CALIFORNIA-COMPLIANT TRIGGER GUARD FOR AR-15 RIFLE EQUIPPED WITH A PISTOL GRIP STOCK

Abstract

A trigger guard is provided for installation on an AR-15 rifle having a military-specification lower receiver. The trigger guard converts a standard pistol grip to a California-legal non-pistol grip by lowering the exposed top of the trigger to such an extent that the webbing of the hand between the thumb and forefinger is above the exposed top of the trigger when the grip is held with the hand, the barrel of the rifle is held horizontal, and the trigger is pulled with the index finger of the same hand. Some non-military-specification AR-15 rifles have a trigger guard that is incorporated in the lower receiver; in other words, the trigger guard is cast as part of the lower receiver. The present invention is not compatible with such rifles.

Claims

1. A trigger guard for installation on an AR-15 rifle lower receiver compliant with military specifications, said trigger guard comprising: a lower portion, positioned below the trigger, and shaped like a conventional trigger guard; a spacer portion which fits against an upper edge of a trigger recess, said spacer portion having a vertically-oriented aperture which fits over a trigger and which, when fully installed, wraps around an upper portion of the trigger; and an aft link portion, positioned behind the trigger, which interconnects the lower portion and the spacer portion, and which is integral with the lower portion and spacer portion.

2. The trigger guard of claim 1, which further comprises an anterior link portion, positioned in front of the trigger, which also interconnects the lower portion and the spacer portion, and which is integral with the lower portion and the spacer portion.

3. The trigger guard of claim 2, wherein said trigger guard is annularly shaped.

4. A method of achieving compliance with a proposed California statute that bans the sale of AR-15 rifles having a pistol grip stock, said method comprising the steps of: replacing the standard trigger guard with a new trigger guard that incorporates a spacer that fits against an upper edge of a trigger recess, said spacer having a vertically-oriented aperture which fits over a trigger and which, when fully installed within the trigger recess, wraps around an upper portion of the trigger, thereby forcing a gunner to lower his finger on the trigger so that a web of his trigger hand is above an exposed portion of the trigger when a barrel of the rifle is held horizontal.

5. The method of achieving compliance of claim 4, wherein the new trigger guard includes a lower portion below the trigger, the spacer portion, and an aft link portion, positioned behind the trigger, which interconnects the lower portion and the spacer portion, and which is integral with the lower portion and the spacer portion.

6. The method of achieving compliance of claim 5, wherein the new trigger guard is annularly shaped, and includes a lower portion below the trigger, the spacer portion, an aft link portion, positioned behind the trigger, and an anterior link portion, positioned in front of the trigger, both link portions interconnecting and integral with the lower portion and the spacer portion.

7. A trigger guard for installation on an AR-15 rifle lower receiver that achieves compliance with a proposed California statute that bans the sale of AR-15 rifles having a pistol grip stock, said trigger guard comprising a spacer portion which fits against an upper edge of a trigger recess, said spacer portion having a vertically-oriented aperture which fits over a trigger and which, when fully installed, wraps around an upper portion of the trigger, thereby forcing a gunner to lower his finger on the trigger so that a web of his trigger hand is above an exposed portion of the trigger when a barrel of the rifle is held horizontal.

8. The trigger guard for installation on an AR-15 rifle lower receiver of claim 7, which further comprises: a lower portion, positioned below the trigger, shaped like a conventional trigger guard, and conventionally secured with the trigger recess and; an aft link portion, positioned behind the trigger, which interconnects the lower portion and the spacer portion, and which is integral with the lower portion and spacer portion.

9. The trigger guard for installation on an AR-15 rifle lower receiver of claim 8, which further comprises an anterior link portion, positioned in front of the trigger, which also interconnects the lower portion and the spacer portion, and which is integral with the lower portion and the spacer portion.

10. The trigger guard for installation on an AR-15 rifle lower receiver of claim 9, wherein the trigger guard is annularly shaped.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0045] FIG. 1 is a left-side view of a first AR-15 rifle sub-assembly, which includes a standard pistol grip attached to a military-specification lower receiver fitted with a conventional, prior-art trigger guard;

[0046] FIG. 2 is an isometric view of the new trigger guard;

[0047] FIG. 3 is a front elevational view of a preferred embodiment of the new trigger guard;

[0048] FIG. 4 is a top plan view of the preferred embodiment of the new trigger guard;

[0049] FIG. 5 is a right-side elevational view of the preferred embodiment of the new trigger guard;

[0050] FIG. 6 is a left-side elevational view of the preferred embodiment of the new trigger guard;

[0051] FIG. 7 is a front elevational view of the preferred embodiment of the new trigger guard, showing some of the required dimensions;

[0052] FIG. 8 is a top plan view of the preferred embodiment of the new trigger guard, showing some of the required dimensions;

[0053] FIG. 9 is a right-side elevational view of the preferred embodiment of the new trigger guard, showing some of the required dimensions;

[0054] FIG. 10 is a is a left-side view of a second AR-15 rifle sub-assembly, which includes a standard pistol grip attached to a military-specification lower receiver fitted with the preferred embodiment of the new trigger guard of the present invention; and

[0055] FIG. 11 is a left-side view of a second AR-15 rifle sub-assembly, which includes a standard pistol grip attached to a military-specification lower receiver fitted with an alternative embodiment of the new trigger guard of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0056] The invention will now be described with reference to the attached drawing figures. It should be understood that the drawings were drawn to scale, as nearly as possible. Nevertheless, they are intended to be merely illustrative of the invention.

