An Unexpected Acquisition. Now What?

[Spinch]

Greetings, Great Outdoorsmen (and women)!

My wife came home from visiting her mother (who is moving from Savannah, GA to Minnesota) about a week or so ago. Because of the move she had some things to give to us, which she threw into her trunk.

As I was unloading, I saw a firearm (that at first I figured was just Airsoft). She said "Oh, yeah, we got a gun." I brought it inside and to my surprise found a circa 1968 (based on the serial) Colt AR-15. It was missing the magazine but looked otherwise intact. I found out that it was her great-grandfather's.

Unfortunately, though, I've got no idea what the next steps I need to take are. I've never owned a firearm before (my mom was of the opinion that a gun in the house meant that the entire family was, inevitably, going to be murdered by said gun, no matter what precautions were taken) and my wife has never either.

I definitely would like to take it for a test drive (I've fired an AR-15 once before, my old roommate owned a Bushmaster) but I have no idea when the last time it was cleaned was, what ACTUAL condition it's in (looks great, but looks can be deceiving), and how best to store it.

Any input you could give me would be greatly appreciated!

 

[PFP_Dad]

Step one is to obviously make sure it showed up unloaded (not always the case).

Here is a video with a bit of overkill, but the general idea is good on how to take it apart and give it a basic cleaning. For storage if you want to buy a gun safe they can be had for $70 or so. Otherwise a $20 locking case and some silica packets will work fine for storage.

 

[jkingrph]

Call Colt and get an owners manual They are really rather simple. Push out two pins, one at front of receiver, in front of magazine well is the pivot pin and does not have to be pushed out., another at lower back of receiver when pushed out will allow the upper receiver and barrel to pivot open. Pull operating handle back and remove bolt carrier and bolt, and a cleaning rod can be run through the barrel from the rear, to clean. A good move would be to look at ar15.com and look at cleaning and maintaince section and you can learn a lot. There is more to cleaning one of these than just swabbing out the barrel. As hot gas is vented back to operate the system, it deposits quite a bit of carbon in the bolt carrier which needs to be removed via scraping along with other residues which are deposited throughout the entire action. Get the manual, check on line references, or your local library for info, and have fun. I see you are in Ga. Ga parks and wildlife has quite a few public ranges around the state in some of the state forest/wildlife management areas that you might want to check out.

 

[Argonaut]

Take it to a local gun shop with a gunsmith. It's not something you want to guess at. The gun was free, spend a little to make sure it's in good order.

 

[Pete_T]

Yeah, definitely gunsmith first, shouldn't cost much. After that check out some videos on youtube about ARs, and read up on some sites about them. ARs need to be maintained. Nice score.

 

[RandomHero]

def a gunsmith to check out. I have this little fantasy going on right now where the gunsmith tells you its actually registered as a FA. great score.

 

[oldbluelight]

While the gunsmith is going over the AR look in the yellow pages for Rod and Gun Clubs and contact the nearest one. They will probably offer a firearms safety course for a nominal fee. Sign yourself and your wife up for it and pay attention in addition to the tuition. That's really the first step for anyone who's never owned a gun before.

 

[JaggerDragger]

Wicked Score!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I would recommend at least getting a trigger lock to store the firearm for now.

In Canada we use two acronyms for gun safety ACTS and PROVE:

Assume every firearm is loaded.

• Regard any firearm as potential danger.

Control the muzzle direction at all times.

• Identify the safest available muzzle direction.
• Keep the firearm pointed in the safest available direction.
• The muzzle of a firearm should not be pointed towards yourself or any other person.

Trigger finger must be kept off the trigger and out of the trigger guard.

• Resist the temptation to put your finger on the trigger or inside the trigger guard when you pick up a firearm.
• Accidental discharge is far more likely to occur if your finger is on the trigger or inside the trigger guard.

See that the firearm is unloaded - PROVE it safe.

• Do not handle the firearm unless you can PROVE it safely.
• Check to see that both chamber and magazine are empty. Do this everytime you handle a firearm, for any reason.
• Pass or accept only open and unloaded firearms. This is an important habit to develop.

PROVE it safe:

Point the firearm in the safest available direction.
Remove all cartridges.
Observe the chamber.
Verify the feeding path
Examine the bore for obstructions


Here is a free Hunter Safety course

 

[yrusik]

Congrats on your new rifle...it is a piece of history and a family heirloom to be treasured...heres the deal....

Ar15/m16s are a mature weapon system that has been proven to be effective and reliable when properly cared for. Much misinformation is spouted by REMFs and fobbits who will tell you how they did it back in the 'Nam when they were "running black ops with the teams'.....don't believe them...

If your rifle is a real 60's Colt SP1 it will be fairly valuable to collectors....

First read this article on "Keeping your carbine running" http://www.ar15.com/content/swat/keepitrunning.pdf

Next buy 10 or more of these http://www.aimsurplus.com/product.aspx?item=MASC556BLK&name=ASC+5.56+Magazine+30rd+Black&groupid=14 and a case of milspec 55 grain like this http://www.wideners.com/itemdetail.cfm?item_id=100000713&dir=18|830|845

The rifle will have a 1/12" twist and is designed for 55 grain ammo (M193) and will not handle the heavy ball that is popular now (M855) accurately....do not buy steel cased Russian or east bloc ammo...your rifle may not have a chrome chamber (some did some did not at that time) and the brass case ammo is superior in every way except cost...

