Many people own AR’s, but unfortunately don’t know the first thing about the history, functionality or even what spare parts to have on hand to ensure success.

We hope to change that with this multi-part series focused on the simple things you can do to keep your AR15/M16 running.

Today we’re going to look at a brief history of the platform and what makes it tick. We feel that only by truly understanding the history and functionality of the weapon, will you be able to master the AR and depend on it.

History
The development of the AR weapon system dates back to the reluctant need for a replacement of the M14, the go-to Military Rifle coming out of WWII that itself replaced the M1 and Browning Automatic Rifles.

Need to find a replacement for the M14 was due to the heavy weight of the system, a soldier’s inability to carry large amounts of ammunition and its effective range. As we’ve witnessed with the recent Army transition to MultiCam, there was a strong hesitation to find a different platform.