Armalite AR-17: A Shotgun from the World of Tomorrow!

[@millroll97]

Semi automatic with only two rounds capacity. So it is capable of doing the exact same thing as a double barrel but with significantly more complexity and chance for malfunction. Excellent!!

[@millroll97]

Brilliant! Just like the early M16's!! How could it possibly go wrong haha

[@michaelmurphy9972]

Funny

[@0604H]

bUt ItS liGhTeR 😂😂 Such a nice shotgun but only 2 shots killed it 😂

[@phillipcastro2394]

Who ever made this thing should be beat with it

[@daniellau5859]

Its for show, like most things in this world. You take this into battle and youre a special type of stupid lol.

[@MrEvanfriend]

Hard to load, two round capacity, cheap looking plastic furniture, aluminum barrel, and kicks like a mule? I can't imagine why these weren't a commercial success.

[@kevinsullivan3448]

Would be cool for a collect5ion, though. And to squik your tough guy friends bt tricking them into shooting it.

[@zevo9314]

to be fair... considering it hadnt been done before, i'm guessing they underestimated how much it would kick, and how many rounds people put through a shotgun in one sitting. their goal was to make the lightest shotgun possible, and you could say they did that. and the cheap plastic furniture was a compromise made on quite a few guns of that era to save on weight, and polymer wasnt really a thing in guns yet, so i'll even give them a pass on that. but an over engineered semi auto platform with less functionality than a double barrel, thats not forgivable. hell they coulda made the exact same aluminum frame and barrel with plastic furniture on a double barrel and done better

[@AM-hf9kk]

@@zevo9314 Give it a removable box magazine and it would be a hit with today's tactical community.

[@CThyran]

@@AM-hf9kk Until they break their shoulders that is.

[@garymckee8857]

Yes I would have bought two of them.

[@RevOwOlutionary]

"The world's lightest shotgun" I could feel my shoulder being dislocated just from the sound of those words.

[@overlorddante]

Ikr? Something like a shotgun benefits from weight. Takes some kick out of the kick.

[@jt0n]

if i tried to fire this i'd be launched into the air

[@ramz16k]

C r a c k

[@overlorddante]

@Roderick storey you'd want more weight towards the front to help with recoil.

[@shilohstore6086]

😂😂😂

[@AirJimInCT]

We have seen many different versions of Ian over the years. Civil War Ian, Secret WWI Agent Ian, etc. But this iteration is my favorite so far........Aluminum Salesman Ian.

[@nuttex]

Gangsta Ian with a Jennings 9 is my favourite iteration of Ian.

[@borisbuliak3626]

I dunno die CIA pig kinda took the cake for me.

[@chriscontact5857]

Tin Men

[@Rickmon01]

Aluminum gun Jesus of tomorrow

[@williestyle35]

Now we have "cold war spy" ( 007 ) Ian. See: InRangeTV , 007

[@warmongerairsoft]

Was so excited.... Then he said “2 round capacity” It just got worse and worse from there

[@borismuller86]

WarMonger Airsoft surely it could have had a magazine...?

[@warmongerairsoft]

Boris Müller you mean like an adapter?

[@borismuller86]

WarMonger Airsoft would that work with that feeding system?

[@warmongerairsoft]

Boris Müller dunno, maybe. You’d probably have to get rid of that bar that holds the reserve round

[@factsnotfeelings4901]

u realize this is to kill birds or clay?

[@Gottaculat]

When you make the "shotgun of tomorrow," but it's California compliant before that's even a thing.

[@mustafaamin9516]

Goattacular Truly ahead of its time

[@klonoa450]

God i hate my state for that shit

[@MussaKZN]

Red Engineer LOL even in Australia I can pick it up the same day if I’m early enough and that’s registered!!! HAHA that’s awesome!!!

[@TeemoQuinton]

@@klonoa450 As you should. Vote better

[@TheUltimateWord]

@@MussaKZN I live in Arizona, we can ask in with money, walk out with a gun and ammo. And we don't have to register shit, not even handguns. I love AZ

[@Jacob-yg7lz]

"Oh I have an idea! Let's make a gun with a complexity of an automatic and the capacity of a double barrel!"

[@bob445566DE]

Like the Beretta UGB 25

[@scottdpugnificent]

The full auto slam fire single shot terminator is probably worse.

[@lyokianhitchhiker]

Again: combat coach gun is not a good idea.

[@adventure95004]

Don't forget Most states have a 3 round limit for a hunting shotgun and lot of shotguns come with a plastic rod to limit the amount of cartridges you can get in the tube specifically for hunting, I'm sure this was part of the thought process designing this not as a combat shotgun.

[@roryross3878]

@@adventure95004 Sure, but there's no 3rd round.

[@Mockturtlesoup1]

"Never needs cleaning!" damn you armalite. fool me once...

[@BType13X2]

I heard that a bunch of young men in south east asia in the late '60s were told the same thing.

