Talk:Bayonet lug

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This article needs some love...

Starting with the statement of early plug bayonets preventing firing (or safe firing), this is well understood; these kinds of bayonets had a rounded bulbuos section on their grips, the idea being to shove it into the muzzle and let it sit by friction. All this needs is a citation.

For bayonet lugs in context of US firearms legislation, this section is a mess. The 1994 Federal Assault Weapon's Ban (sunsetting in 2004) didn't blanket ban bayonet lugs. The ban listed a number of features for long guns, such as pistol grips, detachable magazines, and bayonet lugs, to mention some. What constituted an "assault weapon" according to this law was any rifle that featured more than 2 of the many listed features, made after the law was put in place (existing weapons were grandfathered). Bayonet lugs were thus not banned, but since most people would opt for a pistol grip and detachable magazine (considered popularly the most practical features), extremely few non-restricted rifles were manufactured or imported with bayonet lugs in this 10 year period. For individual state Assault Weapon's Bans, such as in California, this works much the same to this day, the exception being that the number of allowed features now only being 1, leaving most people choosing between separate pistol grips, detachable magazines, or some sort of legal workaround to achieve one or the other in an attempt to have a more practical rifle. Bayonet lugs are still a legal feature in the state of California, but there's precious little utility for one to most people so they are seldom chosen. This section needs a rewrite and probably a better citation.

For that matter, modern AR15 rifles are made with bayonet lugs to this day. Many commercial models simply use the A2 style of front-sight base, working both as a gas-block, and featuring the lug for attaching a bayonet (simply because these are what's available and they work fine). The real issue being that many civilian market rifles are made with carbine (M4) length handguards and gas systems, but feature a 16" barrel (as per 1934 NFA laws), meaning the distance between the muzzle and the lug is too long to properly mount a regular bayonet. In this sense they're a vestigial feature. A shorter barrel (thus generally an NFA item, requiring special tax and paperwork), or a setup of otherwise appropriate lengths (such as with a 20" barrel and full length gas system), would be required for proper fitment of standard bayonets on AR15 rifles. Due to the law not actually caring that the feature is effectively rendered useless, AR15 rifles sold to AWB restricted states can often have a removed lug on the front sight base, either ground off after the part is made, or a new part is made without it (either as a modified A2 pattern lacking the lug, or a low profile gas block without an integrated sight or lug, as some wish for other sighting options anyway). This too is a section that needs a rewrite and better citations.

Optionally, the subject of bayonet lugs might just be better to fold into the main bayonet article as it's own section, and the legalities of them featuring either there or folded into an article about gun control in the USA. 77.110.1.75 (talk) 16:49, 6 January 2018 (UTC)