A phenomenon that has been observed with YPG/YPJ Fighters in recent years has been the practice of wrapping service rifles with fitted fabric. The extent to which rifles have been fitted goes from small pieces that might just cover the magazine or handguard to full-length covers that can sometimes enclose the entire rifle. The reason behind these wraps range from a sort of camouflage to a purely aesthetic venture. In this part of a series of posts looking at the trend we will examine the wraps seen on M16/M4-pattern rifles. You can find part one of this series here.
This is the second part of a series of articles detailing fabric wraps of the YPG/YPJ, we have already examined Kalashnikov wraps, and will look at Dragunov wraps in a future article. Please check out all three to learn more about the peculiarities of each system.
Figure 1.1 An IS fighter with an M16-patterned rifle showing different camouflage techniques such as using fabric for the handguard, stock, and exposed barrel, in addition to taping/painting the receiver to break up the outline. (Source – ARES CONMAT via IS propaganda video)Figure 1.2 A Chechen IS Fighter during the siege of Baghouz with his M16A4 rifle with mounted 4x ACOG optic. A dull fabric covers the stock, handguards, front sight post, and exposed barrel. Note that the fabric has been ripped just behind the charging handle, likely due to the charging handle being operated. (Source – ARES CONMAT)
Some of these wraps make for very questionable tactical decision making. Such as magazine wraps that won’t allow for the magazine to drop free during a reload, or full rifle wraps that cover the receiver in a way that they even prevent basic operation of the weapon’s safety, magazine catch, or even muzzle. One such fighter the author interviewed admitted that it might be slightly slower to access his fire controls, but that the fabric was protecting his rifle against the elements.
In regards to standardization with these wraps, there is none. Conversations with Kurdish fighters reveal that oftentimes experienced fighters will take their old uniforms to local tailors and have them sew the specific wrap that is wanted by that individual fighter. Fabric material and camouflage pattern is entirely dependent on that fighter or what the local tailor might have to offer. There was one shop that the author came across in Qamishilli where tailors and velcro patch makers had on sale premade handguard Kalashnikov wraps using Multicam and a velcro adherence clasp. Another example of one of these cottage industry tailors was from the town of Tel Tamir during the recent (October 2019) Turkish offensive when the combined Turkish-FSA force was mere kilometers from the city limits, a tailor in the town was still open for business and was booked up with sewing jobs despite the impending threat of attack every day (author’s observations).
In an effort to establish a sort of classification, we’ve gathered a sample data set from field photographs and open-source imagery and broken them into categories. We’ve classified the types of wraps based on how many components exist and if it is a full wrap or not.
M16A4, M4 Rifles
Single Piece Rifle Wrap
Figure 2.1. Handguard wrap using a combination of lace and velcro lace clasp methods. The pattern is a darker shade of SDF variant of Marpat. (Source- Silah Report)Figure 2.2. Note the double lace and velcro clasp that holds the handguard wrap together, the lace underneath the velcro. (Source- Silah Report)Figure 2.3. Similar handguard wrap as above but this version uses a dull grey pattern and lacks the velcro clasp just past the handguard delta ring. (Source- Silah Report)Figure 2.4. Velcro clasp, M4-length handguard, unvelcro-ed to show the handguard wrap opened. The pattern is a Turkish digital fabric. (Source- Silah Report)Figure 2.5. Lower receiver of same rifle above. (Source- Silah Report)Figure 2.6. A PKK Fighter in Shingal cleaning his M4 carbine that appears to have originated from US aid to SDF Forces. Wrap is a BDU-patterned type, appears to have velcro clasp on bottom. (Source- https://www.flickr.com/photos/kurdishstruggle/15964089763Figure 2.7. A similar M4, this one appears to have camouflage tape used for a cheekpiece and pistol grip. Magazine wrap is a Multicam-patterned fabric using a velcro clasp through the trigger guard. (Source- https://www.instagram.com/helezwar_mitani/)