[@superBAkid]

BType13X2 *rolling stones starts playing*

[@TheCaptainSplatter]

@@BType13X2 beat me to it.

[@HunterHerbst]

Ha, more like **CCR starts playing**

[@davidkerr4374]

@@BType13X2 From what I heard it was to do with the ammo it used at the time. During my days in the territorial's. I could train and use the M16a2 or the FN50 slr. The 16 would jam. Never had a problem with the slr.

[@vargakristof3555]

> 2 round capacity > Cumbersome reload Amazing combination

[@Atombender]

"Never needs cleaning!" Yeah, because no one ever bothered to put more than 50 rounds through it.

[@alperakyuz9702]

Oof

[@abdinboni2246]

@g % fax

[@johnsonp.]

g % would still build up schmoo from firing

[@readcrafter8288]

@@johnsonp. AVE or just Canadian?

[@johnsonp.]

Read crafter AVE

[@overlorddante]

That's just a double barrel shotgun with extra steps

[@cmonkey63]

Rick Sanchez agrees

[@CarMad97ci]

Hahahahaha

[@guypierson5754]

Scrolled down to write this exact thing. Nice one :D

[@overlorddante]

@@cmonkey63 ✊ my man

[@JohnSmith-xv2ob]

Exactly what I was thinking... Why not just make a double barrel???

[@bionmccool]

"Engravings give you no tactical advantage whatsoever"

[@raycearcher5794]

You FEEL awesome though. It's psychological.

[@blokemelon277]

Rayce Archer its a metal gear reference

[@therunningidiot]

Unless you're planning to auction it off... HEY, wait a minute!

[@captainbodyshot2839]

Pretty good

[@InvidiousIgnoramus]

It's a nice gun, I'll give you that.

[@cherrypepsi2815]

"What gun do you own" "An ar17" "An ar15...?" "No"

[@cherrypepsi2815]

@Die Kista sorry lol

@Die Kista I dont care

@Die Kista not talking to you.

[@5398-x8y]

Both y'all stfu I'm trying to watch TV.

[@cherrypepsi2815]

@@5398-x8y Lmao just turn off notifications or make it not vibrate lmao

[@jamesb3497]

I had two thoughts upon rewatching this: 1. How securely is that second round held in place? It looks like it could shake loose during an active hunt. 2. There's nothing protecting that loading port from mud and dirt. Not a great feature for a gun marketed at waterfowl hunters.

[@aurin_komak]

nEvEr nEeDs cLeAniNg!

[@jimjambananaslam3596]

The mud and dirt is what holds the second round in. Duh.

[@overlorddante]

@@jimjambananaslam3596 that's why you never need to clean it, mud is a vital component.

[@beartankoperator7950]

@@overlorddante its a feature

[@kentlindal5422]

"Light" and "Shotgun" should never be used in the same sentence

[@alphagt62]

My uncle had a Remington 1100 shotgun with the fiberglass barrel. It was awesome! It actually had a thin steel sleeve in the fiberglass barrel, but I could shoot skeet better with that gun than my own! I’d give plenty to have that gun, my cousin lost it through some in-law family matters. I don’t know if it was as light as this AR shotgun? But it was light for a semi-auto shotgun.

[@evoxis1058]

"To safely shoot a shotgun, or any gun, you need light." Boom

[@IntrepidComic]

The sound of the bolt on the receiver makes my teeth itch

[@Zellonous]

Glad I'm not the only one who found it cringey

[@wawazaza1785]

I actually liked it

[@johnleyva4619]

It sounded fine to me

[@zoroarka9969]

The fact that teeth can itch terrifies me

[@TomFromYoutube]

It ain't the sound that does it. It's the drugs.

[@arandomperson5434]

"Never needs cleaning" That's what they said to the M16 rifle.

[@dianelee2100]

Try not cleaning a M16 ? YOU'LL BE STANDING THERE THROWING ROCKS AT YOUR ADVANCING ENEMY. LOL. SEMPER FI

[@marc-andreservant201]

Meanwhile the enemy has a sand-incrusted, mud covered AK and is punching 10 holes per second through you.

[@johanrunfeldt7174]

@@marc-andreservant201 That's a gun that never - well seldom, but you're not going to live that long in a combat environment - needs cleaning.

[@NORTH_CAROLINA_REAPER]

No, it malfunctioned because it had a change in powder that caused fowling.

[@arandomperson5434]

@@NORTH_CAROLINA_REAPER they also said that the original M16 was “self cleaning”

[@andrewhilton9889]

The man in the ad at 2:34 is actor Robert Stack, famous for his appearance in the film Airplane!, and many others. At one time he was shotgunning champion of the United States. This is a very rare though deeply flawed gun, thank you for showing it to us.

[@Stoner075C]

I shoulda read this before commenting, but my doubt is solved. Txs!!!

[@robertkubrick3738]

Guess you never heard of the Untouchables?

[@Miles-Vincent]

I thought that was him! Unsolved mysteries was the shiznit!!!

