Hello all, here is today's article posted on TheArmoryLife.com. It is titled "What Is the Best AR-15 Sling?" and can be found at https://www.thearmorylife.com/what-is-the-best-ar-15-sling/.
What Is the Best AR-15 Sling?
- Thread starter Mike H.
- Start date
B
Bassbob
Guest
I'm a big fan of BFG Vickers slings. Especially the padded ones on shotguns. If I'm honest though the Magpul MS-1 and MS-3 on QD mounts are real hard to beat on ARs and AR pistols.
The article noted that the authors' preferred 1.5-inch width Armageddon Gear Heavy Carbine Sling cannot be converted to a single-point....
I've looked at a few pictures and at least one review video on YouTube - can the adjustment end not fit through the TriGlide? If it can, an IWC 2-to-1 TriGlide (they do offer a 1.5-inch variant) could be slipped between the forward portion and the free tail.
Also, various well-known tactical nylon makers (Volund Gearworks is one example) will undertake custom-work - so getting a 2-to-1 converter situated where you would specifically like one to be is not out of the realm of possibility, even if your gear manufacturer will not make one for you on a one-off basis (or to add it to their lineup).
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Personally, because of my lack of LE/military background, I had a lot of trouble getting used to having a sling. I initially found having a sling both awkward as well as frustrating, even though I understood -academically- its need ("a sling to a rifle is like a holster to a handgun"
).
It took me several years' worth of carbine lessons with various instructors before I really became more comfortable with a sling. BFG/Vickers, Magpuls (so many permutations, over the years), SOB, Ferro Concepts, SIERRA TAC, TAB Gear, VTAC, AWC - you name it, I have it.
What really gave me the breakthrough I needed was an episode with one of my favorite local (NE-Ohio) trainers, Andrew Blubaugh of Apex Shooting and Tactics.
At one class of his, I lamented on the positioning of the lock-release on the VTAC, and the Andrew asked me if I'd ever trained with Kyle Lamb (he wasn't trying to put me down with this question: by that point, I knew this instructor well and already considered him a friend, and he also knew that I try to get out to train with as many other instructors as possible). I replied that no, I had not - to which he said "ah, and that's why." Andrew then demonstrated to me and the rest of the class why the mechanism was placed where it was on "Kyle's" sling, and why on his (this instructor's) preferred sling, it is placed differently.
So the one thing that I've learned about slings -from being so awkward with them and thus seeking a lot of instruction about its use- is that a lot of the sling's physical setup as well as its features depends heavily on the preferences of its designer. Find one that matches your needs and wants, and you're half-way there, but I would also recommend seeking out actual usage advice from that sling's designer, to really get higher on the power-curve.
I've looked at a few pictures and at least one review video on YouTube - can the adjustment end not fit through the TriGlide? If it can, an IWC 2-to-1 TriGlide (they do offer a 1.5-inch variant) could be slipped between the forward portion and the free tail.
Also, various well-known tactical nylon makers (Volund Gearworks is one example) will undertake custom-work - so getting a 2-to-1 converter situated where you would specifically like one to be is not out of the realm of possibility, even if your gear manufacturer will not make one for you on a one-off basis (or to add it to their lineup).
-----
Personally, because of my lack of LE/military background, I had a lot of trouble getting used to having a sling. I initially found having a sling both awkward as well as frustrating, even though I understood -academically- its need ("a sling to a rifle is like a holster to a handgun"
). It took me several years' worth of carbine lessons with various instructors before I really became more comfortable with a sling. BFG/Vickers, Magpuls (so many permutations, over the years), SOB, Ferro Concepts, SIERRA TAC, TAB Gear, VTAC, AWC - you name it, I have it.
What really gave me the breakthrough I needed was an episode with one of my favorite local (NE-Ohio) trainers, Andrew Blubaugh of Apex Shooting and Tactics. At one class of his, I lamented on the positioning of the lock-release on the VTAC, and the Andrew asked me if I'd ever trained with Kyle Lamb (he wasn't trying to put me down with this question: by that point, I knew this instructor well and already considered him a friend, and he also knew that I try to get out to train with as many other instructors as possible). I replied that no, I had not - to which he said "ah, and that's why."
