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ArmaLite's first success came shortly after it was founded with the introduction of the AR-5 , a survival rifle chambered for the .22 Hornet cartridge. The AR-5 (AR stands for ArmaLite) was adopted by the U.S. Air Force as the MA-1 Survival Rifle .

In 1954 Eugene Stoner became Chief Engineer at ArmaLite. Stoner was a Marine in World War II and an expert with small arms. His design for the AR-10 assault rifle was entered into the U.S. Army trials in 1955 as a possible replacement to the venerable yet outdated M1 Garand. It met stiff competition as it was pitted against the Springfield ArmoryFrom 1794 to 1968 the Springfield Armory was a center for the manufacture of U. military small arms and the site of many important technological advances. The Armory site was selected by President George Washington. Although Springfield, Massachusetts was T-44 , an updated M1 Garand design that became the M-14, and the T-48 , a version of the famous BelgianFor alternate meanings, see Belgium (disambiguation). Belgian redirects here. For the horse breed commonly used as a draft horse, see Belgian. The Kingdom of Belgium ( Dutch: Belgi French: Belgique German: Belgien is a country in Western Europe, bordered FAL rifle. The AR-10 lost the trials to the T-44, mainly due to the AR-10's unorthodox appearance and configuration.

The famous AR-15Colt AR-15 SP1 The AR-15 is a self-loading centerfire rifle designed by Eugene Stoner of the Armalite corporation who developed it as a smaller version of the AR-10. Armalite sold its rights to the AR-10 and AR-15 to Colt in 1959 after which the AR-15 was rifle was developed as a smaller version of the AR-10. Both designs were liscensed to Colt in early 1959. You can read more about the AR-15 at the M-16 article. With both the AR-10 and AR-15 designs sold to Colt, ArmaLite was left without a viable product. So, in 1963, development began on the AR-18 assault rifle, an "improved" AR-15 with a new gas system that did not violate the Colt held patents. The AR-18 is an excellent rifle, but it did not gain any military support. It is most famous for being adopted by IRA terrorists in Ireland, who dubbed the rifle "The Widowmaker." The AR-18 did serve as the basis for the current British assault rifle known as the L85, which is essentially an AR-18 in bullpup configuration. Other designs, such as the Singapore SAR-80 and German G36, are based upon the AR-18.

ArmaLite has changed hands a number of times throughout its history and most recently was reorganized in 1995. Today, ArmaLite produces a number of AR-15 and AR-10 based rifles, as well as 50 BMG rifles.

See also: List of modern armament manufacturers