[@154Kilroy]

Almost like this this gun was tailor made to be viewed on Forgotten Weapons... Lol.

[@karakas9905]

They played the long game with this one.

[@joshuacallahan570]

no wonder its a forgotten weapon lol two shots in a semi auto wtf is the point

[@Gottaculat]

This is the perfect gun for a Fudd who's a little semi-auto curious, but still needs his inferior shell capacity 'cause positive change frightens his feeble mind.

[@The_Ballo]

So...Joe Biden?

[@joeysoxjr.6268]

@@The_Ballo Lol

[@Superabound2]

Joe "Two Blasts" Biden

[@falloutghoul1]

@@Superabound2 All he needs is two.

[@Ghost51492]

Guys dont forget the first "shotgun blast" needs to be fired in the air as a warning.

[@arbhall7572]

No One Ever: I was kinda looking for an over priced automatic shotgun that 70 year old double barrel shotguns will laugh at. Armalite design team: Hold my beer.

[@kaiza9184]

Arbhall McDougall Hold my LIKE ! 😲

[@Golde2Good]

the sound of aluminum scraping against eachother. uuugh...

[@Howdy762]

same i had to stop cause of that

[@foxxy46213]

it sounds like the gat gun I had as a kid...you kno the one where you press the barrel on the ground to cock it an unscrew a pin at the back to put pellets in....loved my gat

[@Proseless]

needs *oil*

[@scorpiosystem8082]

At first glance I thought "This looks like a toy." Then Ian began actually loading the thing and I thought "This IS a toy!"

[@Eduardo_Espinoza]

Might feel like a toy too lol

[@Grayfox988]

The nail-on-chalkboard sound the bolt carrier sliding on aluminum makes is excruciating.

[@patricknapier1460]

It reminds me of the sound when people bite their silverware

[@skullhammer9899]

Will kill it's target if the pellets don't

[@amazinghuppifluppi359]

Read your comment even before the sound comes in the video. Got so triggered, I even felt it in my teeth. This fragging sound of hell. Triggered me so much, I answer a 2 years old comment. Aaargh.

[@99Racker]

I used to hunt with a friend, a coworker in the 70s and used his AR17 a few times. He was pretty fast at loading a third round. But I recognized a two found shortcoming like an over/under or double (I think a double may be a bit faster). Lighter but recoiled more than my 870. I was issued a M16 in VN so I was used to weapons designed by the company. Thanks for the video.

[@ThunderChunky101]

"Never needs cleaning" Because MAGIC!

[@spacetrainbaby3737]

It doesnt need cleaning because no one would ever use this

[@chipsterb4946]

“Finicky” is not a desirable characteristic in a firearm.

[@philipbohi983]

Except for Hi-Point, where it would be a dramatic improvement, from “unpredictable”.

[@daleford8621]

@@philipbohi983 eh, they're ok for about 500 rds or so, then they get pretty temperamental. But for less than $200 that's not so bad. Then you can always just beat your assailant to death with the poly brick lol.

[@mchagnon7]

Especially if you have to mess with that finnicky system twice as often as everyone else reloads.

[@ishfi4589]

Just an observation, but it almost looks like the AR-17 was going to take detachable box magazines, but was chucked at the last minute.

[@ostiariusalpha]

You are correct in that assessment.

[@lsswappedcessna]

I wonder if some Colin Furze of guns out there could reverse engineer it to take magazines like it was meant to.

[@kaiserwigglesiii2369]

I was looking through the comments for a "it can actually take a mag" comment, but didn't find one. I'll look it up

[@visionist7]

Nice 4 round mag plus one in the chamber

[@jamesmonroe1538]

@@ostiariusalpha Can you provide any link to some information on that?

[@Christopher224]

A semi-automatic shotgun that has no magazine tube and relies on what is essentially ghost-loading to hold a second cartridge. All that to save 3lb on a Browning Auto-5.

[@aspenfacer-valentine4397]

You say that as if 3lbs isn't a significant amount of weight to shave... But yes it was overly complicated and needed more than 2 rounds to be viable. Perhaps the most-needed improvement was a way to control recoil better. If you've ever fired a light weight shotgun (Like an old single shot slug gun, probably the only gun I wouldn't regret selling) you'd know why the wood and steel models are still popular

[@clothar23]

Meh 3 lbs is not a whole lot, the Timberwolf I carry weighs 17lbs and I have no issues carrying it around all day. And I am not even that big of a guy. I never understood this lightweight cult some shooters belong to.

[@chrismorse3862]

+clothar23 guess you aren't that good at math, 3 lbs would not be a huge difference off of 17# but imagine if you shaved 10+ off of yours, I imagine you'd not only notice the difference, but it would make the performance significantly different than what you are used to

[@samuraijack1996]

John Browning was a smarter man

[@kevinsullivan3448]

Chris Morse That depends on what you are using your shotgun for. If all you do is trap, then you have no understanding of how a shotgun is really used.

