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Posted: 6/18/2002 1:02:09 PM EDT
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I have a friend wanting to purchase their first AR. Quite possibly, it would be a AR-10 Carbine in .243. The friend is left handed and has only a day's experience with AR15 and M16. All the pointers I offered resulted in hot brass landing somewhere on a bare right arm. What do you lefties do? |
From the suject line I thought this was going to be a political rant. 
Being a righty, I really don't have an experianced answer, however, when I was in the military I remember that for the guys that were left-handed they had a separately attached brass deflector that clipped over the ejection port. Not sure if they worked any better than the current "built in" deflectors. If anything else, you could attach one of those cumbersome/ridicolus looking bag devices. |
What? Do you think we're handicapped? That knot just aft of the ejection port, called the brass deflector, takes care of things. I haven't shot an AR-10, but at the last public range I attended, there was a group of people just down from where my brother and I were shooting who had two AR-10s (one in .308 and the other a former .243 rebarreled to 6mm International). There was one left-hander in the bunch and he had no trouble with either of the AR-10s. |
Nope, I was aware that most left handers shot the AR with no modification to the rifle. I was looking for pointers into stance or right arm placement. Especially for the M16 since a person's foregrip arm tends to be be held higher and more off the side of the rifle to control full-auto bursts.
She. I think that her short arms are adding to the problem. Im gonna let her try my AR with a newly installed shorty stock on it. |
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I am left handed but shoot right handed. Because I like to keep up with my brass (i'm kinda particular, especially with LC brass) I use a brass catcher. The brass catcher doesn't get in the way unless I need to see the chamber. Here are pics of it:   These are available through many places. I got mine from Bushmaster. They are available for a variety of guns including the AK and the M1A/M14. |
| I'm a lefty and don't have any problems with AR's as long as they have the standard brass deflector. I did get an older SP1 carbine upper without one though and firing it got a little annoying with the brass bouncing off my right cheek just below my sunglasses every round. That's now my wife's designated upper. As far as my right arm, its underneath the rifle to support it so I've never had a problem there. Maybe if I was shooting off a bench it could be off to the side enough but I think my AR's throw the brass far enough out that I still think I'd be OK. |
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Lefty: No problem with any guns I've shot so far. AR's, M14's, M16's, Fal's, AK's, Shotguns, Uzi's, MP5's, Various HK's, Garand's, ...etc. Only one gun gave me a shy experience. Barrett 82 firing it lefty. Wham, gas exhaust from the bolt slammed into my nose. I shot that only once. heh. |
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I'm a lefty and I've never had that problem with any AR-15s, including an SP-1. I have never shot an M-16, and it sounds like that may be the cause of her dilemma. She just needs to tuck that right wing down out of the way. The AR-10 is even less likely to cause this problem. The brass ejects at two o'clock. My unsolicited opinion of those left ejecting ARs is that they area bad idea. Just like switching the safety on a shotgun to "lefty friendly" is a bad idea. I don't want to have to learn a new protocol every time I shoot a buddy's weapon, and vice versa. The only rifles I have seen that I do not consider "lefty friendly" are bullpups. |
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Get that right (and left) elbow down where it belongs! Good full-auto (sub-gun, CQB, etc.) stance is almost square to the target, butt a little more toward centerline, both elbows down (don't want to get them shot off!). Even with a more traditional bladed stance, keep that support side elbow down. Keep the nose almost on the charging handle. Check/replace your extractor spring. I'm a lefty, shoot nose to charging handle, never have a problem, even with a collapsible stock in the collapsed position. |
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another lefty here. never had a problem with any gas gun...or any rifle for that matter. the only left handed rifle i own is an anschutz smallbore match rifle...and i only bought it to keep me in position when reloading the single-shot action. i eould advise you work on your friend's shooting position and possibly check the extarctor and ejector on your rifles. while not as violent as an ak's ejection, the ar should still eject up and away. |
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