THE M6 TAKEDOWN RIFLE HITS THE BIG TIME

TPS ARMS’ NEW .357/.410 UPS THE ANTE

- MIKE TRAVIS

Unlike most military weapons, the M6 Aircrew Survival Weapon was never intended for combat. Its sole purpose was to assist downed aircrews in foraging for wild game in a survival situation. Production of the military M6 ceased in the early 1970s.

The original M6 had 14-inch barrels, so the National Firearms Act restricted its ownership by civilians. As a result, the military-issue M6 was never sold to the public. Even so, the utility of the design of the M6 was not lost on the shooting public, and Springfield Armory stepped in to provide civilians with a slightly modified version of the original M6 until its production was discontinued in 2008.

NEW BEGINNINGS

When Jeff Paulson opened Tactical Parts Supply and Arms (TPS Arms), he started by producing high-quality parts for the AR15 platform. He recognized that the long-discontinued M6 Scout platform might well be one of the best survival guns ever made. So, he set out to build his own improved version of the gun.

TPS Arms introduced its own M6 Scout rifle to the public in 2018. Until now, the TPS Arms M6 has been available in .22LR, .22 Magnum, .17 HMR and .22 Hornet. All configurations were combined with a .410 shotgun barrel with a 3-inch chamber and interchangeable choke tubes. Compared to the military and Springfield M6, all the TPS M6 variants featured a long list of improvements.