AR question?

[Cdreyer02]

hello everyone. i am new at this and had a question that hopefully someone can give me an answer to.

When i t comes to upper receivers, i found that you can have them with a forward assist or with out. What exactly is the forward assist for? and what is the difference in the operation of the rifle with and without a forward assist?

I am building and AR10 and need to know what style upper i should go with.

Please send me a pm with any info. Thank You

[Zervaman]

The forward assist on a rifle is a button, found commonly on M16 and AR-15 styled rifles, usually located near the bolt closure, that when hit will push the bolt carrier forward, ensuring that the bolt is locked. In order to ensure that the extractor is clipped around the rim of the shell, the forward assist is usually struck rather than pushed. It is commonly incorporated into standard loading procedure to prepare a weapon for a life threatening situation, or to close the bolt when the weapon is excessively dirty. It can also be used to close a bolt that was gently let down, rather than released under full spring compression, to keep the noise of closing the bolt to a minimum.

The forward assist is generally not necessary as a standard procedure on any weapon with the exception of the British SA-80A1 version. Having realized the frequency with which the weapon jammed when taken outside of the clean environment of the test range, the forward assist was implemented to save the operator the potential danger of aiming the rifle and pulling the trigger and the rifle not going off due to the bolt not being fully forward (a safety arrangement called a "safety sear" stopping the hammer from being released and the weapon firing, due to the dangers of firing with the bolt not fully closed. The design of the SA-80 makes the forward assist quite awkward as the left, supporting arm, must come off the hand grip and reach over the top to strike the bolt forward with the left edge of the left hand, much like a "karate chop". A redesign of the SA-80, known as the A2, alleviated this problem by reducing the number of locking lugs on the bolt, and strengthening the recoil spring. However, the "forward-assist" is still often taught, simply as a matter of course. The forward assist had also been implemented in the year 2007 on the MSAR STG-556, an American-made variant of the Austrian Steyr AUG assault rifle, but the usefulness of such device in said firearm is questionable at least, since the design is not normally prone to the malfunction that led to the need of the forward assist in other firearms; in fact Microtech Small Arms Research Inc., the manufacturer of the STG-556, has dropped the forward assist on all rifles manufactured since November 2008.

-wikipedia

[pro defensive greg]

combat lifesaver. ensures you get one more shot in the direction of the bad guys. sports: slap, pull, observe, release, TAP the forward assist, squuuuuueeeeeeze the trigger.

[Maverick831]

S.P.O.R.T.S.

[Josh3239]

The forward assist pushes the bolt forward. If you have ever looked at a bolt carrier you'll see it is serrated on the right side. The way it works is a pawl on the forward assist (when pushed) gets into the serrations and pushes the bolt carrier closed.

SPORTS is flawed. First off, slapping the mag is a good way to get a volcano of rounds shooting into your gun - especially on mags with worn feedlips. Use push/pull instead. Pulling the charging handle is fine but the military teaches you to use your firing hand to do that, that is kind of ridiculous. Observing maybe fine for civilians but if your in the rain and dark with rounds going over your head and the guys around you are blazing away on their weapons I don't know what you are expecting to find. The forward assist generally creates more problems than it solves, no one to this day has explained to me why you need to fire that particular round? It takes the same amount of time to pull the charging handle to the rear while rolling the rifle ejection port down and it does a more effective job of fixing the problem. I'd hardly call the forward assist a combat lifesaver, I'd instead call it a gamble. You'll either clear the malfunction momentarily (but not fix it) or you'll jam the weapon up more. I think that is the main thing people don't understand, the forward assist doesn't fix anything, it is a temporary band aid at best. IMO the forward assist is like Obama, it makes people feel good even though it doesn't fix squat. I don't hear about anyone who ever hits the op rod of a 10/22, M1 Garand, or M1A for example before shooting to "ensure the bolt closes".

The forward assist on the AR15 was made back in Vietnam when AR15s where not chrome lined in the chambers or bores and the Army was using the wrong powder which created lots of problems. The problems have been fixed, ARs are now chrome linded in the chamber and bores and the Army (and everyone else) load the .223/5.56 with the correct powder.

[joelukehart]

Not really needed on a civilian rifle. If a round won't chamber, pull the charging handle an get it out. You don't want to force in a round that doesn't want to go in in the first place.

[djleisure]

The only good reason I've heard for using the forward assist would be if you are trying to silently charge the gun. Riding the bolt forward instead of letting it slam home, then tapping the forward assist to make sure it's all seated. I guess maybe that would come into effect if you're hunting? ...or maybe if you're an absent minded assassin that forgets to put a round in the chamber before sneaking up on your victim? ...dunno...

[Capt. Speirs]

Not really needed on a civilian rifle. If a round won't chamber, pull the charging handle an get it out. You don't want to force in a round that doesn't want to go in in the first place.

So...the military should force a round?