Henry AR-7 Survival Rifle

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  • Cold Steel

    Active Member
    Sep 26, 2006
    801
    Bethesda, MD
    Last year I picked up one of these remarkable .22LR rifles and was absolutely captivated by it. Everything packs into the stock except the stock, and the gun is flawlessly reliable. Three loaded 10-round magazines fit into the gun and the only extended magazines that fit it are, sadly, unreliable and, also sadly, not made by Henry. The gun used to be in production by Charter Arms, but happily passed to Henry, which redesigned the rifle and greatly improved its reliability. I recall seeing it produced by Charter Arms back in the 1980s, but never got around to picking one up back then.

    If you have one of these survival rifles, which model do you have and is yours as reliable as you had hoped? And do you have an extended magazine that works?

    I also have a Ruger 10/22 stainless take-down rifle and a Charger blued version which, unfortunately, is classified by Maryland as a handgun. Are all Chargers considered handguns by all states and commonwealths? (If so, I'm glad I got mine when I did because I don't want to ever have to buy another handgun in this wretched state again. (There's going to be another march for tighter gun controls in Silver Spring next week, in response to the shooting in Virginia Beach. Never mind it was in another state and that Maryland already has some of the tightest gun controls in the universe. Some idiots still want tougher gun controls passed in Annapolis!))

    I worry that they'll ban my powerful AR-7. After all, any gun that will knock a helicopter out of the sky and killing one of the pilots at the same time is obviously too powerful to trust to a citizen!

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Vlw-NzSvoc&app

    So btw, which would you prefer, a Ruger Charger or a Henry AR-7? (I know almost everyone would prefer the take-down 10/22 if it came down to it, even me. But, damn, I sure like that AR-7!
     

    DutchV

    Ultimate Member
    Jul 8, 2012
    4,702
    My buddy has a Charter AR-7 from a long time ago - yeah, we're both old farts - and it's a real POS. Lots of jams. I have the new Henry but haven't gotten it to the range yet. The Charger is just a shortened 10/22, so no surprises there. The stock adapter from Copper Custom was not cheap, but worth the wait.
     

    Cold Steel

    Active Member
    Sep 26, 2006
    801
    Bethesda, MD
    It's all in the shot-placement.
    Yep. The guy was thrown back against his seat and the helicopter blew into a zillion pieces. The peep sights on the rifle make for the extreme accuracy. But if'n I'd had that gun and my twenty-five dollar red dot scope, I could have winged 'er down so's they could have saved the 'copter and, of course, the enemy agents who were each carrying mint Browning Hi-Powers! :D
     

    Cold Steel

    Active Member
    Sep 26, 2006
    801
    Bethesda, MD
    My buddy has a Charter AR-7 from a long time ago - yeah, we're both old farts - and it's a real POS. Lots of jams. I have the new Henry but haven't gotten it to the range yet.
    When you get around to shooting the Henry, please drop a range report by here, would you? Plus any personal observations. Did you get any spare magazines? They're so small I reckon you could carry a bunch of them in your pants pockets.

    I love the gun in that it fits right in a knapsack, and the magazines make great ways of carrying the ammo. The "kit" is a bit of a rip-off in my view. The case is high quality, but given that the gun can fit into a cheap knapsack, spending a lot of money on a carrying case is a bit of a waste. The kit is about $440. Minus $250 for the gun and that's a lot of money for a case, a few items and a fancy box.
     
    I have a Henry AR7. It's a good shooter, although with the sights that come with it 50 yards 1 inch groups is about as accurate as I get with it...The gun is probably capable of much more with a decent rimfire optic...It has a rail but won't fit inside the stock with anything mounted to it.

    Nope...have yet to find a high capacity mag that runs properly. ALSO I have yet to find an aftermarket mag that will feed reliably. Even the charter arms mags will not work.

    Also, be prepared to try several different brands/types of ammo. it's not picky per se, but some ammo seems to feed and shoot better.
     

    Pinecone

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    Feb 4, 2013
    28,175
    It started as an Armalite product (hence the AR designation).

    Later, Charter Arms bought the rights and made them. But, from what I have read, they were not the best quality.

    The one Henry makes is not an exact duplicate of the Armalite/Charter Arms version. Some parts are not interchangeable.

    I remember my Dad looking at buying one of them back in the early 60s. But he did not.

    I picked up a Henry version a couple of years ago. I have put 2 rounds through it to see if it worked. :D
     

    Cold Steel

    Active Member
    Sep 26, 2006
    801
    Bethesda, MD
    It started as an Armalite product (hence the AR designation).
    Ah, yes. The worst thing you can do is take a great design and give it to Charter Arms! At least the Charter Arms of the 80s! One of the worst gun companies of all times. Their little .38s and .44s would snap a few times, then bind! It was too bad because I really loved the looks of their .44 Bulldogs. Imagine, a tiny .44 Special you can put in your pocket! But I needed a stainless steel grease that I still have to make it work.

