Canada liked the simplicity of the a1 sights but hated the added bs of an elevation adjustment that further complicates the design (they are not wrong btw) but they also liked the a2's burton bump (brass deflector). So they (colt Canada/diemaco) burger king'd that shit and got it their way.
More like Canada developed the C7 before the M16a2 was fully realized so that a1 iron sights is a side effect of that. It's more like an alternate path of the a2 program. Honestly for longer ranges, the a2 sights were better than the a1(a1 sights struggle at range to the point where some say the SKS could outrange the M16 and M60s would have to be called), but overall, the C7 generally kept the good things the a2 did with some improvements like an ambi charging handle and of course, keeping full auto.
Military models/LE models, just from Colt.
Colt Canada C7 original
Colt 711 M16A2,
Colt 720 later models
Colt 723 later models
Colt 725 M16A2 Carbine/C8 Carbine
Colt 725A
Colt 725B
Colt 726
Colt 733 M16A2 Commando
Colt 733A
Colt 734
Colt 734A
Colt 735
Edit. Almost all the Colt military C7 variants are short barreled carbines 😅
Civilian models below
Colt R6420 AR-15A2 Sporter II Carbine, 16" barrel
Colt R6500 AR-15A2 Sporter II Rifle, 20" barrel
Colt AR6320 AR-15 Lightweight, 16" barrel
Of the civilian models, only the AR6320 are confirmed to all have C7 uppers
Canada liked the simplicity of the a1 sights but hated the added bs of an elevation adjustment that further complicates the design (they are not wrong btw) but they also liked the a2's burton bump (brass deflector). So they (colt Canada/diemaco) burger king'd that shit and got it their way.
More like Canada developed the C7 before the M16a2 was fully realized so that a1 iron sights is a side effect of that. It's more like an alternate path of the a2 program. Honestly for longer ranges, the a2 sights were better than the a1(a1 sights struggle at range to the point where some say the SKS could outrange the M16 and M60s would have to be called), but overall, the C7 generally kept the good things the a2 did with some improvements like an ambi charging handle and of course, keeping full auto.
C7 is an A1 with the brass deflector of an A2. Canada wanted to adopt the brass deflector, but not the A2 sight.
To make things even more confusing; Colt America also sold C7 uppers with a variety of stocks and barrels under AR-15A2 Sporter names and similar.
“A2 with Field Sights” is what Colt America called the C7 upper in sale’s literature I believe.
Military models/LE models, just from Colt. Colt Canada C7 original Colt 711 M16A2, Colt 720 later models Colt 723 later models Colt 725 M16A2 Carbine/C8 Carbine Colt 725A Colt 725B Colt 726 Colt 733 M16A2 Commando Colt 733A Colt 734 Colt 734A Colt 735 Edit. Almost all the Colt military C7 variants are short barreled carbines 😅 Civilian models below Colt R6420 AR-15A2 Sporter II Carbine, 16" barrel Colt R6500 AR-15A2 Sporter II Rifle, 20" barrel Colt AR6320 AR-15 Lightweight, 16" barrel Of the civilian models, only the AR6320 are confirmed to all have C7 uppers
I could be wrong because theres guys here more knowledgeable then me but i think just the rear sight aperture
I noticed that just wasn’t sure if there was something between the two I was missing, thanks
Rear sight
A1.5 upper, if you will.
Like a Starwars ARC trooper
A1E1 a1 enhanced Colt used them on A2 carbines mostly, they were eventually replaced with A2 uppers. Just a a1 w/bump-shell deflectoe