The AAC Honey Badger is an AR-pattern

personal defense weapon Personal defense weapons (PDWs) are a class of compact, magazine-fed automatic firearms that are typically submachine guns designed to fire rifle-like cartridges. Most PDWs fire a small-caliber (generally less than in bullet diameter), high-velo ...

, designed primarily for use in a suppressed configuration. It is chambered in .300 AAC Blackout and was originally produced by

Advanced Armament Corporation Advanced Armament Corporation (AAC) is an American company that develops and manufactures firearms, firearm suppressors, muzzle devices and related accessories. History Kevin Brittingham founded Advanced Armament Corporation in 1994 to manufactu ...

(AAC). The weapon is named after the

honey badger The honey badger (''Mellivora capensis''), also known as the ratel ( or ), is a mammal widely distributed across Africa, Southwest Asia, and the Indian subcontinent. It is the only living species in both the genus ''Mellivora'' and the subfami ...

History

Replacement

In 2013, AAC began focusing its efforts on the production of suppressors. "We made the decision that we are getting out of the rifle-making business", stated Jeff Still, Director of Accessories and Silencers at

Remington Outdoor Company Remington Outdoor Company (ROC), formerly known as the Freedom Group, was an American firearms manufacturer and holding company. The company had notable brands under its umbrella, such as Bushmaster, DPMS, Remington and Marlin. History In Ju ...

. "We are going to focus all of our efforts on silencers and related accessories". In 2017, Kevin Brittingham founded a new company named " Q, LLC". Along with suppressors and a bolt-action rifle of their design, Q has also developed and marketed an improved Honey Badger.

Cease and desist

On October 6, 2020, the

ATF The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE), commonly referred to as ATF, is a domestic law enforcement agency within the United States Department of Justice. Its responsibilities include the investigation and prevention ...

sent Q a

cease and desist A cease and desist letter is a document sent by one party, often a business, to warn another party that they believe the other party is committing an unlawful act, such as copyright infringement, and that they will take legal action if the oth ...

letter, asserting that the Honey Badger

pistol A pistol is a type of handgun, characterised by a gun barrel, barrel with an integral chamber (firearms), chamber. The word "pistol" derives from the Middle French ''pistolet'' (), meaning a small gun or knife, and first appeared in the Englis ...

was a

short-barreled rifle Short-barreled rifle broadly refers to any rifle with an unusually short Gun barrel, barrel. The term carbine describes a production rifle with a reduced barrel length for easier handling in confined spaces. Concern about concealed carry, conceal ...

. Though Q tried to resist this claim, they ceased production of the weapon, and confirmed this in an official statement on October 14. On October 15, the ATF gave their cease and desist a 60-day suspension, but Q chose not to resume production of the Honey Badger until the ATF made a definitive decision, as they believed "the ATF could arbitrarily withdraw the suspension at any time."

Design

Both the rifle and the cartridge used were developed in close co-operation with American Special Operations units to create a suitable and effective replacement for the

HK MP5 The Heckler & Koch MP5 (, ) is a submachine gun developed in the 1960s by German firearms manufacturer Heckler & Koch. It uses a similar modular design to the Heckler & Koch G3, and has over 100 variants and clones, including selective fire, s ...

and similar

close quarters combat Close-quarters battle (CQB), also called close-quarters combat (CQC), is a close combat situation between multiple combatants involving ranged (typically firearm-based) or melee combat. It can occur between military units, law enforcement and cr ...

weapon systems. The rifle is designed to be very convenient for military use where M16s are issued and in common use, since many similarities would exist in the fire controls, weapon manipulation, and magazines. The weapon is suppressed and it can be made even quieter by using heavy subsonic .300 Blackout ammunition. Kevin Brittingham, the founder of AAC, wanted to design a weapon that had the ease of use of an AR-15, but the portability of an MP5. The Honey Badger was developed with a standard M4 upper and lower receiver, a short barrel with a very short gas impingement system and fast rate of rifling twist, a large conventional detachable silencer, and a proprietary buffer tube and collapsible stock featuring two prongs. Whilst with the added silencer, it is 7.62-15.24 cm longer than the MP5SD, the mass is nearly identical unloaded.

References

External links

*
Advanced Armament Corp.’s PDW in 300 BLK: the Honey Badger
' Guns.com *
Original product concept by Robert S. Silvers
' *
Honey Badger by Q
' {{Personal defense weapons Silenced firearms .300 BLK firearms Assault rifles of the United States Proposed weapons of the United States Personal defense weapons Firearms articles needing expert attention ArmaLite AR-10 derivatives AR-15 style rifles