[@TheAlmostbob]

Kinda amazing how far we've come in Shotgun tech since then. My Benelli Ethos weighs 7lbs, has room for 5+1 12 gague 2-3/4in shells, is recoil operated, and kicks like a 20 gague.

[@ooloncaluphid]

My father has a Noble 20 gauge pump shotgun that's all aluminum except for a couple of springs and I would imagine the firing pin. They were made for a company that made aircraft aluminum, just to be given away to people as demonstrations of the strength of the aluminum. It weighs about 3 1/2 pounds. I've never shot it but my father says heavy loads will bring tears to your eyes.

[@Bill2Board]

Tears of joy I hope?

[@zevo9314]

a heavy load can often bring tears to your eyes

[@missano3856]

I have a Ithaca 37 with an aluminum receiver and a hollow English style buttstock (which broke), 4.5 lbs even in 20 gauge it's not a nice shooting gun. It feels very "whippystabbypointy " rather than smooth swinging and kicks like a mule.

[@toddpfennig1974]

Had a Ithaca XL300 20 Gauge weighed 6.75 pounds. Perrrrrrrfect!!!

[@wizardofahhhs759]

I don't see the big deal as far as weight is concerned. I have a Benelli M2 that's mostly plastic and aluminum that only weighs around 6.5 lbs and chambered for 3" shells and I'm not recoil sensitive with any load, being thin and only weighing 150 lbs.

[@OlOleander]

Oof. That aluminum-and-spring squeak just gets right into your soul, doesn't it?

[@marks_sparks1]

Needs no cleaning - Armalite An unsinkable ship - White Star Line 🤔

[@jameshealy4594]

Truth in advertising - Nobody ever

[@marks_sparks1]

James Healy "In advertising there's no such things as lies - just expedient exaggerations" Roger O. Thornhill (Cary Grant), North by Northwest

[@jameshealy4594]

Nice quote, calling a ship "Unsinkable" is certainly quite the exaggeration! "Advertising is legalized lying" - H. G. Wells

[@ThZuao]

The Olympic literally had a warship designed to ram other ships crash into it's stern section and it kept afloat. That hapened while Titanic was still on the warf. The "Unsinkable" bit was how Olympic was hailed by the Press, not White Star Line, but they did cashed in on the free publicity. Who wouldn't? Since Titanic and Brittanic were pretty much the same design, the fame carried over. Everyone knows what happened to Titanic, but Brittanic struck a mine during WWI and sunk because people opened the portholes and water poured in through otherwise watertight compartments. If it wasn't for that, the ship could have survived the breached compartments and the bulkhead doors that stuck open. The original "Unsinkable" Olympic went ahead to serve until the Great Depression made it unprofitable to operate, then it was sold for scrap in 1935. During that time, it earned the nickname "Old Reliable" in WWI after ramming and sinking a german U-boat. During the dismantling of the hull, the dent of a torpedo that failed to detonate was discovered.

[@TruthNerds]

@@ThZuao Interesting stories from you and Greg Gallacci. I was thinking of the "unbreakable" Enigma machine, by the way, and it is believed that the plugboard version, with proper operating procedures, would actually not have been breakable, at least with the technology available to the Allies. So, same difference… a good technology used wrongly with disastrous results.

[@HK_541]

"you see is it's called the ar 17 because it fits 17 rounds in its tube"

[@robsciuk729]

You mean it has one of those deadly '30 magazine clips' ? Oooooh ... scary !!

[@tomf4122]

it has a fully semi auto high capacity assault rifle magazine

[@Journey_to_who_knows]

Well that would give you a workout

[@jacobiwolf77]

@@Journey_to_who_knows look up the KSG 25 if you think that's heavy

[@flamee23312]

Prank’d

[@theratlord914]

The heaviest part of this shotgun is the ammunition!

[@josephdillard9907]

Man that'sa gorgeous shotgun, I want it Just saw the reloading procedure, now I don't want it 😂😂😂

[@hanelyp1]

They could have done that a lot better. Like, open a spring loaded hatch, drop in a shell, and it's ready for the shell to be chambered.

[@Dovah22]

Joseph Dillard its more of a gun case shotgun to apreciate in value.

[@FlutterGuy121]

When the shotgun of the future has the same capacity as the shotgun of the 1870s, you know there is a problem.

[@611_hornet5]

"Transparent aluminum?!" "Aye. That's the ticket lad..."

[@matohibiki]

Wait, you can't just give him the formula like that.

[@611_hornet5]

"Why? How do we know he didn't invent the thing?"

[@tikkidaddy]

@@611_hornet5 Well its obvious these guys didnt😃have the ticket...

[@TheBigern22]

Hello computer

[@morganrobinson8042]

Actually, we have that now.

[@JW--dc8ri]

"Never needs cleaning!" Props to the marketing department 😂

[@Radioactiveafikomen]

"The idea of having a fancy gold-colored gun really was an interesting and novel thing." So basically, it was the gold-colored iPhone of guns?

[@ThePandoraGuy]

Yupp.

