Holding your rifle by the magazine/magwell = more accuracy?

[RMP91]

Sometimes in videos of Military forces in the sandbox from CNN and the like, I notice that some soldiers are holding their AR/AK/other rifles by their magazine or the magazine well, while others hold it by an aftermarket foregrip, which method is more accurate in your opinions?

When I move out of my parents' house within the next few years, one of my first gun purchases is more than likely going to be either a M1A Socom II or an M1A Scout (torn between the 2 ATM, they both look great) and I would like to know, short of adding a crap-ton of aftermarket optics, bi-pods and/or foregrips which would ultimately limit the way I can carry it , which would be the more accurate method of aiming your weapon?

[Barabas]

Whatever works for you.

[Crowesnest]

Sometimes in videos of Military forces in the sandbox from CNN and the like, I notice that some soldiers are holding their AR/AK/other rifles by their magazine or the magazine well, while others hold it by an aftermarket foregrip, which method is more accurate in your opinions?

When I move out of my parents' house within the next few years, one of my first gun purchases is more than likely going to be either a M1A Socom II or an M1A Scout (torn between the 2 ATM, they both look great) and I would like to know, short of adding a crap-ton of aftermarket optics, bi-pods and/or foregrips which would ultimately limit the way I can carry it , which would be the more accurate method of aiming your weapon?

Whatever makes you more comfortable..... For me, I would be worried about a catastrophic failure and should your rifle ever go KABOOM, you would be more likely to be injured holding the rifle at that particular point.

[sevensix2x51]

as far as standing accuracy, i find the best position is as close to the receiver as possible, which lets me rest my elbow kind of up against my ribs. this creates more of a monopod than an arm, and allows me to focus more on breaking the shot, than holding the rifle steady with my arm outstretched. this does not apply to tacti-awesome speed shooting, merely shooting offhand at longer distances.

[Killawhale415]

I have never liked using the magwell on any rifle as a major contact point when shooting. I feel it decreases overall control on most rifles, ie more muzzle flip/ slower follow up shots.

[Beelzy]

I don't think holding onto the magwell is a good idea. If 'Ol Eugene wanted the rifle to do that, he would have put grip material there.

Old School!!

[H2H]

grabbing the mag can lead to ammo feeding issues.

[r6raff]

It depends on your position. In an offhand position you want your support hand further out to stabalize the rifle properly, if your rocking a 11" sbr then I dont thing it makes a huge difference, but with a 16" or 20" you will see difference in follow up shots and keeping your weapon balanced. I see holding the magwell as unstable as a full grip on the VFG, you are not maximizing your control over the weapon. However, your situation will dictate what you can or cant do, so you will see folk go through the whole spectrum, because each scenario will differ from another.

But ideally, in an offhand position, you want your support hand to be in the best place to support the weapon... and in my opinion, that is not at the magwell.

Plus, I have seen failures that resulted in the magazine rocketing out of the magwell, that woulc be bad if your hand was right there.

[mif_slim]

Holding the magwell you can stabilize better, holding te foregrip you can get on target faster. It depends on your situation.

[guns4life]

Holding the mag works wonders if you have a support arm shoulder injury...

[Omega13device]

First of all when you look at pictures of what Soldiers and Marines are doing don't assume that's a guide for what you should do. Their situation is probably not applicable to you.

When you see pictures of them holding their rifle like that it's often because they're just observing through the scope. When you have to stand there holding your rifle for a while it's easier to grip it close in.

The whole question of where to grip it is somewhat dependent on what kind of shooting you're doing. For example, people shooting High Power matches have a special way of standing where they brace their support arm on their hip. It's necessary because they have extra weight in their rifles and they're standing in one place for an extended period, so they need the skeletal support provided by that stance. If you're shooting at a range and you're just standing in one place then something similar may work for you.

However if you're shooting in 3-gun matches or taking carbine classes where you learn combat shooting techniques, you'll probably want to grip the handguard as far forward as you can. It gives you better control when moving from target to target, and since you're not standing in one place aiming for an extended period, fatigue isn't a big factor.

[steelcore]

During training (M16A2) I often placed my lead hand in the corner between the hand guard and magazine well (not the magazine itself). It is useful because you can obviously push up to bring the muzzle up, or you can pull back to bring the muzzle down slightly faster than letting gravity pull it down. Months later I used a fore grip (on an M16A4) and noticed that you can direct the muzzle much faster, but it also snags on whatever gear you're wearing. With just a flak jacket and LBV the grip kept smacking my thigh whenever I dropped it and let it hang off the 3 point sling.

In my opinion a fore grip will give you slightly faster mobility, but I'm talking about fractions of a second. If you find yourself in situations where milliseconds count, then it might be useful.

[qaz5109]

hahaha all of you are scaring the guy RMP91 try it for your self that is the only way to answer your question and dont be scured about your rifle blowing up in your hands because it does happen but not often and if it happens it your hand might not be the only body part that gets injured my 2cents i like it i feel more comfortable

[bombadillo]

I've seen a lot of rounds shot out and boy a lot of you have seen "catastrophic failures'' that I have apparently never seen. I've never seen a gun blow up from a guy holding onto a mag well. He's not talking about gripping the magazine as a VFG, but a more rearward hold using the magwell as a handstop more than holding onto the magazine. Again, I reiterate that I've never seen a gun blow up or have any kind of failure resulting in a magazine blowing downward, receiver blowing up or any real failure other than yanking a partially inserted magazine out.

[subijitsu]

as far as standing accuracy, i find the best position is as close to the receiver as possible, which lets me rest my elbow kind of up against my ribs. this creates more of a monopod than an arm, and allows me to focus more on breaking the shot, than holding the rifle steady with my arm outstretched. this does not apply to tacti-awesome speed shooting, merely shooting offhand at longer distances.

I am the exact same way. Its just more comfortable for me to keep that elbow in tight.