The AR-3 was an American prototype self-loading rifle that was produced by ArmaLite.
History[]
The AR-3 was designed individually by Eugene Stoner in the late 1940s. When he joined ArmaLite in 1954, the company took up the design as one of their earliest projects. It was submitted to US Army tests but was never seriously considered for adoption. ArmaLite used the development of the AR-3 as a vessel to test certain design features that would be incorporated in their later guns, and other than a few prototypes, it was never actually put into production.
Design[]
The AR-3 was a gas-operated, self-loading carbine chambered for the 7.62×51mm cartridge. It utilized a forward-locking bolt with multiple lugs. In keeping with ArmaLite's design principles, the AR-3 was largely constructed from lightweight materials; the receiver was made from aluminum and the stock was built from fiberglass.