ford vs chevy
pepsi vs coke
some things are just eternal rivals
this is the ar15
over the past 65 years it has become possibly the most perfected assault rifle in the world
an american can hardly swing a commie around by the neck without bumping against an ar
how did it get so dang popular
cool dissolve effect here
so towards the end of wwii germany pretty much figured out that assault rifle thing
and right after that that the soviets adopted the ak
but the western didnt do it
the fal was originally chambered in lighter intermediate rounds when under development
but you may remember what happened
uk said guys lets standardize our guns for this new nato thing
us said ok but you gotta keep our new full power .308
uk was like ug fine
but the us was like actually your gun sucks were keeping the m14 hahaha
and so the us laughed all the way to vietnam with what was basically an m1 garand modified for detachable magazines and full auto fire
kickass
wait no this is bad
we cant control the full auto fire
all this ammo is really heavy
we blow through it on full auto
wait
but the commies did not wait
they used the sks and ak and had like two or three times as many rounds because intermediate cartridges are lighter
daaaaaaaang
so its the mid 1950s and thats how the vietnam war is starting out
meanwhile there was this company called armalite
theyreca spinoff of fairchild aircraft
and their chief designer was a guy named eugene stoner
stoner installed machineguns on aircraft earlier in his life
all this aviation background gave them some unorthodox ideas on gun design
started with ultralight breakdown survival rifles for aircrews
they made an ar5 bolt action in .22 hornet
a semi auto ar7 that floats
pretty good designs
passed military trials
nice
so when armalite heard about the competition for a new nato rifle in .308 they had gotten to work on a bigger gun
they called it the ar10
this bad boy was similar to the m14
7.62 nato
full auto
but it used the jet age materials that fairchild put aircraft
like an aluminum receiver and synthetic composite furniture
this made it lighter than the m14
and it took design cues from the sturmgewehr
like having the recoil go right into the shooters shoulder
so more controllable on full auto
it was better than the m14
but armalite was late to the party
several rounds of testing had already been done
and the military just wanted their m1 garand derivative
so armalite lost and they were kinda bummed
but now the military was seeing the advantage of lighter rounds
specifically the three times as much ammo part
tthree times as many bangs in your bang bang
even army guys can count that high
so the army started playing with this new .223 remington round
armalite had a couple designers named jim sullivan and bob fremont redesign the ar10 to be even smaller and lighter
they called it the armalite ar15
same fancy materials
same straight back recoil
armalite gave some to the army and they did better in testing than either the m14 or the ak
but there was bullshit politics involving generals so nothing came of it
and armalite had basically had it with the armys shit
so they sold the rights to the ar15 to colt and fucked off
colt took the ar15 and did more tweaking
made it easier to manufacture
then took the new model and gave it to special forces in vietnam
and harassed more generals
like air force general curtis lemay
he was so impressed by its ability to shoot watermelons at a 4th of july bbq that he ordered 8500 on the spot
guys this actually happened lol
of course now we have two guns and ammo types and the bean counters hate it
so there was more infighting among different services
but the army was forced to admit it was having problems manufacturing and in combat with the m14
so the m14 lost
and the ar won
and got adopted as the m16 across the military
debuting in the middle of the vietnam war
yay
wait no everything is terrible lol
ok but listen
the ak by this point was fully 20 years into its service life
all of the bugs worked out
the ar was brand spankin new
so there were some problems
mostly caused by fucking bean counters
one problem was the gunpowder
stoner and colt told the army to use this new powder
but the army was all like
fffffffffuck that
we got silos full of this old shit
and dupont is taking too long
lets just use this old shit with no testing whatsoever
because were cheap pieces of shit
guys you cant just switch powders like that
the older powder ended up giving a sharper pressure curve
too high a pressure too early makes the gun go too fast
which made it yank the spent cartridge too hard
meanwhile the higher pressure held the case in the chamber with more force
problems x2
another problem was the lack of rust preventing chrome plating
if you get a corroded chamber the pits in the metal hold the cases in really good
problems x3
but doing it right is expensive
and did i mention i hate letting you spend money
so end result the bolt tore the rims off a lot of cases and jammed the gun all the friggin time
better get your cleaning rod to ram it out in the middle of battle
oh wait did i mention were not giving you any cleaning kits
hahahahaha
army didnt like being forced to take the m16 so they were like whatever this is just temporary