Two-Piece Rifle Wrap
Figure 3.1. Commercial dark tactical camouflage pattern in the form of handguard and exposed barrel wrap sections. The handguard section is clasped at three different points with velcro along with lace at the 12 o’clock position, barrel appears to be down the length of the fabric. (Source- Silah Report)Figure 3.2. Exposed barrel section with SDF Marput patterned fabric, clasped with velcro down the length of the piece. (Source- Silah Report)Figure 3.3. Same M16A4 as above, intricately laced at 12 o’clock, no velcro clasp. (Source- Silah Report)Figure 3.4. SDF fighter in NE Syria with commercial M4-derivative with billet lower, handguard and muzzle wrap are from a dark unidentified fabric pattern. Note the criss-cross stitches in the fabric, possibly of PKK-origin. Handguard wrap is laced and appears to use a Delta ring velcro clasp, barrel section uses length-wise velcro. (Source- Silah Report)
Three-Piece Rifle Wrap
Figure 4.1. SDF fighter outside of Baghouz with M16A4 with telescoping stock. Magazine, handguard, and scope wraps are of a dull black fabric, magazine uses a trigger guard loop clasp, handguard is a lace-up clasp without velcro, and scope is an elastic band. PKK sticker appears to be upside down. (Source- Silah Report)Figure 4.2. Early stage of war in 2015/2016, this Marpat pattern originates from before the mass issue of U.S. supported budgets, thus is lighter in texture. Stock wrap uses a right side velcro clasp, magazine wrap is clasped through trigger guard, and handguard wrap appears to also use a velcro clasp. (Source- Ed Nash Photo Collection, Desert Sniper)Figure 4.3. An M4-derivative carbine on an SDF fighter in NE Syria. Material appears to be BDU-patterned fabric with a mesh netting placed on top. Note that the magazine clasp appears to wrap around the magazine well instead of previous magazine wraps that stop at the magazine well. Handguard wrap is laced and might have a velcro clasp as well. (Source- Silah Report)
Figure 4.4. A confiscated billet receiver M4 carbine that appeared next to the AKS74U-derivative in the Kalashnikov article. Fabric is a BDU-pattern, with the same criss-cross stitching that other PKK wraps appear to be commonly found with. Handguard is laced with no velcro enclosure, barrel is velcro down the length of it, and pistol grip wrap is unclear at this point. (Source- https://twitter.com/8Peyok/status/1206938279595122689)
Figure 4.5. A PKK fighter shows off his M4-derivative carbine, note the type of material being a mesh wrap, literally wrapped and wound around the handguard, exposed barrel, and magazine of the carbine. It doesn’t appear to come off readily. (Source- https://www.flickr.com/photos/kurdishstruggle/20226094572)Figure 4.6. Actually a four-piece wrap instead of a three-piece, this YPG fighter in NE Syria has what appears to be a Turkish digital pattern wrap on the full-length stock (laced) and optic with the green mesh wrap around it. Handguard uses a lace and velcro clasp, exposed barrel appears to be one piece. (Source- Silah Report)
Full Rifle Wraps
Figure 5.1. An SDF fighter in Syria with a semi-full length wrap around his M16A1 rifle, using a BDU pattern with the PKK crisscross pattern on the receiver, handguard, and exposed barrel wraps. Clasps appear to be velcro. (Source-https://www.instagram.com/helezwar_mitani/)Figure 5.2. From the same Instagram user as above, this odd BDU-pattern wrap appears to have been pressed extremely tight against the rifle, forming the shape of its contour. It is difficult to ascertain the method of clasping, although it appears to be a mix of lace and velcro. Note the crisscross pattern. (Source- https://www.instagram.com/helezwar_mitani/)Figure 5.3. Similar to the two-piece rifle dark tactical camouflage wrap above, this SDF fighter has a lace-up/velcro clasp handguard, velcro magazine wrap, and velcro receiver wrap. The optic wrap is an elastic band. (Source- Silah Report)Figure 3.4. A YPJ fighter searches IS women IDPs outside of Baghouz at an IDP site. This full-length wrap’s pattern is as of yet unidentified but among the many types of commercial uniform patterns available on the open market. In this case all the wraps appear to be velcro-clasped and not laced. (Source- Zau Seng)
