Impractical but cool guns

Tuesday, May 19th, 2009 | Blogging, Guns, Misc |

Tam started a meme: guns that are impractical, but cool.

My pick is the AR-7. It’s cool but not very practical.

Why it’s cool

It was designed by Eugene Stoner, who designed the AR-15/M-16.
Thanks to aluminum and plastic parts it weights just 2.5 pounds and is largely impervious to rust, the scourge of all gun owners.
The barrel unscrews from the action, instantly cutting the stored size in half.
The barrel, action, and magazine can be stowed in the buttstock, making for an unbelievably compact design.
When thus stowed the whole thing floats. It was originally designed to be a survival rifle for downed Air Force pilots.
Jame Bond used one. So did Maxwell Smart.
You can insert the AR-7 into all sorts of wild-eyed fantasies of surviving alone in the wilderness.

Why it’s impractical

Magazine capacity tops out at 15 rounds and those are hard to find.
The gun has never had a reputation for accuracy or reliability.
Sight adjustments are crude.
The ergonomics are hella uncomfortable.
Armalite couldn’t make money on the design so they sold it to Century Charter Arms, who couldn’t make any money so they sold it to Henry Repeating Arms. That’s not a good sign.
Here’s the killer: there are much better guns available that do pretty much the same thing.

Example. The Marlin Papoose/70P has a barrel that unscrews. The gun floats when cocooned inside the factory storage case. The Papoose is as accurate and reliable as other Marlins such as the venerable Model 60, weighs just 3.25 pounds, and unlike the AR-7 has studs for sling swivels. Newer Papoose models are made from stainless steel and plastic for worry-free carry in Argentina’s rainy season.

For that matter, if you own the ever-popular Ruger 10/22 you can remove the barrel and action from the stock in 10 seconds flat by removing a single screw using a screwdriver or a coin from you pocket. Unlike the AR-7 you can fire the 10/22 while it’s thus disassembled.

Not only can you find plenty of high capacity magazines for the 10/22, you can start with a factory 10/22 and gradually replace every single part until there’s nothing left that was made by Ruger. A Ruger 10/22 has more accessories than a teenaged transgendered schizophrenic.

Tags: ruger 10/22

20 Comments to Impractical but cool guns

Laughingdog
May 19, 2009

“you can start with a factory 10/22 and gradually replace every single part until there’s nothing left that was made by Ruger.”

Well, besides the receiver. Hell, I wish I could just buy that, instead of having a bunch of Ruger parts taking up space.

Les Jones
May 19, 2009

Volquartsen, Tactical Innovations, MOA, and Tactical Solutions make 10/22 receivers.

If you have a Ruger 10/22 you can buy more accessories than a scorned woman with her ex-husband’s credit card.

Laughingdog
May 19, 2009

“Volquartsen, Tactical Innovations, MOA, and Tactical Solutions make 10/22 receivers.

If you have a Ruger 10/22 you can buy more accessories than a scorned woman with her ex-husband’s credit card.”

I’m thinking “Les” is a good name for my first-born right about now.

jonathan hickman
May 19, 2009

I have a Marlin Papoose. I got it out a few days ago for the first time in years. It’s a pretty nice gun.

jonathan hickman´s last blog post..I’d like your band more if I understood any of the lyrics

Les Jones
May 19, 2009

LD: Heh. I haven’t tried the TacSol receiver, but I’ve used one of their Pac-Lite barrels on a Browning Buckmark with a suppressor. They make good stuff.

Jonathan: Cool. We need to go shooting at Coal Creek Armory’s indoor range one day. It’s only ten bucks and it’s lot of fun. Terri K. went one time and shot an MP-5 submachine gun.

Tam
May 20, 2009

I lurves my little Papoose, although the rear sight is pretty lame. (It likes to fold flat when subjected to the titanic recoil of the mighty .22LR cartridges.)

Tam´s last blog post..Still roping goats.

SayUncle » Another cool but impractical gun
May 20, 2009

[...] Les Jones looks at the AR-7. [...]

Jay G.
May 20, 2009

The AR-7 is an EMINENTLY good gun for the “cool but impractical” list. Good choice Les!

Jay G.´s last blog post..Don’t Mess with Texans, Part 2

comatus
May 20, 2009

If it’s a take-down smallbore you’re after, you could do worse than the tubular-magazine Browning design popularly known as a Winchester. Mine was made by Remington. I got it from my grandfather, who bought it at the factory shortly after WWI.

Robert
May 20, 2009

They even made an AR-7 pistol for a couple of years,it looked just like a poor man’s Broomhandle Mauser.

Robert´s last blog post..Cheesus Christ!

SayUncle » Quote of the day
May 21, 2009

[...] Les Jones from his AR-7 post: A 10/22 has more accessories than a teenaged transgendered schizophrenic. [...]

*sigh* But I still want one. Plus My Addition To The Meme « Dante’s Inferno and Firing Range
May 21, 2009

[...] Published May 21, 2009 Guns , Stream of Consciousness 0 Comments Tags: Bitter Clinger This post made me have a moment of warm [...]

Chris Range
May 22, 2009

My vote for cool-but-impractical gun would be the Webley-Fosbery - which was the answer to a question nobody asked. “How do you turn a revolver into an automatic?”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Webley_Fosbury

Cool because: It was in the Maltese Falcon and Zardoz. It also has a high Steampunk factor. It’s an automatic revolver.

Impractical because: It’s an automatic revolver.

Chris Range´s last blog post..Dragon*Con 2009 Jury Submissions

Matt Groom
May 22, 2009

There were actually about a half dozen manufacturers of the AR-7 in between when Armalite stopped making them and Henry Repeating Arms started, including Survival Arms in my hometown of Cocoa Fl. Several companies that owned the design did not produce any guns. I don’t think Century ever owned the design, but Charter Arms did, and those are some of the most common variants you find used around here.

My main complaint has always been the hollow and awkward stock, which is like shooting with a half-gallon milk jug.

Les Jones
May 22, 2009

“I don’t think Century ever owned the design, but Charter Arms did”

You’re absolutely right. I said Century Arms when I meant Charter Arms. Fixed! Thanks.

jonathan hickman
May 29, 2009

Les - that’d be cool.

BTW - I don’t think the subscribe to comments plugin is working.

jonathan hickman´s last blog post..Creating your own traditions

Not Les Jones
May 30, 2009

Testing, testing …

Les Jones
May 30, 2009

Testing some more.

Les Jones
May 30, 2009

I think you’re right. Subscribe to comments is busted. I’m moving the site and re-installing the software this weekend. I’ll see if that fixes it.

Les Jones´s last blog post..My Million Dollar Googlezon* Idea

Willard Conley
November 1, 2009

On your statement that the capicity is 15 rds is incorrect, I have a 25 rd banana magazine manufactured by Ram Line for the AR 7 part no Mar-7025. Very dependable rifle especially for what I use it for.