There is a real gun magazine buying rush on now with the re-election of an administration that has told the president of Russian that he will have "a lot more flexibility" after the election and people are responding to it by stocking up....

You should really buy a small metal gun safe that you can bolt to the wall and floor in the back of a closet to keep the rifle, ammo, mags and kit in....you did not indicate if there are children in the house and there is liability exposure if the rifle is stolen and then used in a criminal action...

From your post it does not sound like you have prior service experience. You AND your wife REALLY should get some formal training with this rifle if you are going to have it around....check with the local gun shops for upcoming carbine classes on practical shooting....it will be alot of fun and teach you guys how to run the rifle....until you have fired a 1000 rounds during a well run gunslinger school you just don't really know what you are doing and they can get someone killed.....commit to learning to do it right up front or get rid of the rifle....it will be a bit expensive but worth every penny...

Now you need to get a pistol to go with it.....and another for your wife....and....and....

Enjoy your Grand Dads rifle....

Privileged to serve

 

[Mick]

You've received some good advise so far.

#1 take it to a shop, have it cleaned, and inspected.

#2 EVERYONE in the house needs to take a gun safety course (no exceptions). Everyone needs to shoot it so that they know how it works, what to do, and what NOT to do (no exceptions on this either)

#3 Guns RUST when handled so get yourself a 8" x 8" piece of cotton cloth (a bit of old sheet works well). Drizzle gun oil on it and keep it in a zip lock bag. Every time you handle the gun, take the oiled cloth out and rub the metal parts of the gun before putting it away. You can get a silicone treated storage bag (just like the ones sold for straight razors) to keep it in when it is not being used. http://www.brownells.com/shooting-a...term-storage-cases-prod1850.aspx#.UK5LTdetmWY You still need to wipe the firearm down after handling even if you use a storage bag!

#4 safety: Lock it up when you are not going to be using it. A gun safe is a little over kill for a single fire arm but they also make great, safe, storage for jewelry, important documents, money, coin collections, etc. Consider getting a gun safe and keep your AR-15 in it.

 

[Ron991]

Clean it GOOD, order a magazine for it, along with some ammo, take it to the range, and let it rock & roll!

 

[Ron991]

http://www.deltapress.com/m16a1-rifle-operation-preventive-maintenance-manual-p-604.html

 

[Spinch]

Thanks, everyone! I'm going to find my friendly local gunshop and have them check it out... then it's time for carbine training.

Luckily, we don't have kids (yet) so they aren't a concern, but I definitely will be investing in a safe in the near future.

 

[Hunter]

Wicked Score!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I would recommend at least getting a trigger lock to store the firearm for now.

In Canada we use two acronyms for gun safety ACTS and PROVE:

Assume every firearm is loaded.

• Regard any firearm as potential danger.

Control the muzzle direction at all times.

• Identify the safest available muzzle direction.
• Keep the firearm pointed in the safest available direction.
• The muzzle of a firearm should not be pointed towards yourself or any other person.

Trigger finger must be kept off the trigger and out of the trigger guard.

• Resist the temptation to put your finger on the trigger or inside the trigger guard when you pick up a firearm.
• Accidental discharge is far more likely to occur if your finger is on the trigger or inside the trigger guard.

See that the firearm is unloaded - PROVE it safe.

• Do not handle the firearm unless you can PROVE it safely.
• Check to see that both chamber and magazine are empty. Do this everytime you handle a firearm, for any reason.
• Pass or accept only open and unloaded firearms. This is an important habit to develop.

PROVE it safe:

Point the firearm in the safest available direction.
Remove all cartridges.
Observe the chamber.
Verify the feeding path
Examine the bore for obstructions


Here is a free Hunter Safety course

+1

 

[Ron991]

Thanks, everyone! I'm going to find my friendly local gunshop and have them check it out... then it's time for carbine training.

Luckily, we don't have kids (yet) so they aren't a concern, but I definitely will be investing in a safe in the near future.

Can you post a pic. as you, because of the year of this piece have sparked an interest in my curiosity. Perhaps just both sides of the receiver, and perhaps the flash suppressor....Thanks

 

[Spinch]

I'll have to get one once I get home.

 

[Spinch]

OK, so maybe it wasn't when I got home, but here's a link to an album with (crappy) cell phone shots of the AR-15...

http://imgur.com/a/gBnCL#0

 

[noelekal]

Sure would be fun to see some good photos of an early one.

 

[Ron991]

Sure would be fun to see some good photos of an early one.

Look at the above pics, and you will be looking at a very early model. No forward assist, three prong flash suppressor. you are looking at an M16. Not am M16A1, and so on. If you want to see an earlier model, you will have to probably look at Stoner's prototype.

 

[Ron991]

OK, so maybe it wasn't when I got home, but here's a link to an album with (crappy) cell phone shots of the AR-15...

http://imgur.com/a/gBnCL#0

Thanks Spinch. This without holding it, this rifle looks to be in pristine condition. Does the selector switch have three settings? Off, semi, and auto? I don't know the condition of the bore, if I had to guess by looking at everything else that I can make out from the pics, I would say probably great. I personally would purchase a Bore-Stores soft case, and just keep this in the family. I don't know that I would even fire it. Thank you for posting these pics. This is a great piece of history.

Best Regards Ron