Andrew then demonstrated to me and the rest of the class why the mechanism was placed where it was on "Kyle's" sling, and why on his (this instructor's) preferred sling, it is placed differently.So the one thing that I've learned about slings -from being so awkward with them and thus seeking a lot of instruction about its use- is that a lot of the sling's physical setup as well as its features depends heavily on the preferences of its designer. Find one that matches your needs and wants, and you're half-way there, but I would also recommend seeking out actual usage advice from that sling's designer, to really get higher on the power-curve.
wolfpack076
Professional
Im a Police Officer /Firearms Instructor and I can say I use Magpul slings on my M-4s. I never encountered any issues with them but thats just my own experience with them and my opinion.
Talyn
Emissary
Same here, although I have a couple slings similar to the one preferred by the author, and some Magpul slings because some applications require different solutions.
Any article that claims to identify the "best" really only applies to the individual and how they use it.
ghosttwofive
Custom
I actually run the Armageddon Gear sling the author writes about. I've ran it for about three years and it's held up well on my My Colt M4. I had the previous iteration of the Armageddon Carbine Sling without the bungie and it was a pretty good sling but the bungie version is better as far as pulling it tight to your chest and getting a really good fit when the sling pulls the rifle back into your shoulder...I would like to try a Vickers 221 sling. That padding looks very comfortable. If I had to say anything about where the Armageddon Gear sling comes up short, it's that it rubs on the back of my neck a bit if worn for an extended amount of time. The Vickers 221 sling looks very comfortable and sturdy. I like the QD button version so it would be about $100 to buy the Vickers 221 that i want but I'll probably get one eventually.
^ Great to get another peek at that piece of gear. I think I'll likely by one, too. I'm really starting to become a sling collector.
@ghosttwofive , the neck thing bothers me, too, with various slings. My current favorite is the TAB Gear Carbine Sling, but it hits me just wrong where the two pieces join, and gets me right at the neck. Usually for carbine classes I wear a collared shirt for this very purpose, but otherwise I've been really happy with the PIG Universal Sling Pad, which buffers that area just right. I don't sling the gun every day, but it's held up very well through the last few years' worth of carbine classes (my classes usually last two days, if not three).
The BFG padded is a very nice piece of kit, and I really do like how it helps distribute weight. I have it on my rather porky LMT - https://www.thearmorylife.com/forum/threads/lets-see-your-ar-setups.258/page-5#post-4862
I'm really starting to become a sling collector. @ghosttwofive , the neck thing bothers me, too, with various slings. My current favorite is the TAB Gear Carbine Sling, but it hits me just wrong where the two pieces join, and gets me right at the neck. Usually for carbine classes I wear a collared shirt for this very purpose, but otherwise I've been really happy with the PIG Universal Sling Pad, which buffers that area just right. I don't sling the gun every day, but it's held up very well through the last few years' worth of carbine classes (my classes usually last two days, if not three).
The BFG padded is a very nice piece of kit, and I really do like how it helps distribute weight. I have it on my rather porky LMT - https://www.thearmorylife.com/forum/threads/lets-see-your-ar-setups.258/page-5#post-4862
ghosttwofive
Custom
Thanks for the info. My Colt is not a lightweight rifle for sure. It's not the heaviest AR I've ever had but it's not the lightest either so something to distribute the weight of it would be definitely be high on my list as far as slings.^ Great to get another peek at that piece of gear. I think I'll likely by one, too.
@ghosttwofive , the neck thing bothers me, too, with various slings. My current favorite is the TAB Gear Carbine Sling, but it hits me just wrong where the two pieces join, and gets me right at the neck. Usually for carbine classes I wear a collared shirt for this very purpose, but otherwise I've been really happy with the PIG Universal Sling Pad, which buffers that area just right. I don't sling the gun every day, but it's held up very well through the last few years' worth of carbine classes (my classes usually last two days, if not three).
The BFG padded is a very nice piece of kit, and I really do like how it helps distribute weight. I have it on my rather porky LMT - https://www.thearmorylife.com/forum/threads/lets-see-your-ar-setups.258/page-5#post-4862