[@lsswappedcessna]

Yeah, looks nice, but has German car levels of overengineering and in the end is only capable of two useful things, those being how many times it can shoot without being reloaded. A double-barrel shotgun is easier. and can do the same thing. They're quicker to reload, too.

[@visionist7]

But back then, only 1200 folks were fooled, unlike Apple's armies of fidels

[@TruthNerds]

Funny, but most people agree that the iPhone is a good phone, except for the price. The action on this thing, on the other hand, looks rather goofy. I guess it was originally designed to be used with a detachable box magazine but regulations killed that idea. I may be wrong…

[@iggysfriend4431]

A whole 2 round capacity, with a loading time that takes longer than a standard shotgun.

[@phille7669]

The add at 2:32 never needs cleaning that worked out for the m16

[@clothar23]

The M16 ran just fine on decent ammo . Ya use the welfare crap the US Army was in the early stages of Vietnam sure there is going to be problems. But ya can say that about every firearm ever made mate. The M16's has overblown service and maintenance issues, perturbed by useless Soviet fanboys.

[@phille7669]

Every gun needs to be cleaned and they were advertising it never needs cleaning, WHY SO SERIOUS?

[@williestyle35]

I would not put that on Armalite. They never said the AR - 15 did not need cleaning. Neither did Colt when the got the rights to manufacture the M16. m.kzbin.info/www/bejne/gqq7n5d5rdNsgZY

[@hk_4014]

"Never needs cleaning!" Yeah just like how the m16 never needed cleaning.

[@JerryEricsson]

I got out of the Army in 1978, after 8 years service, and even now, some 40 years later, I think I could still take down an M-16 and clean it so well my Drill Sergeant would pass it on his first white glove inspection!

[@AveryBlueRemix]

Jerry Ericsson I can flip a pancake pretty well...

[@karlt8233]

When the M16 first went to Vietnam for combat trials they did not ship with a cleaning kit because during the testing phase stateside it was ran for x-thousands of rounds without cleaning, so they assumed it would perform the same way under combat trials. Before the combat trials were complete they rushed cleaning kits to Vietnam along with comic strip training manuals on how to properly clean the M16. Two things caused issues in Vietnam. 1st was powder type being used in the original 5.56mm loads but that took a little while to "fix". 2nd was the environment being used in, close tolerance guns do not fare well in jungle environments and when combined with excessively dirty ammo powders the failure rate was pretty high.

[@jefflemaster2850]

@Karl T I believe that the originals also specs called for chrome linings in the bore and bolt carrier. The Administration at the time thought it was too costly and cut that from some early production guns.

[@nickhowatson4745]

Karl T it was a myth that soldiers were told the m-16 didn’t need to be cleaned. It was probably a rumor started by the troops. Cleaning kits were issued but usually lost.

[@yognaut513]

Fantastic video, Ian. I always figure there’s nothing else that could intrigue me in the firearms world but you always find something unique.

[@thatphotographerjoe]

Holy crap costa mesa? That's my home town. Nothing ever comes out of costa mesa so that's a pretty neat little detail.

[@dianelee2100]

I love your videos. Can't believe I have been a gun lover for years and how little I really knew about them. I was given a mint 1929 L.C. Smith trap single shot 12 gauge specialty grade Damascus steel first auto ejector gun. It cost twice the as much as a car in the time. America has made so beautiful weapons. Keep it up

[@445supermag]

And according to that magazine cover at 2:31, it never needs cleaning. Just like the AR15 never needs cleaning.

[@Terror187D]

"Never needs cleaning" on the advert kills me

[@none-ya-dam821]

Only 2 rounds??? Must have been made in California.

[@xavierparis9605]

yeah it says that in the video

[@none-ya-dam821]

TheReal Shaqzilla that shotgun was ahead of it's time. Its perfect for California gun laws now.

[@praetorxian]

Still too much of a WMD for Commiefornia. Please turn in to your local comissar.

[@samuelmarmolejo4378]

Paul None Ya its actually made in Costa mesa California

[@none-ya-dam821]

samuel marmolejo I watched again and saw that.. thanks.

[@RiskyBRiskyB]

"So 3.25 shells are the standard ammunition." "Hmm. I think just under 5 pounds would be the optimal weight, oh and they should all have aluminum barrels too."

[@JBowles]

The furniture is polycarbonate(could maybe be acrylic but PC is much more likely), and there is no foam in the buttstock, they can break like the shell of an egg. This particular example is odd in that the woodgrain decal/coating on the furniture has degraded a lot compared to the overall wear on the gun. My AR-17 has been used quite a bit but the woodgrain is in much better condition. Armalite also made a few hundred of the AR-17s with black anodized parts rather than the gold. They also shipped with 3 different chokes, the medium choke appears to be the one installed. Legend has it the AR-17 was a parting pet project for Stoner before leaving to Cadillac Gage, basically the production manifestation of the earlier AR-9 semi-auto shotgun which appears to be practically the same aside from a muzzle brake/choke combo feature on the barrel.

