is an ar15 an assault rifle

[sonyvaio2]

iv heard all sorts of claims saying that it isnt, and some saying it is. ive heard its not because assault rifles need to have firing options, like 3 round, or full auto. but if you look up assault rifle definition it says a rifle with a large mag that is semi auto or full auto used by infantry. and i know ar doesnt stand for assualt rifle. so any opinions.

 

[S.W.G.]

No. No capacity for full auto or burst fire. Not an assault rifle.

BTW, AR comes from ARmalite.

 

[glove]

Only if it goes full auto. Semi auto is not an assault rifle

 

[MathurinKerbouchard]

No. Only to journalists and politicians who judge books by their covers.

 

[EddieNFL]

Only if you use it to assault someone.

 

[SaxonPig]

Technically, an assault rifle is capable of firing full auto and chambers an intermediate cartridge. An automatic rifle fires full auto and chambers a full size cartridge. No semi-auto rifle is an assault rifle but the term caught on... particularly amongst the anti-gun media and politicos.

 

[VA27]

Technically, an assault rifle is capable of firing full auto and chambers an intermediate cartridge. An automatic rifle fires full auto and chambers a full size cartridge. No semi-auto rifle is an assault rifle but the term caught on... particularly amongst the anti-gun media and politicos.

^This post nailed it.^

 

[browningguy]

Actually I think that the term is used by a whole lot of people that own them also, not just the anti's. While not technically correct, neither is calling a tissue a kleenex, unless of course it is a kleenex brand.

We're apparantly not much better, now we have manufacturers calling AR's and even AK's "sporting rifles".

 

[groundsclown]

This should explain it clearly

 

[Walkalong]

No, it is not. It is a semi auto lookalike.

The media are the ones who started calling everything with a magazine assault rifles. That scares people so they can get more people to think banning them is a good idea, but, as always, only law abiding citizens obey gun laws.

 

[Walkalong]

That media guide is hilarious, but not far off. The media loves to chant assault rifle, so they have used the term for guns that do not even qualify as a semi auto version of one. Remember, it's all about scare factor with them.

 

[barnetmill]

According to federal law IIRC there are semiautomatic assault rifles.

 

[writerinmo]

Many groups would have you think that if it has a pistol grip and a removable magazine, it's an assault rifle. God forbid that it has a threaded muzzle and a scope or red dot as well. This is pretty much where the term EBR came from...if it's black, it must be evil!

 

[NavyLCDR]

From the "experts":

http://www.nraila.org/glossary.aspx

ASSAULT RIFLE

By U.S. Army definition, a selective-fire rifle chambered for a cartridge of intermediate power. If applied to any semi-automatic firearm regardless of its cosmetic similarity to a true assault rifle, the term is incorrect.

 

[Iramo94]

Only if my Challenger is a reckless-drunken-speeding car.

Edit to make clear: Don't name things based on what criminals use them for.

And yes, AR stands for Armalite Rifle. Incidentally, when Eugene Stoner started designing guns for Knight's Armament, he named them "SR" for Stoner Rifle. It's basically the exact same gun, plus some upgrades.

 

[sonyvaio2]

that cleared it up a bit, until barnetmill posted. but for the most part im gathering that its not. thanks.
navylcdr had a good link.

 

[Murphy4570]

Only if my Challenger is a reckless-drunken-speeding car.

Only if you also have a '69 Charger that is good for romping around the backwoods of Hazzard county!

 

[Tipro]

An "assault rifle" is just any rifle designed to be used in an assault, and therefore any official definition will just list some common characteristics of such weapons. Turning towards the AR, if you design yours for hunting, I would not classify it as an assault rifle. If you want to put a foregrip, red dot sight, laser, masterkey, etc., it becomes harder and harder to say that your rifle is not designed for, even if not actually used for, assaulting.

None of this is to say that I don't think these things should be allowed on a rifle, so don't flame me for this. We as RKBA activists should embrace the term assault rifle, because clearly the 2A isn't designed to protect your right to kill turkeys, and we should not pretend our guns are something different than they are. Now you may put those things on your ar w/ the intention of hunting, or w/o the intention of assaulting, but those features, and others, are undeniably useful in such ventures.

 

[MutinousDoug]

It depends on what the meaning of "is" is.

 

[Coop45]

The early M-16's were barely assault rifles.

 

[firesky101]

Only if you live in California, or similarly neutered states.

 

[awgrizzly]

Actually I think that the term is used by a whole lot of people that own them also, not just the anti's. While not technically correct, neither is calling a tissue a kleenex, unless of course it is a kleenex brand.

We're apparantly not much better, now we have manufacturers calling AR's and even AK's "sporting rifles".

Just want to point out with the Kleenex thing and all, AR15s not only aren't assault weapons most aren't even AR15s. The term is copy written by Colt and not even Armalite can call their guns an AR15. But the media will go on using the terminology, not just because they are ignorant but because it sounds more deadly and shocking. It serves the dual purpose of enhancing the news reports and casting negativity upon the guns.

 

[45_auto]

If your AR15 is a Colt AR15, or has some specific "evil" features, then by the legal definition of the 1994 assault weapons ban (expired in 2004) it is an assault weapon. Some state laws still use these definitions to define "assault weapons":

In the former U.S. law, the legal term assault weapon included certain specific semi-automatic firearm models by name (e.g., Colt AR-15, TEC-9, non-automatic AK-47s produced by three manufacturers, and Uzis) and other semi-automatic firearms because they possess a minimum set of cosmetic features from the following list of features:

Semi-automatic rifles able to accept detachable magazines and two or more of the following:

- Folding or telescoping stock
- Pistol grip
- Bayonet mount
- Flash suppressor, or threaded barrel designed to accommodate one
- Grenade launcher (more precisely, a muzzle device which enables the launching or firing of rifle grenades)

Semi-automatic pistols with detachable magazines and two or more of the following:

- Magazine that attaches outside the pistol grip
- Threaded barrel to attach barrel extender, flash suppressor, handgrip, or suppressor
- Barrel shroud that can be used as a hand-hold
- Unloaded weight of 50 oz (1.4 kg) or more
- A semi-automatic version of an automatic firearm

Semi-automatic shotguns with two or more of the following:

- Folding or telescoping stock
- Pistol grip
- Fixed capacity of more than 5 rounds
- Detachable magazine

 

[Pilot]

Yes it is.

 

[Justin]

If you look at the usage of the term "assault rifle" among people who know what they're actually talking about, the term is only used in relation to rifles capable of firing in semi, full-auto and/or burst mode.