[0057] Referring now to FIG. 1, a first AR-15 rifle sub-assembly 100 includes a standard pistol grip 101 attached to a military-specification lower receiver 102 fitted with a conventional, prior-art trigger guard 103 that exposes the entire trigger 104, which extends downwardly into the trigger recess 105 from an upper edge 106 of the trigger recess 105.

[0058] Referring now to FIGS. 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6, the preferred embodiment of the new trigger guard 200 is designed to replace the conventional trigger guard 103 of FIG. 1. The preferred embodiment of the new trigger guard 200 has a lower portion 201 that is shaped much like the conventional trigger guard 103. The lower portion 201 has a front aperture 202 and a rear aperture 203 which enable the new trigger guard 200 to be pinned to the lower receiver 102 in a conventional manner. In addition, the preferred embodiment of the new trigger guard 200 includes a spacer portion 204 which fits up against the upper edge 106 of the trigger recess 105. The spacer portion 204 has a vertically-oriented aperture 205, which fits over the trigger 104 and which, when fully installed on the military-specification lower receiver 102, wraps around an upper portion of the trigger 104. The integral spacer portion 204 is connected to the lower portion 201 via an aft link portion 206, which is integral with both the lower portion 201 and the spacer portion 204, and which is positioned behind the trigger at the rear of the trigger recess 105.

[0059] Referring now to FIGS. 7, 8 and 9, various views of the preferred embodiment of the new trigger guard 200 show certain dimensions, radii, a diameter and an angle which are critical for optimum functionality of the device. The dimensions, radii, diameter and angle are identified by the letters A through Q, and are as follows: [0060] A=2.7641804 cm (1.08826 in.); [0061] B=0.81534 cm (0.321 in.); [0062] C=0.679196 cm (0.26741 in.); [0063] D=1.7241774 cm (0.67881 in.); [0064] E=0.9317482 cm (0.36683 in.); [0065] F=R 0.3396234 cm (R 0.13371 in.); [0066] G=R 0.3396234 cm (R 0.13371 in.); [0067] H=R 0.9941 cm (R 0.3915 in.); [0068] I=R 0.1190498 cm (R 0.04687 in.); [0069] J=0.66294 cm (0.261 in.); [0070] K=D 0.238125 cm (D 0.09375 in.); [0071] L=R 0.146685 cm (R 0.05775 in.); [0072] M=4.2788332 cm (1.68458 in.); [0073] N=1.04775 cm (0.4125 in.); [0074] O=56.30993; [0075] P=0.66294 cm (0.261 in.); and [0076] Q=D 0.238125 cm (D 0.09375 in.).

[0077] Referring now to FIG. 10, the preferred embodiment new trigger guard 200 is shown, both before installation (below the lower receiver 102) and after installation (within the trigger recess 105) in the military-specification lower receiver 102. The trigger guard 200 is secured at the front of the trigger recess 105 with a spring loaded pin (not shown), which snaps into the front aperture 202, and at the rear of the trigger recess 105 with a push pin 107, which passes through the rear aperture 203 of the lower receiver 102.

[0078] Referring now to FIG. 11, an alternative embodiment of the new trigger guard 1100 is shown, both before installation (below the lower receiver 102) and after installation (within the trigger recess 105) in the military-specification lower receiver 102.

[0079] The trigger guard 1100 is secured at the front of the trigger recess 105 with a spring loaded pin (not shown) and at the rear of the trigger recess 105 with a push pin 1001 in a conventional manner. Trigger guard 1100 is not the preferred embodiment of the invention for the simple reason that there are slight variations in dimensions of the trigger recess 105, even on lower receivers that comply with the basic dimensions of military specifications. Thus, each alternative embodiment trigger guard 1100 might need to be filed or otherwise machined to fit a particular trigger recess 105, whereas the preferred embodiment trigger guard 200 can flex somewhat to accommodate variances in measurements within the trigger recess 105. The alternative embodiment trigger guard 1100 has an annular format, with a spacer portion 1101 interconnected to a lower portion 1102 via an anterior link portion 1103 and an aft link portion 1104, all of which are integral components of the alternative embodiment trigger guard 1100. The lower portion 1102 is similar to the lower portion 201 of the preferred embodiment trigger guard 200, in that it has a front aperture 1105 and a rear aperture 1106, which enable the alternative embodiment trigger guard 1100 to be secured at the front of the trigger recess 105 with a spring-loaded pin (not shown) which snaps into the front aperture 1105, and at the rear of the trigger recess 105 with a push pin 107, which passes through the rear aperture 1106, within the lower receiver 102.