What makes the AR-15 so accurate?

[444]

"Can't forget the factor of the fifteen pounds of stuff every "tactical" AR owner tends to slap on."

I keep reading about these 15 pound AR15s, but I have never seen one. I keep waiting for a picture of one to show up but so far have been disappointed. Maybe it is that one that has been making the rounds for years with the Ponitac hood ornament, the keys hanging from the pistol grip and the compass in the stock.
We are talking about AR15 accuracy and not weight or "tactical" rifles, but one of my ARs has a KAC RASII on it with a Dieter-CQD Tactical Hand Grip, an Aimpoint ML2 with an ARMs mount and rings, back up iron sights, and a PRI Big Latch charging handle with brought the weight up a little over a pound beyond a bone stock rifle; total weight is a little over eight pounds.

 

[Steve Smith]

Some of mine weigh over15 and some weigh less than 10, and they all shoot well. The weight doesn't make them more accurate, any more than weight makes a man strong.

 

[MagKnightX]

First, I think I need to get over my typical aversion to emoticons. A would have gone well in my previous post.

Second, weight lessens recoil effects leading to less possibility of innacuracy from recoil, and allowing quicker re-acquisition of the target.

 

[Andrew Wyatt]

weight enhances shootability not accuracy. those two are different things.

 

[waynzwld]

It is the bolt locking into the barrel extension that makes the AR so accurate.
You could take a AR bolt, carrier and barrel and mount it on anything and it would shoot about as accurate as it does in a complete rifle. Tubb made his match bolt rifle out of similar parts from an AR and it is one heck of an accurate rifle.

 

[Jon Coppenbarger]

.

 

[bad_dad_brad]

The original question was "What makes the the AR15 so accurate?"

Well, it is pretty accurate for a semi-auto rifle. And it can be a world beater if tuned. But out of the box, the AR-15 is pretty darned accurate, easily within 2 inches at bench with iron sites at 100 yards.

Why?

All the reasons already stated a hundred times.

Decent trigger.

By design, the bolt locks rock solid into the barrel chamber.

No gas piston and spring twanging away, just gas on the bolt carrier.

Straight line stock.

Zero remains even after cleaning.

Low recoil of the .223.

Most civilian versions are heavy barrel.

So, out of the box, the AR-15 might be the most accurate semi-automatic rifle. My Bushy Shorty is anyway. Beats the heck out of my Mini-14 anyway.

 

[mattd]

Ok, I'm here

The biggest factor is the light bolt and that its lined up with the barrel so there is no parts getting shaked around and no barrel warping. I've see high speed film of the ak-47 and the m-16 on a show on discovery channel. Because of the ak-47 heavy bolt it made the barrel bend alot.