why waste money on the m16
it cleans itself bro
but remember how the ar beat the m14 and ak in testing
congress did
so congress was like wtf
and made the army cut it out
chrome lining
cleaning kits
maybe stop using the wrong fucking powder
the gun became the m16a1 and its horrible problems disappeared after they stopped being such fucking cheapskates
but legends never die
anyway the gun ended up doing well
in fact the special forces guys found its round often did mega damage
the tiny bullet was somehow making mince meat of guys organs
the pictures were so horrific they were classified for decades
fuck
dont tell the hague lol
turns out the round would flip sideways then literally explode inside you like a tiny grenade sending shrapnel in all directions
figuring this out was tricky
the military has spent decades perfecting this
so we have heavier and longer bullets
super accurate ones
they also made more modifications
different features and barrel lengths
aside from modern incarnations of the original rifle like the m16a4
there are short carbines
marksman rifles
most new handguards have no contact with the barrel for accuracy
further derivatives made by other companies
so many people looking at this from so many angles for so long we have got this shit down
the ar has been adopted by a fair number of countries too
ok so lets see how this all works
the ar15 is gas operated with a rotating bolt
unlike the ak theres no gas piston
it uses direct impingement
it bleeds gas from a gas port in the barrel down a tube
its channeled into a little tube on the bolt carrier called the gas key
directing the gas to push forward on the bolt
this keeps it locked and simultaneously pushes backward on the bolt carrier to slowly unlock the bolt at the appropriate time
the result is far less mass moving back and forth than a piston design
heres the stuff that moves in an ar vs the stuff that moves in an ak
that ak bolt carrier is solid but the ar bolt carrier is a hollow tube
less mass helps with accuracy from less jostling
and it saves weight
the weapon also breaks into two pieces
upper and lower receiver
so cleaning is super easy
pop out one pin
pull everything out the back
boom
pop the second pin and you can put an entirely different upper on in seconds
useful for military and civilians alike
grips and stocks are swappable
the top rail can have anything
more accessories than anything ever
it invented modularity in the modern rifle
the only limit is your imagination
you want to buy one
go for it
there was a beto special for 350 lol
or spend thousands
buy a whole rifle
or customize part one at a time
even machine a blank mailed to your house
guys ill wrap this up by giving you clammys advice on keeping your ar running
first
lube her up
you have now completed clammys extensive maintenance program lol
be sure to follow it or your ar will jam like crazy
pew pew
#click here for previous articles
thedirtypuma ago
I'm late. I fell asleep last night. Damn those people that take down voat to try to suppress these.
Awesome read. Good choice for the one year anniversary. Good thing I already have a few ARS so the temptation to get a new one is minimal. 300 blackout build would be fun though....
clamhurt_legbeard ago
with an ar you can just get an upper and its like a new gun
course then youll justify spending more because its only a gun part and end up spending just as much as a new gun anyway lol
thedirtypuma ago
I like having complete firearms personally. I have an equal amount of lowers and uppers. For a 300 build, I would want to do a pistol build which I would need to get a pistol lower for. AR10 will be the next purchase. I just can't decide if I want build or buy it complete.
clamhurt_legbeard ago
.300 blackout is an excellent cartridge for a pistol
id do the same
Karbuster ago
I have 2 ar15 style rifles!
One my father bought for me (M&P optic ready, .223/5.56, prebuilt)
One i just built a couple months ago (.300 aac)
clamhurt_legbeard ago
dude i know right
im in the process of building one and im not going cheap
its frustrating when i can drop everything onto the credit card at once lol
but im being good and going with cash bits at a time
Karbuster ago
I am so fucking close i can taste it
clamhurt_legbeard ago
oh thats awesome
Karbuster ago
Yeah, shes made this entire budget program using jewgle sheets as a spine, input income then decide where the money goes, tracks expenses ect
Whats not pictured is the 30k in retirement and 4k in HSAs
HashTheFash ago
I'm frazzled.
clamhurt_legbeard ago
perfectly amusing timing lol
AR47 ago
Got to say that the AR platform is the easiest to make, maintain, and enjoy of all the firearms available today.
You can use a wife variety of configurations to suit your needs.
For instance. My first one was the 16in complete upper assembly I got from CBC industries. The lower my son and I milled together on 4th of July 2 years ago.
Now with me I didn't like the trigger. Just to much take up for me. So I got a 2.5lb pull two stage.
Kid like it as well. Instructed him on the art of double taps. Seeing as he was 8 at the time I had to get a bipod for him as the weapon was far to heavy for him to maintain accuracy.
