L64/65

The L64 was a British assault rifle developed in the 1970s.

In the 1970s, the British Army started looking at new assault rifle designs, using lighter rounds than the then standard-issue 7.62mm FN FAL used. Their research suggested that a slimmer bullet of the same general weight as the M16's 5.56x45 mm (.223") would result in the same ability to be fired in fully automatic mode, while having much better penetration and ballistics. The result was the .190-inch (4.85 mm) round fitted in "necked down" but otherwise standard 5.56mm cartridges from the M16.

The Royal Small Arms Factory developed a rifle to fire the new round. The new L64/65 was outwardly similar to the EM2, but adopted a firing mechanism very similar to Armalite's latest AR-18 design. The first examples were available in 1972.

In 1976 it was decided to try NATO standarization once again, and the various newer rounds were tested head-to-head starting in 1977. The British round out-performed the standard US 5.56 mm. However Fabrique Nationale also introduced a new 5.56 mm round at the competition, the SS-109, which performed as well as the British cartridge. In the end it was selected largely due to its similarity with existing US ammunition.

The weapon was later developed into the SA80.

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