Enhanced Controls
Short Story: Among the first things you should upgrade on your AR are the operating components that you interact with the most. Upgrading to enhanced controls will allow you to more reliably operate your AR.
In addition to Furniture, the shooter’s interface includes the controls of the gun. We will cover the following controls in this article:
Safety Selector
The standard, Mil-Spec safety selector is fine; it gets the job done. But a short throw, ambidextrous safety selector is a huge improvement to the operability of the AR system.
Short Throw
Not having to rotate the safety a full 90 degrees to put it into fire or safe mode has a dramatic effect on the shooter’s experience and speed (especially if you have small hands). While short throw is technically anything less than 90 degrees, you will typically see between 45 and 60 degrees. It should be noted that if your lower receiver is not marked for a short throw safety (FYI, Aero Precision lowers are), the position of your safety will not necessarily correspond with the markings on your lower receiver.
Ambidextrous
If you pick up an AR for the first time, being able to engage or disengage your safety from either side of the receiver may seem unnecessary. But, it is great for tactical and competition shooting (where you might be shooting with either hand, based on available cover), and for precision shooting (where you should be resting the thumb of your shooting hand on the shooting hand side of your grip).
PB Picks
Our go to safety is probably one of the most popular options. We put the Radian Talon on all of our personal guns. It offers both short throw (45 degree) and full throw (90 degree) by simply rotating the cylinder 180 degrees, and is ambidextrous. The 2-lever kit comes with a large and small lever (which can be put on either side of the gun). There are additional kits that have 4 levers, for a truly personal setup. Radian also makes a select fire version (90/180 degree) of the Talon.
Magazine Release Button
The standard Mil-Spec mag release button is an ovular column of aluminum protruding from the side of the lower receiver. It has a surface area around a quarter square inch. That’s a small target for sweaty or cold fingers, gloved fingers, or a shaky, adrenaline-infused hand. Swapping that out for a paddle-style mag release button or an ambidextrous mag release button can provide you with a more reliable or flexible control.
Paddle Style (Enhanced)
Slapping a paddle style mag release button on your AR dramatically increases the surface area of the mag release button. This makes the task of indexing your finger to the mag release button a piece of cake. All of our personal ARs are equipped with extended, paddle-style mag release buttons.
Ambidextrous
If you are a lefty shooting a right-handed AR, dropping your mag can be an awkward exercise. Replacing the standard magazine release with an ambidextrous magazine release offers you the opportunity to drop the mag from the left side of the receiver (in addition to the right).
If you are not a lefty, you might not find a whole lot of value in an ambi mag release. We don’t use them, because we don’t find ourselves with our rifle in our left hand needing to change mags all that often.
PB Picks
Our go to mag release button is the Odin Works XMR3. It is sleek. It is comfortable. It works.
Bolt Release
As you fire the last round from a magazine, the bolt catch does the important job of locking the bolt carrier group to the rear. This sets the shooter up for a quick reload and return to action. The bolt release is the shooter’s interface to this mechanism, allowing him or her to send the bolt carrier group back into battery.
Anyone who has operated an AR knows that the “slapping” of the left side of the receiver is the action that puts the bolt carrier group back into battery. The bigger the paddle, the easier it is to put the system back into action. There also exists an ambidextrous option that makes the operation even easier.
Enhanced
A bigger paddle is a bigger target. A bigger target is easier to hit. We don’t need to explain this any further.
Enhanced bolt catches often have a much more prominent surface to engage the bolt catch (i.e. manually lock the bolt carrier back). This makes the process of locking your bolt back much easier.
Ambidextrous
As far as bolt catches, ambi is the way to go. This style not only gives you a bigger target on the left side of the receiver, but offers the ability to engage or disengage the bolt catch with your trigger finger from the right side of the receiver. This equates to a very fast re-engagement of your target following a reload.
PB Picks
While there are several manufacturers that offer an ambidextrous bolt release lever, the Magpul B.A.D. (Battery Assist Device) lever is our favorite. It attaches to a standard, Mil-Spec bolt catch and is super easy to install, without removing the bolt catch. It releases the bolt catch with a simple downward flick of your trigger finger. If you still want to pound the left side to release the bolt carrier, you can.
Charging Handle
As with all of the other Mil-Spec controls, the charging handle gets the job done. But, its a tiny piece of metal with a switch on one side. If you have gloved, sweaty, or cold hands, operating the charging handle can be a little awkward. Enter enhanced and ambidextrous charging handles.
Enhanced
Exaggerated “wings” and lever(s) on the handle can make indexing your hand much easier. Now, you don’t need them to be so big that you achieve lift when the wind blows. If any part protrudes too much, it will start getting caught on crap. As a rule of thumb, avoid any charging handle that extends beyond the forward assist.
Ambidextrous
Being able to operate the charging handle from either side of the gun is a big benefit, regardless of whether you are a righty or southpaw. If you happen to be left handed, go ambidextrous.
PB Picks
Our go to is not novel. We put the Radian Raptor on every one of our personal guns. We really like the Radian Raptor-SD, which is optimized for suppressor use. The Radian Raptor-LT is a lightweight alternative. While the specific features between the Raptor models, all have the same base design and all are available in either AR-15/AR-9 or AR-10 compatibility. The entire “wing” on each side operates the latch. If your hands can find the charging handle, you can run it.
A close second is the Aero Precision BREACH series handles. The BREACH handles function similarly to the Raptor and come in both small lever and large lever (the large lever is comparable to the size of the Raptor, and this is the size we prefer). The BREACH is offered in both AR-15/AR9 and AR-10 versions.
AR-15 Charging Handles
AR-10 Charging Handles
Trigger
The trigger is arguably one of the most important controls in any firearm. There are also a ton of options and flavors. That is why we have a dedicated design article covering AR triggers. If you haven’t already done so, check it out.