We all know that the AR15/M-16 is one of the most accessorized weapons systems ever, but I was wondering what improvements and accessories the AR15.com mind trust feels are still needed.

Personally, I would settle for new A1 length stocks made of A2 type material.

What innovations and new accessories would you be interested in???

Reduce the number of bolt lugs from 7 to 3.
This will help reduce extraction problems when the action gets dirty and increase reliability.

Replace the Gas System with one produced by ZM Systems. This will help reduce extration problems and increase Reliability. It will also remove the recoil buffer located in the buttstock.

Slightly flute the chamber. This will improve extraction.

Replace the T-Cocking handle with the original AR cocking handle which looks like an upside down trigger underneath the carry handle, and remove the forward bolt assist.
This will allow the rifle to be cocked by either hand.

Shorten the Magazine Well. So the AR can take fully curved 30 - 40 round magazines.

Rechamber and re-engineer the rifle to take either 22PPC or 6 mm BR. This will result in a cartridge that is ballistically superior to the .223 and inherently more accurate.

Move the Front sight forwards towards the end of the barrel. This will increase the sight radius and make for faster target acquisition and reduced parallax errors.

Replace the Front Post sight with a hooded Blade Type Sight. This will improve sight picture. Include a tritium insert in the front sight.

Replace the Aluminum Magazines with Steel mags or composite mags. These would be stronger than the Aluminum mags.

How about a 7.62x39 AR-15 that takes AK mags and drums?

Daewoo or AR18 type upper in 16/20 inch that will fit on AR15 lowers with no mods...
(and sell for a decent price!)

A replaceable barrel adapter that uses the original barrel/barrel extension assy

Quoted: Luminova sights. Lasts longer than tritium, glows brighter than tritium and requires less light to charge than Tritium, without the health hazards.

Since Tritium is radioactive and requires no light, how much less were you thinking?  

Here's another idea, Create a bullpup lower with P-90 esque egonomics that you can drop standard AR uppers on.

Quoted: Reduce the number of bolt lugs from 7 to 3.

Possibly, but would require a re-engineering of the Bolt carrier.  Doable.

Replace the Gas System with one produced by ZM Systems. This will help reduce extration problems and increase Reliability.

And increase weight.  About all I see the ZM system doing is giving you a folding stock (I prefer the telescoping) and reduce garbage on the bolt.  Extraction & Reliabiltiy issue? Yet to be proven.

Slightly flute the chamber. This will improve extraction.

An interesting idea, IIRC HK did this and it improved reliability too.

Replace the T-Cocking handle with the original AR cocking handle which looks like an upside down trigger underneath the carry handle,

Bad idea.  Right now you should be able to charge the rifle with either hand.  At worse you have to buy a ambi latch for the charging handle.  If you go to the 'old' system you cannot mount scopes or redots in the carry handle.  Also what about the flattops??  The charging trigger would be right were the flattop is.

and remove the forward bolt assist.

Bad idea too IMHO.  Even the AK/SKS/M1/M14 and Israeli FAL had a forward assist feature to insure the bolt was closed.

Shorten the Magazine Well. So the AR can take fully curved ... magazines.

Not an issue for the AR since the 5.56 rounds are not tapered like the Soviet rounds.  This would only help if you wanted to make 7.62x39 AR-15s with high capacity magazines.  Since 7.62Sov is inferior for combat to the 5.56 and most states don't allow you to hunt with hi-capacity magazines there really isn't a need.

Rechamber and re-engineer the rifle to take either 22PPC or 6 mm BR. ...ballistically superior to the .223 and inherently more accurate.

Interseting (I kinda like the 6mm idea).  You can get upper chambered for these types of cartridges now (talk with Kurt at Kurt's Kustom).  I don't need any more accuracy, however finding a round that mimics the 5.56s wounding mechanism only larger would be nice. (especially if it extended the range and/or penetration capability)

Move the Front sight forwards towards the end of the barrel.

This one I would like to try with a 20" (obviously its been done with 16" rifles already).

Replace the Front Post sight with a hooded Blade Type Sight. This will improve sight picture.

Maybe but I don't see how.  Also you would need to come up with a new method of adjusting the elevation for zeroing.  Personally I like the method now (much better than any other rifle I've tried).

Include a tritium insert in the front sight.

Yep all ARs should have a Trijicon Tritium front sight post!

Replace the Aluminum Magazines with Steel mags or composite mags. These would be stronger than the Aluminum mags.

and Heavier (think light!).  There are some good polymere mags for the AR currently (US produced Thermolds).  Steel magazines are more likely to cause wear and dammage to the aluminum lower receiver.  Steel mags would also have a rust issue.  However I wouldn't mind some cheap RELIABLE steel magazines for training.

I think the best way to improve the AR15 would be to lower the dang price of parts.

ie: the Kights RAS, a very high cooliness factor, but way over priced in my book.

Chrome-Lined, carbon fiber barrel.

Other than the POS stock pistol grip I think the AR15 is perfect!

Sgtar15

Anyone else???

someone to make a AR with mag well that's legal in countries that are scared shitless of semi-auto rifles (like Australia)

I know that DPMS makes a lower without a mag well that legal in California and England. I don't knwo if it's legal down here

I miss my XM177E2. It's unfortunately stuck in the Phillipines.

A 5.45x39.5mm upper. and i ditto a 6mmKurz upper.

Hogue rubber pistol grip should be considered a standard item. or the rubber covered HK clone one. and include the "duck bill" feature.

fluting the chamber sounds nice. also an improved feed ramp as on the M4 should be standared on all AR-15's.

