Last year Law Tactical, LLC unveiled their revolutionary new AR-15 Internal Carrier (ARIC). The ARIC is a special bolt carrier group that has been redesigned to be compatible with Law Tactical’s famous AR Folding Stock Adapter.Besides that, it allows standard direct gas impingement AR-15s with folding stock adapters to fire with closed stocks.
A Little Background
The AR Folding Stock adapter (now on its 3rd generation/iteration) allows AR-15 and AR-308 shooters to fold their stocks to better stow and carry their weapons. Historically, AR-15 family could not do this because of the AR-15’s direct gas impingement system, which requires a buffer tube, spring and weight system in order to cycle. The original design calls for the entire action to be in a straight line, so folding was never an option. The Law Tactical Folding Stock Adapter offers AR-15 users a beautiful engineering solution, but there is one major caveat: weapons will not fire and cycle with the stock folded closed. Yes, technically you can get one round off, but the practice is discouraged by Law Tactical. Their solution to that challenge was to create and develop the ARIC, an “alternative bolt carrier group” whose brilliance is the fact that it doest reinvent the wheel. Rather, the ARIC keeps cyclea a standard direct gas impingement AR-15 by cleverly rearranging each component. Candidly, I think the ARIC is one of the neatest things I’ve personally seen in a long time. It has much to offer to shooters who choose to field rifles and carbines with Law Tactical AR Folding Stock Adapters who may find themselves needing a weapon with the ability to fire with folded stocks.
Dual Magic Wands
The ARIC omits the need for the weapon to have a weighted buffer and recoil spring inside the receiver extension (buffer tube). It cycles whether stock is folded or closed. The ARIC’s bolt does not move further back any more than a standard AR-15 bolt would either. The lynchpin of the ARIC system is a pair of sprung guide rods tie everything together. When the ARIC is properly installed inside the upper receiver, these rods stay fixed in place while allowing all moving parts to reciprocate correctly. In other words, they serve as rails for the unit to glide on. It is important to bring attention to the fact both guide rods must be in the correct spot inside the upper receiver in order to avoid reliability issues and for the weapon to cycle properly. I couldn’t help to notice that since the ARIC’s product launch, the majority of end-user reliability issues stem from this. Again because these guide rods stay in place, it’s crucial that they are positioned correctly before shooting.
Shooting It So Far…
Compared to the volume of pistol shooting I do, I hardly shoot rifles. That said, I’ve been testing and evaluating my own ARIC in my 14.5 inch Lone Star Armory TX-4 Carbine. I’ve barely fired 250-300 rounds through this carbine, but the ARIC has been the only bolt carrier group that weapon has known. Naturally, it also has an AR Folding Stock Adapter. I have been satisfied with the reliability and the quality of the ARIC so far, so I have no plans to remove or replace it with any other bolt carrier group. The manufacturing quality, fit and finish are very noticeable in both the ARIC and the Adapter. This level of quality speaks volumes about Law Tactical’s products. Shooting a carbine equipped with and ARIC doesn’t feel any different. In fact, it’s quite easy to forget that you’re shooting a weapon with a “novel” bolt carrier. These do not affect the manual of arms either. Initially I was concerned about the rods sticking out too much and inviting a malfunction or bending, but they’re designed in such a way to avoid the issue. For those who wonder, it does have some proprietary parts due to its specialized design.
Although you absolutely need the AR Folding Stock Adapter to set it up, the ARIC itself is a drop-in part. No tool is needed to set it up nor field strip it to its major components either. It works wonderfully with the Radian Ambi charging handle I use on my TX-4, and I otherwise treat it like I would any other AR-15 BCG. I keep my ARIC well-lubed (just like I would for traditional bolt carrier group), and I strongly suggest you do the same. Especially if you are putting the first shots through a brand new unit. When my ARIC was installed on my brand new TX-4, it took the better part of a fully loaded 30 round magazine to break in. Law Tactical’s documentation informs shooters of this, and it’s no big deal. I haven’t had any stoppages since.
Suppressor Friendly, Too
Law Tactical sells two versions of the ARIC. The “C” and the “M”. The “C” is meant for unsuppressed shooting with general purpose SAAMI or NATO spec 5.56mm or .223 Remington ammunition. The “M” is meant for use with suppressed weapons. Although both the “M” and the “C” use the same weight of springs on their guide rods, the main difference is that the “M” is manufactured to internally handle gas differently due to suppressor backpressures.
If you already field an AR-15 with Law Tactical’s Folding Stock adapter and need the ability to fire your weapon with the stock closed, give the ARIC a shot…
