Squires Bingham M16 is a cheap combat rifle designed and produced in the Philippines. Squibman is the brand name of the Squires Bingham Company, and they have produced a variety of rifles, shotguns, and pistols under this name. Their M16 is one of several attempts to make a cheap rimfire weapon that resembles a combat rifle.
Design
The Squires Bingham M16 rifle configuration is, as the title implies, based upon that of the American M16, though the detailed execution is considerably different. The straight-line stock layout, the carrying handle with the rear sight, the elevated foresight, and the muzzle flash hider. But the mechanism is a simple blowback unit, and the barrel and receiver are in a tubular assembly, which drops into the stock. Below is the pistol grip and magazine housing assembly.
The stock is mahogany, finished in ebony black, while the metal components are either blackened steel or anodized alloy. The rear sight is a fixed elevation aperture, adjustable for windage.
The Squires Bingham M16 shoots with acceptable accuracy and makes a good general-purpose ‘fun gun’ or vermin shooter. The design has not copied the M16 so slavishly as to finish up with bad proportioning, as have some others, and there is sufficient length of butt to allow the rifle to be held comfortably and firmly.
Technical specifications
| Manufacturer: | Squires, Bingham Mfg. Co., Marikina, Philippines |
| Type: | semi-automatic, blowback |
| Caliber: | .22 Long Rifle RF |
| Barrel: | 16 in (406 mm) |
| Weight: | 6 lbs (2.72 kg) |
| Magazine capacity: | 15 rounds |
| Cyclic rate of fire: | – |
I bought one off a police auction site for about $90.00, $112.00 after shipping, taxes, and FFL fees. It’s in rough shape. It shoots well enough, didn’t misfire or jam. I was going to leave it alone, then I told a friend about it and just for curiosity I went on truegunvalue website and my jaw dropped. It’s worth an average price of $309.00! I’m going to refinish the stock, metal furniture and barrel. It’s going into my collection. I like odd fireams.