My second was the 7.62*39 thumper. This lower I milled myself. Ended up that to use this round in an AR you have to do a few things. Small tweeks if you will, but easy really.
First was to polish the feed ramps to a smooth transition into the breech. Also modification of the mag is essential to firing rapidly. The seat of the bullet into the casing would catch on the lips of the mag. Easy to fix with a Dremel
Then came the firing pin. Needed an "enhanced" one. All that means is thr shank is half a cunt hair into the pin so that more of the pin is exposed into the primer.
Then a heavy hammer spring. Russian ammo needs to be hit HARD sometimes.
After all that......never a feed problem or fail to fire. Each round went bang. Plus the report is something you feel more so than you hear. Lol
Kid loves daddies gun.
Last one was the wife. She didn't like the weight of either guns before. Added that clearing a house with that is next to impossible if you turn a corner.
So she picked out a 10.5in upper.
She milled that lower as well with my guidence.
She placed each part in as well. She prefers the standard trigger too. However she didn't like black. So she painted it blue. Like a Robin's egg blue.
Doesn't matter to me if it is yellow. She enjoys shooting it and is very good with it.
Each of these is an AR15 variant. My next will be a .50 beowolf. Just like the sound of it I guess. Plus I don't have one so why the fuck not?
clamhurt_legbeard ago
you mean like m4 feed ramps or something more extensive
one of the great this shit the ar is the huge variety you can get while maintaining commonality of function
your wife could use your gun if needed with zero problems and benefit from skill the handling she already did on hers
AR47 ago
Yeah the standard feed ramp just has a small transition into the breech. It has to be mirror smooth for the 7.62 round to not catch on it.
As for the wife.....she is versed upon each firearm we have, but of course being a woman she must have her own. Lol
Retron ago
I know fuck all about guns and this was very informative. Thanks!
I knew the M16 had a shit reputation in 'nam, but I didn't realise the AR15 was basically the same thing, or that the difference between the M16 and the M16a1 was paying pennies for shit that won't corrode in the fucking jungle.
I wish I lived in some nice part of 'murica so I could go hunting with top blokes like you.
clamhurt_legbeard ago
true shit
its all the fucking bean counters
many men died with jammed m16s in their hands in the early days
but those days are long past and the gun now is capable of incredible feats
you can fire so many rounds trough the barrel literally turns red hot
men have done it and the m4 hung in there and saved their lives
ExpertShitposter ago
Woha! This rifle fires even the spent casing at the enemy!
clamhurt_legbeard ago
twice the pew per round
name literally any other gun that can do that
TimberWolfAlpha ago
You can also get an AR these days cheaper than you can get a SKS or AK.
clamhurt_legbeard ago
true but buyer beware
TimberWolfAlpha ago
Well, for what it's worth, I've got two dirt-cheap AR-15's that I couldn't be happier with.
First is a Palmetto State Armory MOE Lower, with a 16" PTAC Upper. Iron sights, with a cheap 4x carry handle scope option. She's a real champ, that carbine. I'll see guns that had to cost two to three times what she did choke on brass, while she happily spits Wolf and Tula all day long. That ran me like $450 back in 2015.
Built a rifle length AR this year, this time a Fixed-stock Palmetto State lower, with a 20" Heavy Barrel Bear Creek Arsenal with the mlok handguard. Cheapo Bipod, TRS-25 Red Dot. UTG Back-ups. $350 for the base rifle, maybe $450 with all the accessories on. Hell of a nice gun for the cost.
I'm happy with em at least.
Now if only that Fightlite beltfed upper wasn't goin for like $3500...
CrustyBeaver52 ago
Nice write up Clam, this is good work!
clamhurt_legbeard ago
thank you sir im glad you liked it
clamhurt_legbeard ago
pff
if you want to define machine to include squishy things go ahead
NatSocTemplar ago
Excellent write up and all true. I do like my AUG a bit more than my AR, and dream of an HK93 to go with my PTR91 (wish I'd gotten in on that group buy), but if the SHTF, the AR is the one I'm grabbing. For reasons listed here. It's cheap, it's everywhere, it does what is asked of it. Plus I can't put a binary trigger in my other guns!
clamhurt_legbeard ago
dude
every american needs to be familiar with either the ak or ar
bare minimum
its just so good and all over
clamhurt_legbeard ago
guns are the most complicated machines we make
and we demand 100 percent perfection
its amazing
drakesdoom2 ago
I'd fly over in my space shuttle to slap you for that comment.