    Later, Charter Arms bought the rights and made them. But, from what I have read, they were not the best quality. The one Henry makes is not an exact duplicate of the Armalite/Charter Arms version. Some parts are not interchangeable.
    From what I understand, Henry was not able to get the original design to work properly, but it recognized that it was a great design, per se, so Henry took it and redesigned from the inside out. It found tiny flaws and eliminated them along the way. And when it finished, it looked like an AR-7, but it worked. And though magazine wells appeared to be dead ringers of the old, the tolerances were just a smidgen off. Thus, though the magazines also appeared to be identical, they weren't. Henry also used better steel and better springs, and some of its magazines actually work with the old Charter Arms, but many don't. It just depends on your model.

    I picked up a Henry version a couple of years ago. I have put 2 rounds through it to see if it worked. :D
    So when the living dead pass through your neck of the woods, what are you going to do when it jams on the third shot?

    Bang...Bang...Jam.

    Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhgggggggggghhhhh!
     

    Rambler

    Doing the best with the worst.
    Oct 22, 2011
    2,162
    I have an original Armalite which is a former Israeli pilot survival gun re-imported by Bricklee Trading Co. It works fine with the original magazines-aftermarket mags are generally unreliable. If the Charter version had issues that Henry "fixed", it makes me wonder if Charter was using old, worn-out tooling or reverse engineered drawings and the tolerances were off.
     

    TheOriginalMexicanBob

    Ultimate Member
    Jul 2, 2017
    32,151
    Sun City West, AZ
    Yep. The guy was thrown back against his seat and the helicopter blew into a zillion pieces. The peep sights on the rifle make for the extreme accuracy. But if'n I'd had that gun and my twenty-five dollar red dot scope, I could have winged 'er down so's they could have saved the 'copter and, of course, the enemy agents who were each carrying mint Browning Hi-Powers! :D

    If you watch "From Russia With Love" you'll notice at the beginning when Bond is issued the AR-7 the armorer states it ".25 caliber" when they were all .22LR. He wings the helicopter pilot who jerks the joystick and causes the other guy to drop his hand grenade inside the chopper.

    Believable? It makes for good entertainment.
     

    Engine4

    Curmudgeon
    MDS Supporter
    Dec 30, 2012
    6,983
    An AR7 is on my wish list. One of these days I'll get one at the right price.
     

    Mightydog

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    Just looked at the Henry webpage. Three available, one black and two different camouflage versions. I like the “western” camouflage myself. Interesting statement at the bottom that “you should receive some discount from our MSRP”.
     

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    G O B

    Ultimate Member
    Nov 17, 2007
    1,940
    Cen TX
    I have a Charter from a bazillion years ago. You need one. Seals in stock waterproof and floats. Toss it under the seat in the truck,fits in a backpack.Great gun for when you didn;t think you needed one. Do change ammo regularly, rim fire does not travel well.
     

    rj1974

    Ultimate Member
    Jan 31, 2011
    11,207
    Edgemere , md.
    I have one of the original green Armalite AR7s it's fun and reliable .

    I also have the 10/22 take down and a Marlin Papoose , I prefer the Papoose over them all .

    I have a pile of other take downs Marlin 39s , Marlin TDS , Remington pumps , Winchester pumps and Hamiltons . The Marlins are my favorites .
     

    gizzard

    Active Member
    Oct 30, 2012
    607
    hagerstown
    dont dry fire a charter with the barrel removed, twists up the innards. mine, now gone, was a squirrel killer for 1-2 shots, then zero wandered as barrel warmed
     

    Pinecone

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    Feb 4, 2013
    28,175
    Somewhere online is a very good, in depth history of the rifle. But I cannot find it right now.

    One big difference with the Henry is that it will float for a while, but will eventually sink. The earlier ones had foam filled stocks, so it could not full up with water.

    I wonder if you could us one of the foam in a can to do so to a Henry.
     

    snake-eye

    Active Member
    Jan 27, 2015
    167
    MD
    I found an old Charter Arms AR 7 at a flea market for an amazing cost of $5. Yes $5. The stock was broken and the old couple selling it said it was a find in an attic they were cleaning out. I replaced the stock and the double springs inside the receiver and now have a great little shooter. Terrible sights.
    Also have an early Bulldog in .44 with 3" barrel. Fantastic shooter, very reliable and accurate. The latter models after they moved their manufacturing had problems.
     

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