[@JBowles]

It's a shot gun barrel wear isnt that big of a deal, lead is still way softer than anodized 7075 alumnium

[@mattorama]

The gun of the future, with a two round capacity. Even though back in 1897, Winchester could sell you a... Winchester 1897, with a six round capacity.

[@robertkubrick3738]

Please! 1893

[@the_burger]

1887

[@tristanwolske8201]

This is by far one of my top favorite videos of all time of this channel for some reason. This gun and it’s history is so appreciatively toy gunnish, futurish, crazy!!👍👍👍👍

[@ostiariusalpha]

Ian didn't mention this, but the AR-17 receiver, BCG, and recoil system are based almost directly on Eugene Stoner's first conception of the AR-10. In fact, you can check it out right in the illustrative art for the direct impingement patent that ArmaLite sold to Colt (US2951424), it surprisingly is not the AR-10/AR-15 layout that you would expect to see. From the details of the 1957 ArmaLite action plan, they would have produced a semi-automatic, direct-impingement shotgun under the model designation AR-9 (and a sporter rifle with the same layout to be called the AR-14). But since the patent was sold to Colt, the DI gas system was no longer available to ArmaLite, and so they used this more conventional short recoil operation to create the AR-17. You can also see in the unusual 2-shot feed system, the remnant of the detachable box magazine that would slot into that area. Perhaps if the AR-17 had been more of a commercial success, they would have introduced a higher capacity magazine model.

[@ProjectOBC]

This guy and The Report of the Week... Different animal same beast.

[@alexbarnett8541]

Those who forget the future are doomed to repeat it.

[@jan-olofharnvall8760]

A gem for collectors and tru al it’s shortcomings aesthetically pleasing.

[@armedpartisan]

The Winchester Model 50, an excellent shotgun, also had two round capacity. It was the most expensive American produced shotgun of its day, however. Plenty were sold, but you don't see them too often. I find it disturbing that so many people on here do not understand what shotguns are used for traditionally. Legally in most places, you're not allowed to have more than three rounds capacity in any type of shotgun when used for hunting. Therefore, if your purpose is exclusively for trap, skeet, Sporting Clays, and hunting, having additional capacity is merely additional weight, and on the wrong side of the gun no less.

[@classifiedad1]

Basically.

[@RyeOnHam]

The Winchester Model 50 has a THREE round capacity. Two in the magazine tube and one in the chamber. The Armalite has a TWO round capacity total. One in the chamber and one "ghost" loaded on the lifter. I've owned both. Still have the Winchester. It's a range gun only now but it's got decades of honest wear on it.

[@minuteman4199]

And that is why I love doubles. Especially English side by sides. The most fun you will ever have in shooting sports is sporting clays with an English double.

[@uncleblazzer420]

I have a model 50 and it has a 3 round capacity just like all other model 12s. Also, you don't know as much as you think about shotgun hunting. The only type of hunting that limits you to 3 shells is migratory bird hunting and that is nationwide. Ducks, geese and doves are just about the only ones. That means that you can use more than 3 rounds when hunting for almost anything with a shotgun

[@pietrotacconelli8311]

Marketing wank: IT WEIGHS 5 LBS Me: it holds 2 shells....

[@Shaun_Jones]

Honestly, 5lbs for a 12 gauge is a downside, there’s nothing there to eat up that recoil.

[@chickenman1801]

You could tie two pipes together for the same capacity and weight

[@The1stLumiens]

Held one in my hands today. It was beautiful!

[@ahmetemreyilmaz]

Sounds like an full-auto assault rifle Looks like a semi-auto shotgun Holds two shells like a double-barreled shotgun An interesting gun for sure!

[@garretphegley8796]

It's not a rifle though?

[@EE-ie1bo]

The name is that of a full auto rifle?

[@ArcturusOTE]

@@EE-ie1bo the AR name

[@SpartanD63]

Actually a decently attractive looking gun, if not all that well thought out. I figured recoil would be a bit brutal just hearing that it was aluminum. But all even going so far as to go with plastic furniture... that's a bit silly. That said, the mechanical side is a bit interesting. I haven't ever seen a bolt that complex on a shotgun.

[@clothar23]

There is reason for that, a shotgun does not need that sort of complexity in it's bolt . Ya not popping heads at over a 1000+ meters ya hitting clay and birds at maybe 100 meters top. Ironically shaving a few locking lugs off would have made the damn thing lighter and helped the claim to lightest shotgun.

[@SpartanD63]

Oh yeah. A fascinatingly misguided design decision for sure.

[@clothar23]

And this from the company that gave us the AR-15.