Lucky for you NASA crashed it when I let them borrow it.
clamhurt_legbeard ago
oh fuck
TheAmerican ago
Fuck an ar15. I roll with a ar12 with a 20rd drum magazine
clamhurt_legbeard ago
interesting
never heard of that
TheAmerican ago
Its fun. Good price too.
Battlefat ago
Fucking server farms trying to crash the party my dude, but good show and now you can add this to your stellar portfolio.
And if I’m being honest, I’d like to see you make it to the 2nd anniversary as well.
Cheers for real, and not in a faggy semi-sincere way but in a take a sip and remember way
clamhurt_legbeard ago
i dunno
there are only so many guns in the world
can i make it liking guns for a whole nother year
lol
there are major missing spots in the list i did so far
i havevthese planned out
next post starts a pretty different category
plus there are others i just like lol
MrBoutros ago
sorry to crash your sub Clammy, but this write-up is tremendous and worthy of publication.
really good work here.
clamhurt_legbeard ago
omg whatre you doing here lol
you guys are gonna get all the details on the secret project
im half way to the next post for you
SearchVoatBot ago
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clamhurt_legbeard ago
fuuuuck
i never even thought of that
surplus ammo from when they used the wrong powder
dur hur i only use factory ammo
ok
but what if the factory is an amateur reloader using the wrong powder
Nadeshda ago
M4's like barbies for men... lol love this article!!! well worth the wait!
clamhurt_legbeard ago
gah
these are so stressful
the time period between about ten minutes before posting up to posting is the worst
then when the post is 90 min late ive been stressin hard for 100
Nadeshda ago
It was a great post and us hammering on how much we were anticipating it, did no favors. Sorry...
We just love your posts here and appreciate all the interesting things we have learnt and you have shared over a year. You have been wonderful about this... thank you!
Geez, at this moment it feels like we are like family, lived through so many changes over this last year...
Dude, how much has happened over the last year, alone?
No lie for me, it's been rouph in places... but we made it didn't we @experthsitposter...?
Dude to all here... tva-jó zda-ró-vye
:)
Nadeshda ago
lol, @expertshitposter I royally messed up your name and I mean royally! :D
ExpertShitposter ago
Would have been just shitposter, but it was taken! So then i had to become an expert.
Nadeshda ago
That name hasn’t posted a thing since, what a waste... wonder who it belongs to. Glad you became an expert though :)
derram ago
https://invidio.us/watch?v=YAneTFiz5WU :
This has been an automated message.
DillHoleBagHands ago
Niiiiiiiice! I have an AR7 swell little 22 rifle.
I love where the casing is in the carbine photo.
Finally, lube is usually your friend. Except Lucas brand lube. Used that shit on an AR, once. The fire rate got slower and slower. Two mags later and the bolt jammed shut. Like the whole rifle was filled with sand and epoxi. I stick with Hoppe's
clamhurt_legbeard ago
whoa fuck tell me all about it
that is a very cool gun
do you use it much
DillHoleBagHands ago
I got it back probably 4-6 years ago. I can confirm they do float, as long as the plastic buttplate seals correctly. Used rifles or ones that were stored in a hot vehicle can warp over time. Mags can be hard to find at times. The stock does allow the rifle to be collapsed down and store three mags at once. I wish they came with a threaded barrel option.
My only real complaint is the firing pin. I think it needs a stiffer sping. I have had a few duds that fired just fine out of my old Winchester pump.
I haven't had a chance to use it much. Maybe 200-300 rounds.
clamhurt_legbeard ago
dude awesome
its such a neat design and im recently more into 22s since i bought one
some survival guns are in 22 hornet which is a much more powerful round
maybe more practical for survival of aircrew
but 22lr is deffo better for us today
DillHoleBagHands ago
I do agree that 22 hornet is nice for more power buuuuuuuuuut, in a survival situation 22lr is perfect for squirrel and small game.
A surpressed AR7 would be an absolute blast.
clamhurt_legbeard ago
ya
i wonder if the hornet was to give more anti personnel
or maybe just more sure one hit kill
not sure
DillHoleBagHands ago
That would be my assumption as well.
22 makes it great for afternoon plinking.
clamhurt_legbeard ago
had to pare this down sooooooo much
and the ddos doesnt help
but they will never stop is from liking guns
Nadeshda ago
Noooooo they won't, Mods get in here nau...
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