Skill Set: Bolt Release
on June 14th, 2011 at 7:44 AMby Tiger McKee, The Tactical Wire
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The AR type rifle is equipped with a bolt release, which releases the bolt whenever it’s locked to the rear, hence its name. There are times when we use the charging handle – loading the rifle when the bolt is in battery and clearing malfunctions – but anytime the bolt is locked to the rear – reloading the rifle – we press the bolt release, not cycle the charging handle. Working the bolt release is ergonomic, efficient, and the way the weapon is designed to operate.
A right-handed shooter reloads the rifle by using the support hand to insert and seat the magazine – I tug to insure it’s seated – and then slides the cupped fingers up the magazine and mag-well which positions the thumb in just the right place to press the bolt release. The left-handed shooter seats the mag with the right hand, and uses their trigger finger to release the bolt. The AR is designed to be ergonomic, so hitting the bolt release is much quicker than cycling the charging handle.
