Improved Charing Handles For The AR
Games Guy | June 11, 2011
Charging handles have come a long way since the AR-15 rifle was designed over 50 years ago. One change is that the current manual of arms has you operate the charging handle with your left hand. This enables the weapon to be held in a ready to fire position and for magazine changes to be conducted more rapidly. This has also resulted in wider charging handles intended to clear the current, wide optics. The longer latches employed place immense strain on the tiny roll-pin that is used to retain them. Roll-pin failure results in the loss of the latch and a reciprocating charging handle. This can have unpleasant and possibly fatal consequences in battle.
To overcome this Bravo Company introduced their BCM Gunfighter charging handle. This features a unique design which takes the stress off the roll-pin and transfers it to latch to handle contact areas. Various lengths of latch are available with this unit. It is very smooth operating. However, it is only set up for left handed operation or a rabbit-ear hold with the right hand in the old style.
Mecharmor Armor Defense overcome this problem by using a latch that has the traditional left hand actuation and a button to the right rear, enabling truly ambidextrous operation. The Tacops-1 AR charging handle will clear the widest optics but will not prevent actuation of the forward assist. A stainless steel spring ensures the charging handle only releases when deliberately actuated. The Tacops-1 charging handle is engineered from 7075 Aluminum – the same used on the best AR receivers.
Two weaknesses of the AR are its use of relatively soft aluminum in reciprocating parts and its need for constant, heavy lubrication. The Fail Zero charging handle overcomes both through the use of an ultra-thin but incredibly tough and self-lubricating EXO coating. EXO components mean you can run an AR entirely without lube, although Fail Zero recommend a small amount at a few key points. The ultra-hard, self-lubricating surface makes for extremely reliable operation and very long component life. The coating is available in tan for current theatres of operations.