[@Palmtop_User]

That ribbed rod in the hand guard just brought me back to robotics. They (or an item very much like it) were used as field pieces and sometimes structural bits. We called them churros

[@troy9477]

Interesting. I knew very little about these. I bet with a steel barrel and at least a short steel mag tube it would have balanced well. And recoiled less. Shoot for abt a 7 lb weight, which would still have been ground breaking back then. It sounds like the ArmaLite people didn't have a lot of shotgun shooting experience. If they had, they would have known that it needed to be heavier for the sake of swing characteristics and recoil. Still an intriguing design, well ahead of its time. Great video as always. Thank you

I'm hoping whoever buys this frequents my range, and someday I'm standing next to them, and they are awesome and say "hey, want to shoot it a couple times" and I say "Hell yeah buddy" lol

[@TheRogueWolf]

Physics still runs the show in the World of Tomorrow.

[@JohnLeePedimore]

The all aluminum structure would have made more sense for a survival rifle like the AR-7 which already has a plastic stock and aluminum receiver.But it could have been even lighter with an steel lined aluminum barrel.

[@ianbyrd2853]

Ever take a look at the Browning Double Auto? More specifically, the Twelvette sub-model? I think it was the first to use aluminum for a shotgun. My grandfather bought one in the late 50s and used it for hunting for decades. He passed it on to me and I've used it for both trap and skeet for years now.

[@JustaMuteCat]

Back when Ian uploaded this I had noticed it but by rewatching I can’t help but feel like the gun is just asking for someone to put it out of its misery, with how the action screams at you when you cycle it.

[@maximilianvonspee9329]

I think the worst part of this for me is the two shot capacity. As a trap shooter and hunter I tend to think that unless it has at least a four shell capacity something fancier than a classic double barrel is kind of irrelevant

[@alexv6324]

I can hear the theme to The Man with the Golden Gun playing. Whuh whah whuh.

[@theghostkidltu2878]

imagine if this had a magazine

[@alphagt62]

Exactly what I thought, it’s an AR design, with their bolt type, it’s almost as if it were made with a mag in mind?

[@5398-x8y]

@@alphagt62 imagine if a double barrel had a mag

[@Boojakascha]

can't wait for the po-tay-to po-tah-to discussion on aluminum =)

[@cloudkitt]

It's spelled differently in North America

[@Mike-gi1dk]

my stoeger m3000 had a rotating bolt as well. inertia driven system. man i miss that thing. so smooth

[@TheTrooper115]

God that bolt makes a god awful noise when moving around.

[@skurblord3401]

Sounded like it hadn't been oiled since 1960. Also aluminum scraping makes a much higher pitched noise than steel often times.

[@bobfish6506]

Imagine the felt recoil on that shotgun

[@waltlars3687]

Bob Fish I fired one a couple of shots useing Winchester AA trap loads it kicked like 870 with High brass duck and goose loads

[@bobfish6506]

Walt Lars I hope your shoulder survived afther you shooting it

[@waltlars3687]

Bob Fish no worse than high powered duck and goose loads in a 870

[@Adriethyl]

This is gonna throw off everyone who thinks AR stands for _Assault Rifle_

[@newdefsys]

Advertisement at 2:34 says "never needs cleaning". Is this the source of the rumor that circulated through Army ranks that their new M16's were 'self cleaning' ?

[@mrb692]

The original AR-15 was indeed self cleaning, because the original 5.56 round had a different powder formulation that was cleaner and had a different pressure curve. When the round was finalized, it was dirtier and lower pressure at the time the gas reached the bolt which led to the now infamous problems. Ian and Karl discussed this in one of their videos on the AR-15. I think it was the mud test, but I'm not sure.

[@ostiariusalpha]

+Der Fliegende Holländer It was discarded because Remington lied their asses off about its performance consistency, and they were found out by the military ordnance board. Remington cherry-picked the lots of IMR 4475 propellant during the initial trials to meet the velocity requirements, but when Frankford Arsenal began testing larger production runs of the ammo, they got underpressure rounds, and even worse, rounds that would have dangerous pressure spikes. With the cat out of the bag, the military had to search for a different propellant that was more inherently consistent when produced in large scale. The most promising was the new WC 846 spherical powder created by Winchester Olin, it gave excellent velocity without the pressure spikes of IMR 4475, though it did have a higher gas port pressure that increase the cyclic rate somewhat. Unfortunately, for some stupid reason the Olin engineers allowed to much calcium carbonate (a stabilizer that keeps the propellant from aging and developing tendencies towards pressure spikes) in the formulation, and this increased calcium carbonate began to condense in the gas tube, leading to clogging from the build-up.

[@HughesEnterprises]

For those of you wondering why this only holds two shells- Doubles trap was very popular in the 1960's and you only need two shells. This gun was a competitor to Browning's Twelvette (another two shot semi-auto).

[@BadlanderOutsider]

This; you see a lot of dedicated guns for trap that might make one's head scratch especially when looking from them at a more generalist perspective but make perfect sense if you think that someone would be buying this gun for this sole purpose alone (and maybe bird hunting).

[@chuckhotze9141]

Movie Star ROBERT STACK on the Magazine Cover with the AR-17....was in fact a true champion in the world of breaking clay....back in "the day." Great to see him in your presentation since some might think he was just a male model...instead of a well known shotgunner of the day.

