Issue 01 Preview – Stop Losing Detents And Springs Jonathon Perez Join the Conversation At RECOIL, we review every product fairly and without bias. Making a purchase through one of our links may earn us a small commission, and helps support independent gun reviews. Learn More The AR-15 and its variants are hands down some of the most popular rifles seen at ranges. That’s quite an accomplishment for a rifle that was invented in 1957. Around the time the USSR launched Sputnik, Eugene Stoner was tinkering with a platform that would eventually become the main battle rifle for the United States into the 21st century. It goes without saying that technology has progressed by leaps and bounds since the ’50s, but there’s no reason why we can’t upgrade the rifle that we currently have while the government figures out the next rifle our forces will wield. The AR platform, as great as it is, can be a pain to work on due to the many detents and springs that are used in its assembly. One such detent and- spring combination is used to install the lower receiver’s rear takedown pin. The usual way of installing these parts is to do a sort of intricate tango dance with your 15 fingers. You install the takedown pin, insert a detent, follow the detent with a spring, then smash it all into the lower receiver with the rear latch plate, all while screwing in the buffer tube and castle nut. One false move and spoing! The spring goes flying across the room with the detent in hot pursuit. We are here to show you how to turn that freewheeling spring into a captured spring that will make losing parts as passé as doing atomic bomb duck-and-cover drills. As an added benefit, this modification makes swapping out buffer tubes and installing rear sling plates a breeze, too. For the rest of this article, subscribe digitally here: RECOIL Issue 1 Explore RECOILweb:New Rocky Boots Collection - Elements of ServiceNew Show Airing Tomorrow: Master of ArmsAttention nerds in UtahSlide Fire Ceasing Sales of Bump Stocks NEXT STEP: Download Your Free Target Pack from RECOILFor years, RECOIL magazine has treated its readers to a full-size (sometimes full color!) shooting target tucked into each big issue. Now we've compiled over 50 of our most popular targets into this one digital PDF download. From handgun drills to AR-15 practice, these 50+ targets have you covered. Print off as many as you like (ammo not included). Get your pack of 50 Print-at-Home targets when you subscribe to the RECOIL email newsletter. We'll send you weekly updates on guns, gear, industry news, and special offers from leading manufacturers - your guide to the firearms lifestyle.You want this. Trust Us.