Wikipedia: The ArmaLite AR-18 is a gas-operated assault rifle chambered for 5.56×45mm NATO ammunition. The AR-18 was designed at ArmaLite in California by Arthur Miller, Eugene Stoner, George Sullivan, and Charles Dorchester in 1963 as an alternative to the Colt AR-15 design, a variant of which had just been selected by the U.S. military as the M16. A semi-automatic version known as the AR-180 was later produced for the civilian market. While the AR-18 was never adopted as the standard service rifle of any nation, its production license was sold to companies in Japan and the United Kingdom, and it is said to have influenced many later weapons such as the British SA80,[1][2][3] the Singaporean SAR-80 and SR-88,[4] the American Adaptive Combat Rifle, the Belgian FN F2000,[5] the Japanese Howa Type 89[6] and the German Heckler and Koch G36.
Type Assault rifle (AR-18)
Semi-automatic rifle (AR-180)
Place of origin United States
Service history
Used by See Users
Wars Communist insurgency in Malaysia
Lebanese Civil War
The Troubles
Production history
Designer Arthur Miller
Eugene Stoner (AR-16)
Designed 1963
Manufacturer ArmaLite (U.S.)
HOWA Machinery Co. (Japan)
Sterling Armaments Company. (UK)
Produced 1969-1985
No. built 1,171 (AR-18)[citation needed]
21,478 (AR-180)[citation needed]
Variants AR-18K
AR-18S
AR-180
AR-180B
Foreign derivatives based upon the AR-18 include the British SA-80, Singaporean/British SAR-87 and the Japanese Howa Type 89
Bullpup adaptations include Australian Bushmaster M17S
Specifications
Mass 6.7 lb (3.0 kg) (empty)
7.18 lb (3.3 kg) (loaded w/20 rd. magazine)
Length 38 in (970 mm)
Barrel length 18.25 in (464 mm) (6-groove rifling)
Cartridge 5.56×45mm NATO
Action Short-stroke piston, rotating bolt
Rate of fire 750 rounds/min
Muzzle velocity 3,250 ft/s (991 m/s)
Feed system 20, 30, or 40-round detachable box magazine, STANAG magazines (AR-18B)
Sights Iron sights or removable 3× scope