For those of us with no military background or it's been a while here are some fundamental handling skills. Your take may vary a bit on certain aspects but IMO this is pretty solid Loading an AR is pretty simple, right? It is if you have a solid repeatable way that works 100% of the time no matter what.
I have no issue with anything Mike says, Dude's been there, Done that! I will expand on the "C" Clamp hold though. Every thing he points out is correct, it flat out works, and should be practiced and used as part of your "System". HOWEVER, it doesn't always work, especially on certain rifles that many folks might choose to carry. The "Old" Riflemans carry and hold is still very much a viable solution, and I would encourage you to experiment with them all to find what works for YOU and your weapon, and your situation! I'm not going to argue against any hold, BUT, I want to point out that weapons OTHER then the AR might not lend themselves to that method all that well. Case in point, most any of the 1950's and later battle rifle types and almost ALL hunting rifles that are both larger and heavier then the AR! The major issue is Weapon Balance, many of those weapons have a forward balance point, so your fighting that with your hold. With the "C" Clamp, you loose your leverage the further out you reach and that also effects your balance and accuracy, this is where the oft mimmicked "Mag Hold" came from, and it sucks for accuracy. This is where the old Riflemans hold still works! Lastly, I want to point out HOW you carry and mount your weapon, something he didn't cover, but effects your method of hold. Your typical Shoulder carry, or your Safari carry, or old school WW-II cross the body carry will add complexity and loss of speed in getting on target, this is where you REALLY need to practice how you carry, how you mount the weapon and and rock and roll! Over the years, the single point sling carry ( Patrol Carbine Carry) has become the defacto method of carry, it's speed and versatility have really proven themselves, HOWEVER, you don't want to forget the "Riflemans" Sling hold, especially with the larger and heavier weapons we might choose to carry! Take the time and experiment with all these things and find what makes YOU the best you can be, and that's the right answer!
A question on the single point sling and sling attachments in general: What attachment system do you use and why? So far QD has never let me down (no aluminum sockets or plugs, only steel), but that has been in situations where nobody has been shooting at me... I'm reconsidering single point based on your input above and really thinking about the handling differences of an AR carbine vs muh huntin guns. I normally carry safari style since I'm a huge fan of Boonie Packers on my hunting guns. The Boonie's, BTW, were invented by a soldier in Vietnam back in the 60's.
I really like the Stoner AR convertible system, it's cable reinforced, yet has just a bit of spring to it very strong and yet light and comfy for all day carry. The main things I want in a single point is that reinforcement and good mash clips, those two things make ALL the difference. As far as attachment to the carbine, I don't like the multi piece end plates, I prefer the ambi stamped versions, less snagging risk, and zero noise! For standard size rifles, even the hunting rifles I usually carry "Patrol Style" in that I have a two point sling, but I'm carrying across body, muzzle down, strong hand on the grip/stock.
As to Mike's assertions in loading an empty rifle, he is part correct, Lemme 'Splain! The AR doesn't load well with a topped off mag and the bolt closed, don't matter the capacity of the mag, they are all going to be the same! The AR is meant to load with the bolt locked back open ( as he points out) then let fly same as with the 1911, only use the bolt release on a charged mag, never an empty rifle! Following the bolt back loading practice, you don't need to strip off the first couple rounds from your freshy, nor do you need to worry about which side of the mag the rifle feeds from, it's all In how the rifle works. Always press check, every single time, every single weapon you run, PERIOD! Shit happens, even on a spotless weapon, sometimes a shell sticks in a mag or dosnt quite feed correctly when charging, and a press check insures function! His assertion in closing the dust shield should always be followed, if the rifle isn't in immediate use, keep it closed, you would be amazed at how much schmutz these carbines will pick up, especially in close body carry!
For those thinking about switching to a single point, this is what it should look like, and how it should be adjusted! You want to set it so the butt ( at full extension) is about 4 inches below your arm pit! Like this!
@Ura-Ki That pic of the Magpul end plate was a remnant from some stuff I deleted about why I didn't go with a HK style clip mount in the first place there because of the inevitable noise it would create, so good to know my instincts were correct. That AR-Stoner sling you are talking about is a bichin' deal, too, at under $15! Outta stock right now but I got it set to notify me. How are you attaching the mash clip? Surgery on one of the changeable ends or did you fab your own? Last thing- those ambi end plates - are you using the version that has a mounting point on each side like this?
My Sling came with the mash clip, don't know if they are still using it or not? That's the end plate I'm using, clean and simple.
That picture says a lot! The slings come with the hooks you have, though sadly out of stock at the moment). I always thought that those here HK hooks/clips and mash hooks were like these. Maybe I got them backwards?
