Today's service rifle and sidearm.

[S.A. Boggs]

If YOU had to hump a weapon today, using CURRENT issued shoulder arms what would it be. Rifle must have been adopted after 1957 which deletes the M1. My vote goes to the current rifle issued by the State of Israel. The sidearm is the new M17, am saving my pennies to get one.
Sam

[lyman]

never served, so all the humping I did was back and forth to Gunshows and the firing line,

I see nothing wrong with a M16 (or M14)

pistol, I'm comfortable with a 1911

[blackhawknj]

The best firearms aren't that good without proper training. Probably more crack shots in the Army back when they used the 45-70 and Krag-Jorgensen.

[Merc]

I’d take the M14, the last battle rifle in our arsenal. Side arm - no preference. The 1911 had great stopping power. What’s similar today?

[Allen]

The 1911 had great stopping power. What’s similar today?

The 1911.

[bruce]

G-3 and a G-17. Figure that'd handle just about anything. Sincerely. bruce.

[Vern Humphrey]

I was issued an M2 Carbine on my first tour in Viet Nam, and it got wrapped around a tree and I bummed an M1 from the ARVN. My second tour I bullied my battalion commander into getting me two M14 sniper rifles (pre-m21). I had one man who had been through the 3rd Marine Division sniper school, and he got one of them, I got the other.

The M1 and M14 are superior rifles, in my opinion IF you know combat shooting.

And nowadays I can carry any handgun I want, and I carry an M1911.

[Art]

Since opinions are like noses...…here are my personal number one picks.

The rifle would probably be one of the more recent variants of the Galil (IWI Ace.) If I could be really picky, probably the current Vietnamese Army issue version in 7.62x39 which takes AK magazines.

I generally carry .357 Magnum revolvers for my everyday guns but they really aren't appropriate to the meaning of the OP. There are a lot of good auto pistols out there without much difference between them in quality or reliability. My personal favorite, out of the ones I've handled are the 4" barrel versions of the Springfield Armory XD. I own its predecessor, the HS 2000 I shoot it well and have thousands of rounds of a variety off ammo through it without a hiccup. I prefer it to the other striker fired types.

[Allen]

I was issued an M2 Carbine on my first tour in Viet Nam, and it got wrapped around a tree

But wasn't the M2 fun to shoot? It is one of the few full auto's that is controllable--I believe you could write your name with one.

Did the M2 get wrapped around the tree accidently or out of frustration?

[Allen]

Regardless of our preference I think most of us would rule this one out.