If you would like to know the three accessories that practically EVERY special ops soldier agrees you need on your fighting rifle, then this article will tell you.
The truth is the AR and AK platforms have been around so long there are practically hundreds (if not thousands) of accessories for them — and if you don’t know what you need, you will probably end up buying a lot of junk.
Don’t waste your money. Find out the essentials here in today’s article.
Why It’s So Important to Get the Right Gear
First, the modern fighting rifle is an intermediate cartridge platform such as the AR-15 or AK-47 (or even AK-74) — we can discuss what makes these “intermediate” later. But this is and has been the modern fighting rifle for some time now.
Second, because WEIGHT is such an important concept in battle — and it sucks to carry a heavy gun all over the battlefield — care should be taken to choose only the essential accessories for your fighting rifle.
Lastly, the popularity of AR-15 and AK pattern rifles in 3-Gun Nation and other shooting competitions over the last decade has bled over into the special operations community. It’s not uncommon for what works for fast and accurate hits in modern competitions to cross over (at least somewhat) onto the battlefield.
The Only Three Things Any Fighting Rifle Needs
Without further delay, they are…
1. Sling — Every fighting rifle needs a sling. Not only to make your rifle easier to carry, but also so you can transition to a sidearm while still retaining your primary weapon (the rifle) if it fails. While I’ve recommended three-point slings in the past, I’ve learned it’s better to stick with one- or two-points slings (depending on your preference).
2. Optics/Sights — If you don’t have backup iron sights on your rifle now, get them. I have the Magpul flip-up sights. If you are running an optic, you still need sights in case the optic fails. I ran iron sights at my instructor training with Jason, but I learned a lot about what type of optic will fit my needs in my part of the country.
3. Weapon-Mounted Light — A white light mounted to your rifle is a necessity nowadays. You need two hands to run your rifle well. That means you should mount a white light to your rifle, because you don’t have three hands.
Is That It?
Seriously. That’s it.
Most guys with experience want their rifles as light and close to “stock” as possible.
This limited choice of accessories also makes it easy to get more rifles (yay!) and outfit each one so it’s ready for a fight.
Now, of course you could set up your rifles different ways within those choices…
For example, a shorter-barrel AR-15 might have a one-point sling, EOTech red dot sights and a SureFire light for close-quarters room clearing… And someone in the open areas of Utah might have a 16-inch barrel (for long-distance ballistics), with a 1-6 adjustable scope (for reaching out and touching stuff) and a two-point sling (for long hikes in the mountains).
Using these three principal pieces of gear, you can set up your rifles so they fit your tactical and environmental needs.
[Editor’s note: If you want to learn how to build your own AR-15 from scratch — no registration, no serial number and no paperwork — click here for a free DVD with step-by-step instructions. Best of all, it’s still 100% legal. So you’ll stay off the government watch lists and get the awesome AR-15 you want with complete privacy.]
