Forward assist

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The forward assist on a rifle is a button, found commonly on M16 and AR-15 styled rifles, usually located near the bolt closure, that when hit will push the bolt carrier forward, ensuring that the bolt is locked. In order to ensure that the extractor is clipped around the rim of the shell, the forward assist is usually struck rather than pushed. It is commonly incorporated into standard loading procedure to prepare a weapon for a life threatening situation, or to close the bolt when the weapon is excessively dirty. It can also be used to close a bolt that was gently let down, rather than released under full spring tension, to keep the noise of closing the bolt to a minimum.

The forward assist is generally not necessary as a standard procedure on any weapon with the exception of the British SA-80. Having realized the frequency with which the weapon jammed when taken outside of the clean environment of the test range, the forward assist was implemented to save the operator the embarrassment and potential danger of aiming the rifle and pulling the trigger and the rifle not going off were some water or a bit of dust to have got into the mechanism. The design of the SA-80 makes the forward assist quite awkward as the left, supporting arm, must come off the hand grip and reach over the top to strike the bolt forward with the heel of the hand. The forward assist has also recently been implemented on the MSAR STG-556, an American-made variant of the Austrian Steyr AUG assault rifle, but the usefulness of such device in said firearm is questionable at least, since the design is not normally prone to the malfunction that led to the need of the forward assist in other firearms.