Any AK experts?

[SamuraiRat]

i've been searching for a Galil for the longest time, and i'm figuring on settling on an AK-47. My gunsmith has always tried to coax me into buying one but, I'm just stubborn. I have never really looked at the AKs he sells, so I'm curious:

1. So far from some of the posts on this forum, I know not to get one made in China, so what brands do I look for, and which do I avoid? Which brand offers the chrome barrel that is supposed to be durable?

2. Is the AK's inaccuracy a myth? Is it really due to the sights? Last year I was able to outshoot some guys with an AK (I was using a Winchester 94). I took a gander at an AK in my gunsmith's shop the following day, and i didn't care much for the sights on the Ak. We were on the 50 yard targets. For every 5-7 shots they would hit the target once (I mean complete misses). I always wondered if it was just the sights?

 

[JerkWeed]

Looking forward to hearing from people who have actually been firing the things but in the meantime...

The original AK was designed to push a lot of lead in a forward direction, reliably and with a minimum of care. It was not designed to drive tacks. e.g. The action employs generous tolerances which enable it to operate in sandy and muddy conditions.

There has to be a reason the Israelis and Finns designed their own Kalashnikov variations.

 

[CC's left foot]

I've actually heard good things about Chinese AKs. The ones you want to avoid are the Romanians.

For the best fit and finish, go with a Bulgarian. Arsenal Inc. is probably what you're looking for, their SLR has the sweetest sidefolding stock around.

 

[Buffer180**]

i've been searching for a Galil for the longest time, and i'm figuring on settling on an AK-47. My gunsmith has always tried to coax me into buying one but, I'm just stubborn. I have never really looked at the AKs he sells, so I'm curious:

1. So far from some of the posts on this forum, I know not to get one made in China, so what brands do I look for, and which do I avoid? Which brand offers the chrome barrel that is supposed to be durable?

2. Is the AK's inaccuracy a myth? Is it really due to the sights? Last year I was able to outshoot some guys with an AK (I was using a Winchester 94). I took a gander at an AK in my gunsmith's shop the following day, and i didn't care much for the sights on the Ak. We were on the 50 yard targets. For every 5-7 shots they would hit the target once (I mean complete misses). I always wondered if it was just the sights?

I've got an Arsenal Legion SGL-21 and I love it. If you aren't going to get a milled one, go Arsenal. If you want to spend the money in finding a Polytech Legend, go ahead, they're great

stay away from the Romanian WASR-10's and the Hungarian AMD-65. They're both very popular, very cheap, and very much garbage. I had nothing but bad times with them. Also stay away from IO AK-47c. I worked in a gunshop, we got a shipment of them in couldn't give them away. The ones we did get rid of, all came back with problems.

If you get a good one, the inaccuracy argument is a myth...to a degree. you can't expect them to shoot 400 yards accurately. The bullet just won't do it (well most off the shelf ones won't)

The sights are on slider, the further back you slide the sight, the longer range you'll be getting. You'll see what I mean if you hit thee link I gave.

If you saw someone missing at 50 yards, it wasn't the gun....99% of the time, it's not the gun....it's the shooter

 

[Buffer180**]

I've actually heard good things about Chinese AKs. The ones you want to avoid are the Romanians.

For the best fit and finish, go with a Bulgarian. Arsenal Inc. is probably what you're looking for, their SLR has the sweetest sidefolding stock around.

The chinese ones go back and forth, some great, some not so great. The SLR is just as good, or in some respects better than the one I picked. I had the chance to get either, at the same price. I picked the SGL because I liked that it was a Legion special, and a stamped Russian receiver. I didn't much care for the folding stocks, on them, because honestly I wasn't going to use it. When it's folded I thought the gun seemed very unbalanced, and let's face it, I'm not going to try and conceal it. It fits nicely behind the seat of my truck when I travel, and I never saw the need. If I'm clearing a room it'll be with my M4 lol

 

[RAZOR1]

Up to 150 yards the AK is pretty good to go, it will never be a sniper rifle, but is hell built for stout. By design there is always going to be too much barrel flex and slop in the action on a AK47.

There are variants, the Dragunov Sniper comes to mind, that one is alot of fun out to about 800 yards and shoots the crypt keepers favorite round, the 7.62x54R (rimmed)...

I love anything built by Norinco, Valmet, Galil...any of those will do you right.

Not everything from China is crap the Norinco's are decent.

Read this...
AK47 Rifles

 

[medic0311]

Ak47 accuracy is based more on the people in the past that have used them,and how well they are maintained.Ive used them overseas and owned one personally and have not had a problem.I had a newer Russian model and it was a solid rifle.

 

[Mossberg]

Find a cheap one from Arsenal with a stamped receiver and save your money for something you really want. A cheap SKS would be good too.

Accuracy is fine

 

[GodzMustBeCrazy]

I know that many people will tell you to stay away from the Romanian WASR-10, but I love mine and I have never had one problem with it. But if you really want a Galil you can try here Galil .223 Rifle they are a very good site. I have fallen in love with the AK platform my personal favorite if the AK74... do some more research, and I'm sure you will be happy with whatever you decide to get, they are addicting. Also check out Classic Arms Inc. they are getting rid of all current stock and have some great prices right now. I would love to have that hard chrome draco or that milled Polish AK.

