. Mounts and accessories designed for the M134 will work with the Microgun making adoption easier.
Glenn Flemming, one of the developers of the new gun, described working on the project as a once in a lifetime opportunity.
“There’s very few times that you can work on something that says revolutionary, and this is actually one of those times, I can say that.” Flemming said.
Currently, the XM556 is only available to the police and military. There’s no MSRP yet either, but it’s surely not cheap. And don’t forget to factor in the ammo. You’ll likely go through quite a few rounds in a really short amount of time.
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