Mil-Spec Screw Connector above - Air-Way Global Manufacturing

As shooters, if we had a dollar for every time you hear the term “mil-spec” we would have a lot more guns! These days it certainly seems that every AR-15 we see, no matter the price tag, is “mil-spec.”

Mil-spec AR-15s might seem like some marketing lingo and to some degree it is but what does it mean? Mil Spec is actually short for Military Specification. This may conjure up ideas of reliability and quality - but it does not necessarily mean that. While it might sound impressive for many newer shooters, it has become a joke amongst other more seasoned shooters. Allow us to explain why we should or shouldn’t worry about our AR-15 being “Mil-spec”.

What is Mil Spec?

So what does “Military Specification” mean? If the Department of Defense designates that a product meets their standard and it is adopted for use by the Armed Forces then it is considered mil-spec. From the civilian marketing side of things - this designation can and has been given to literally any product the military uses in an attempt to promote the idea that the product being sold is rugged, reliable and trustworthy. It might be true to some extent, but more often than not they’re pretty cheap products that are designed to barely help you get by.

PC: Sportsmans Guide

Yup, that’s “Mil Spec underwear”. True story. I’ll stick with my Shinesty Ball Hammocks. The point is that mil-spec can apply to anything from pipes, bolts, to screws and rivets.

Years ago the term meant the product had great quality and was strong enough to endure hard military usage. Companies would go out of their way to develop the absolute best products they could in hopes of submitting them to military trials. Think about it this way - if you develop an amazing product that becomes adopted by the U.S. Army, you might be awarded a very large contract to produce that product en masse for a single customer. This can be incredibly lucrative!

The same companies then decided to produce products for the civilian market. Quality dropped due to overseas manufacturing or using cheaper materials, etc. Mil-spec products can still be very high-quality in the firearms industry but you have to know which companies to look at that don't just slap the term on junk and sell it to unsuspecting consumers.

What is a Mil-Spec AR-15?

To start out, civilian AR-15s can be mil-spec even without having automatic-fire capabilities. This is illegal for most civilians unless you live in a state that allows for the ownership of machine guns and you go through the NFA process of acquiring one legally. This does NOT mean components of your AR-15 cannot be or are not mil-spec.

Another way to understand the term is that if someone says a part is mil-spec you can reasonably assume that it will be compatible with your AR-15. If you like the mil-spec standard look you can add grips, stocks, handguards, optics or other parts to your AR-15 to make it very close to what the U.S. Military utilizes on their rifles. Not that it’s anything to boast but you can also get the AR-15 mil-spec triggers that will be the same heavy trigger weight as what some of our basic infantry may use.

Mil-Spec vs. Commercial?

All the naysaying aside, mil-spec is important because it helps standardize accessories so the shooter knows certain parts will fit in their individual rifle. If you stick with Mil-spec for all of your parts on your AR-15 you won’t have to worry about components not fitting whereas you may have to look into certain size and specification differences with commercial grade products.

Commercial-grade products sometimes are not made for heavy usage. These products might be made more for the shooter that hits the range once a year and there is nothing wrong with that if this is you. We all start somewhere and even commercial grade products can take a decent beating. We tend to make sure everything we use for our personal AR-15s are built for heavy and hard use to ensure that we can rely on the weapon no matter the situation - which we’ll write about in future blogs.

Should I get Mil-Spec parts

Even though it seems like we are doing nothing but ragging on the ludacris marketing terms utilized in the firearms industry - mil spec isn’t necessarily something to avoid. As stated above, if you stick to high quality companies and only mil-spec parts, it can save you time and hassle at the end of the day. The more you get into building AR-15s the more you will learn to recognize quality - and value. Just remember to stick with reputable companies. If you do your research you’ll soon understand you don’t need to spend $4,000 on a mil-spec AR when you can build one yourself for a much more reasonable price.