[@ChimpFromSpace]

Oh god, the scratchy, screechy noise of the action hurts my brain!

[@whyjay9959]

Same here...

[@ddselvig]

Would make a nice gun for light loads and small game. I remember reading about it back in the day, but was never able to afford one.

[@TheArklyte]

Why haven't they used a detachable mag? Was it already outlawed? Why not add extra mass as optional handguard or barrel extension? The gun basically failed because it wasn't futuristic _enough,_ not because it was trying to be futuristic.

[@TheDreamer905]

This would be a cool shotgun, if it had a full sized tube magazine or even a box magazine, instead of just two shells

[@donaldoehl7690]

"May not have taken everything into consideration..." Wow, that has never happened before ever!

[@AlexS9403]

5 or 10 round box magazines might've been a better idea.

[@carltalbot9212]

That shotgun probably would have had some success if Armalite would have used a 5 round feed tube. Two rounds you use a coach gun or Over and Under. I have 1978 Franchi 5 round auto that is made of all aluminum except the barrel. When I purchased my Franchi I gave up a pound and one half for the engraved European walnut stock. It weighs a bit over 7 pounds. My 870 8 round weighs a lot more. I don't think Armalite understood the shotgun market at all

[@allensanders4204]

Already done by Browning in the 60's with their semi auto Twelvet , 2 rounds and came in colored receivers. Light weight, fast shooting .

[@Dominik189]

that thing must kick like a mule x-x

[@hughmarloweverest1684]

I may have my butler bid on this one for me.

[@A-Negative]

I like to say to my friends here in CA/Hollywood “ We can all agree no one needs an AR-17.” They all agree with vigor. “Cause who would ever need a two shot 5 pound aluminum shotgun made in 1964.”

[@Abclyfestyle]

Can see why it wasn’t a popular shotgun.

[@superBAkid]

“Never needs cleaning” that will never be a thing when you are using gun powder

[@AlcerusOfficial]

I mean if your tolerances are shite enough...

[@felipedaiber2991]

But what if you use a theoretical compuand that is 33.3333333% oxigen and 66.66666666% carbon and also is 100% pure?

[@Shade_Daemon]

Railguns FTW amirite?

[@superBAkid]

felipe daiber yeah it’s possible but with normal gun powder unless you can somehow keep it all in the casing it will build up eventually. A self cleaning barrel would be cool but I don’t think we are close to that yet.

[@jerrybobteasdale]

Kinda intersting seeing actor Robert Stack( Stryker in" Airplane!" the movie,) on that advert. He was a famously good skeet shooter. "was a champion skeet shooter in his youth, shooting on three California State Teams and was inducted in the Skeet Shooting Hall of Fame in 1971."... "At 16, Stack was a member of the All-American Skeet Rifle Team, setting two world records and becoming the National Skeet Champion. "

[@ian-op5fv]

Oh boy! It holds just as much as a double barrel, it's harder to load and less reliable. With the added bonus of giving me whiplash every time I fire it. Where can I pick one up?

[@Tallmios]

S P A C E M E T A L S

[@BingleFlimp]

Question. If you put all this effort into a shotgun just to have it have a two-shot capacity what's the advantage of this design over a double barrel shotgun?

[@andymac4883]

I was wondering about that myself.

[@edwardgrabinsky6369]

having 2 barrels is more heavy

[@ALegitimateYoutuber]

ya i was thinking the same thing, because a good double barrel i have a feeling wouldn't weigh much more and would be cheaper.

[@Derkman96]

A L U M I N U M

[@vrisbrianm4720]

I think the double barrels design would be more reliable, as compared to this AR-17

[@revolverjones]

I mean everyone is dissing this gun for a good reason but I think this could go somewhere in the future

[@SpaztallicA]

If they redesigned the entire look of the thing (more of a space age shape) it might have seemed cooler in hindsight. The plastic/aluminium combo with the 'faux fancy' basic engraving matched with the basic shotgun design, just leaves it looking.....incredibly cheap.

[@wierdalien1]

SpaztallicA now it does. Then it would look plain odd

[@ZGryphon]

Welcome to 1964!

[@philipcheng1618]

Looks like something from Bioshock

[@henrymach]

Why this weird loading system? Why not a regular pump action? What were they thinking?

[@armedpartisan]

diamened, certain semi-auto actions actually use fewer Parts than many conventional pump actions. I have a Franchi model 48AL 12ga semi-auto, and it is remarkable in how few parts it has compared to my Mossberg 500, for example. This isn't always true, but action bars and other components like that would probably have added to the weight.

[@jacobcozad5079]

I think they originally intended to have a magazine

[@jtoth1995]

They were thinking of THE FUTURE!

[@Xachremos]

@@jacobcozad5079 then why not follow through? In this state it seems like more of a novelty than a usable firearm.

[@hannibalburgers477]

because *F* *U* *T* *U* *R* *E*