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AR15 Charging Handles: Rear vs. Side Chargers

Gibbzarms07 Nov, 2025Business

Whether you intend to buy or build your next AR or AR-style rifle, one of the decisions you will need to make, in addition to caliber, cartridge, and barrel length, is what type of charging handle it will sport. There are two basic configurations: rear charging, which comprise the vast majority of the market, and side charging, which comprise a small but dedicated subset.

Problems Solved by an AR-15 with a Side-Charging Handle

Gibbzarms13 Oct, 2025Business

Most AR-15 rifles, and to be honest, most gas-operated modern sporting rifles similar to the design, are rear-charging. As a result, most aftermarket parts that are compatible with mil-spec AR-15 rifles favor a rear-charging configuration. This standard, however, does not signify that rear-charging is the superior option. There are numerous advantages to an AR-15 with a side charging handle, of which the major ones will be explored here.

Stripped vs. Complete Uppers: Which Is Right for Your Project?

Gibbzarms13 Oct, 2025Business

Tired of the stock AR builds on the rack at your local shop? Want to build a custom platform chambered in something more utilitarian, or more specialized than 5.56? Get a build kit or an upper and a lower and customize the rifle yourself. The thing is, you’ll have to make a decision between a stripped upper and a complete upper, unless you buy a complete kit (in which case you will also need either to be a complete lower or a lower blank and machine it yourself).

5.56 vs. .300 BLK: A Few Things to Know

Gibbzarms12 Sep, 2025Business

Two common chamberings for AR-style rifles are 5.56 NATO and a less-common, more modern offshoot, .300 BLK, also referred to as .300 Blackout. Side by side, it is apparent that the .300 BLK shoots a larger, heavier bullet, but if you’re thinking about building with a side charging upper for an AR build and are tossed up between these two options, here are a few things to unpack.

Alternative Side-Charging AR Upper Calibers

Gibbzarms28 Aug, 2025Business

Can you build a 5.56 rifle with a side-charging AR upper? Absolutely. Should you? That depends on what you’re looking for in a rifle. Sure, 5.56 is widely available, every gun shop has it, and it’s cheap. It produces little recoil, shoots flat, and has a wide range of sporting applications. But in terms of ballistic performance? There are a lot of other calibers that hit harder and offer other advantages. Let’s take a closer look at some of these.

Lefty Ejection Ports: Not Just for Southpaws

Gibbzarms02 Jul, 2025Business

Thinking about building an AR-15 rifle with a lefty ejection port configuration? Whether you’re left-handed or not, it actually might make a lot of sense. Here’s what you need to know about the prospect so you can make a better informed decision. But you probably didn’t need to read this to get it. If you’re a lefty and here for that reason, it just makes sense.

Arguments for a Pistol-Caliber Carbine

Gibbzarms23 Jun, 2025Business

You don’t need to build your AR-style rifle around .223 or 5.56, despite the fact that many platforms are. In fact, you don’t even need to center it around a rifle cartridge at all. There’s a lot of variety out there, and some uppers are chambered in pistol-caliber rounds, such as 9mm. Frankly, these pistol-caliber carbines, also known as PCCs, offer some distinct, unique advantages over rifle-caliber builds. We’ll cover some of these here.

Why a Rear Charger Is Not Superior to a True AR-15 Left-Handed Upper

Gibbzarms28 May, 2025Business

Conventional wisdom might indicate that rear-chargers, unlike side-chargers, are ambidextrous. There is some truth to this; it can be easier for a southpaw to manipulate the charging handle or a rear-charger than a side-charger built for a right-handed operator. But there are side-charging AR-15 left-handed uppers that are better than rear chargers – and not just for ergonomics.

A Look Into Pistol Caliber Carbines: Does the Build Make Sense for You?

Gibbzarms01 May, 2025Business

Pistol-caliber carbines, also known as PCCs, have been gaining a lot of traction and thereby popularity recently. In a nutshell, a pistol-caliber carbine is a carbine build that’s completed around a pistol-caliber cartridge. While 9mm is by far the most popular, there are also PCCs chambered in.45 ACP, .40 S&W and other common handgun cartridges.

Relatively Obscure AR Parts and What They Do

Gibbzarms12 Apr, 2025Business

Your AR-15 has a lot of parts, especially compared to more simplistic breech-loading designs, and certainly more than the front-stuffers of yore. But there are a whole lot of other AR-15 parts beyond the “lock, stock and barrel,” and even the two receivers, that you’re probably familiar with. Here are some of the relatively obscure parts, and what they do.