Flat tops should be standard on all new AR's. what good is a carry handle anyway? its not a briefcase.

no AR-15 should come with handguards with no heatshields. nor should they be flimsy like the shorty's on the Bushmaster. i was totally unimpressed with BM handguard quality. they felt cheap. Colt still makes the best shorty's.


room for a little improvement lib

I agree with a newly manufactured A1 stock.

I can’t believe no one has suggested a more “user friendly” way of removing the stock handguards.  Many of us are probably going to burn in Hell because of the language we’ve used when taking them off and replacing them!!  (And, no, it shouldn’t require a separate tool.)

I’d like to see some form of built-in self-tightening mechanism between the upper and lower receivers.  Maybe nothing more than spring-loaded detents would work.

I’d like a firing pin spring to help keep the firing pin away from a chambered cartridge.

Simple, well-designed and reliable ambidextrous controls would be nice.

Would like to see the charging handle moved to the left side like a FAL.  This would be easier to access and wouldn’t interfere with optics that extend backwards past the upper.  (Granted, this would require a pretty major redesign.)  

Alternatively, move the charging handle “ears” (the things you grab) most of the way forward, which would require slots in the upper for them to travel in  (Keep in mind, though, that a problem with the original upside down trigger charging handle was that it was close to the chamber area and got too hot.)

I would oppose reducing the number of locking lugs since I suspect this has much to do with the AR-15’s inherent accuracy.  

Frankly, none of suggestions above would make the AR-15 a significantly better rifle.

Lower: If it weren't for the for the "pre-ban legal" silliness, I'd throw on a www.socommfg.com lower right now. It has spring pin retention screws, and an upper/lower tightening screw above & behind the pistol grip.

Upper: The M4 doesn't have the problems that the M-16 did back in Vietnam. I have read reports of current-design M4's reliably firing 5K+ rounds w/o cleaning. The AR-18 has been touted as Stoner's best design; a gas-adjustable system, like the M96, would be a nice feature. ZM's design might offer some reliability improvement. Although ZM's Tele-folding stock is pretty slick, it reduces the overall length by only 4".

The M4's rear-mounted recoil tube keeps the barrel isolated, reduces reciprocating weight, and allows the barrel to be free-floated (ARMS SIR, etc.). The standard tube-stock is not bad as is, IMO.

The bolt lugs don't necessarily need to be reduced, but they could be strengthened, a la Robinson Arms M96.

I don't understand why the forward assist gets so much flak. It's a good idea for back up, and it doesn't get in the way. Even the venerable AK has a forwad assist, in the form of its reciprocating cocking handle.

6mm sounds like the ideal cartridge, but simple economics prevents the military from implementing it anytime soon. As such, current 6mm ammo prices are probably expensive, due to low volume manufacture/availability.

 1. strengthen the lower reciever where it meets the buffer tube.
 2. improve the gas operation so the gas isn't blown back into the action.
 3.increase the caliber size to something in the 6mm range as stated, not for accuracy/penetration concerns alone though, but because of the small diameter of .223/5.56 bore. If the rifle is submerged the bore is small enough to induce a capillary action of water up the bore and even when tilted to drain the capillary force is strong enough to hold the water in the bore, when fired pressures can be dangerously high(weapon fails/explodes in your face ,etc.) you shouldn't have to worry about your rifle getting dunked when crossing a stream.
 4. Increase the amount of aluminum around the front pivot pin area/beef it up a little.
 5. A firing pin that is retained/held captive by a spring would be nice(would reduce the chances of slam fire).
 
 The buffer/buffer spring and tube don't bother me. If you make your rifle small enough, eventually you'll end up with a pistol.

Other than customizing to fit personal needs the AR15 is the finest battle rifle in the world and does NOT require any changes.

Quoted: I can’t believe no one has suggested a more “user friendly” way of removing the stock handguards.  Many of us are probably going to burn in Hell because of the language we’ve used when taking them off and replacing them!!  (And, no, it shouldn’t require a separate tool.) I’d like to see some form of built-in self-tightening mechanism between the upper and lower receivers.  Maybe nothing more than spring-loaded detents would work. Simple, well-designed and reliable ambidextrous controls would be nice.

AMEN!

A FREE-FLOAT tube for guns with permanently attached muzzle brakes and the front sight assemble left in place.  It could be done. I have looked at Daewoo's and FAL's and others and I believe it would work best with a composite material. There is a huge potential market for these. Just think about all the Bushy's you see with that factory comp pinned on.  What do you guys think? I believe it is possible but do not have the time, money and resources available to try and develope.

For coolness effect I would like one of these for 500$

Ciener AR-15 belt feed - less than 32 made New
$10,500.00 as Posted on the SoCom website.

A reasonably priced pistol caliber conversion and reasonalbe priced hi caps would also be nice.

In my wish list price is the only barrier. If I want a super accurate rifle I grab my custom 308. But for pure fun the AR and FAL are tops in my book.

Ropes

Quoted: Slightly flute the chamber. This will improve extraction. An interesting idea, IIRC HK did this and it improved reliability too.

This is what is done on the HK 9x series of rifles.  But, from everything I've heard, you CANNOT shoot steel cased ammunition thru them...something about the steel trying to expand into the flutes causing the case to rupture.  I've never tried it myself, nor do I plan to, but if it's true, it could cause way more problems than it solves for those who choose to use Wolf ammo.  Also, the flutes are very hard on the brass, often making them a PITA to reload, which could also be of some concern to many.

I have one for us "Pre ban challenged."

a BATF approved "ADJUSTABLE" buttstock.  Simple design, the same telescoping buttstock that won't close all the way.  Instead of the first or second adjustment notch there would be some type or pin or raise where the buttstock couldn't pass.  This way there would be an inch or so of buffer tube still showing.