 

[TheFirstEMP]

You might as well go for a Saiga and convert it. You're looking at a very reliable and cost effective rifle.
Stock:

Converted:

Google some more images and you'll find many styles you may like.

 

[hunto]

The 5.45x39 cartridge is more effective at distance than the 7.62x39- it was designed for ranges up to 400 yards, compared to 250-300 max for the 7.62. It is lighter too- a 1080 round spam can weighs as much as 500 rounds of 7.62x39, or 440 rounds of 7.62x54R- so more can be carried. This means that the 45-round AK74 mags weigh close to what a 30-round steel 7.62 mag weighs.

Here is a simple step-by-step guide to converting a Saiga - they're incredible values.

Saiga Step 1

The 5.45x39 versions usually do not require a bullet guide to function, but I installed one anyway; plenty of people on the Saiga-12 forums are running just fine without BGs, though. I spend around $125-140 over the base cost of the rifle ($340) depending on how cheap I can get used parts off forums. I've got $460 in my AK74, and a WASR will run you that much after tax and transfer fee.

As Jerkweed said, the Kalashnikov platform is a compromise between accuracy and reliability, with tolerances on the loose side, compared to the AR. But I think you'll be pleasantly surprised with the AK up to 300-400 yards- after that, it's time for another gun. Saigas are test-fired for accuracy and this result is in the booklet that comes with each Saiga. My 5.45 has a 4-shot group of 133mm at 100m; my 7.62x39 Saiga has a 4-shot 100m group of 83mm. Both shoot similarly.

*Avoid Lancaster-built AKs. Their rep has sunk, and the forums are full of customer-service horror stories.

 

[hunto]

You might as well go for a Saiga and convert it. You're looking at a very reliable and cost effective rifle.
Stock:

Converted:

Google some more images and you'll find many styles you may like.

Very nice. .223, correct? I had a 20" barreled .223 for quite a while, and really liked it.

 

[TheFirstEMP]

Very nice. .223, correct? I had a 20" barreled .223 for quite a while, and really liked it.

This is the nice thing, you can get it in .223, .545, .308, 5.56, and 7.62.

 

[Deltafarce]

buy one and try it out. They are not accurate rifles but are good enough for ranch defense.

 

[Chesten_Hesten]

1. So far from some of the posts on this forum, I know not to get one made in China, so what brands do I look for, and which do I avoid? Which brand offers the chrome barrel that is supposed to be durable?

2. Is the AK's inaccuracy a myth? Is it really due to the sights? Last year I was able to outshoot some guys with an AK (I was using a Winchester 94). I took a gander at an AK in my gunsmith's shop the following day, and i didn't care much for the sights on the Ak. We were on the 50 yard targets. For every 5-7 shots they would hit the target once (I mean complete misses). I always wondered if it was just the sights?
__________________

Last time I saw Chinese AKs they were selling for a lot more than the Pollock/Romainian variety.

I've got one of the Pollock models. The WASR or something.

I bought it solely to sell later if the prices went up. Though I have shot it some. Accuracy is rather underwhelming. It shoots as good as an AK. Like 3 inch groups at 100 yards, with marginal concentration and effort. You can hit a paper plate at 100 yards with it. Maybe it'll do better with a scope, but I wouldn't waste any money on the junker.

If its a funky looking gun, that functions dirty, shoots marginally accurate, and impresses lots of idiots that you're after, the AK fits the bill I'd say.

 

[corporateslave]

1 more vote for Saiga here. I love mine.

Arsenal is good but overpriced IMO, depending which model a lot of them are converted Saigas.

 

[bigretic]

I have a Arsenal 107cr.I put a Krebs fore end on it and have a Eotech.The only time it ever jammed was with Tapco (crapco) mags.Arsenal's are high.My brother has a Lancaster that is very nice.I would stay away from CAI unless you can handle it first.Some say they have drunken monkey's assembling their rifles.

 

[ryu10]

Some say they have drunken monkey's assembling their rifles.

:icon_lol: They do. When I bought my WASR 10/63 I made sure everything was good to go(no canted sights, no mag wobble, etc.) but when I brought it home and tried to cycle ammo through it, the action would stick shut. The head spacing was way off so I sent it back to Century under warranty. Surprisingly, they fixed it and now it's pretty much flawless.

As far as AK accuracy goes, its really not as bad as people say. You will most likely be able to hit a pie plate at 100 yards and possibly 200 yards if you are an experienced shooter.

 

[quatin]

I have a pair of Saiga .308s. One I converted myself, one I bought converted. I have to say if you buy a Saiga with the intention of converting it yourself, it's not difficult to get it functional, but think twice if you want to sell it later. I have seen way too many conversion abortions by some guy in a garage with a metal file and a dremel. The resell value of a hack job conversion Saigas are below cost of materials. If you want one to keep and don't want to pay for a gunsmith to do a clean conversion then doing it yourself is a great way to save money.

As for ranking AK brands. VEPR (Russian), Saiga (Russian) and Norincos (Chinese) are the best in that order. The eastern bloc types aren't all that different from each other. All except the WASR, which is probably the worst AK variant.

Accuracy of the better AKs (VEPRs, Saigas, Norincos) hover around 1.5-2 MOA. Which is about the average accuracy of mid-line AR-15s.

 

[Chesten_Hesten]

So Here's a shameless plug for a class put on by Sonny Puzikas and hosted by the impactzone in Monaville TX.

Check some of Sonny's AK technique videos:

Gospel of Violence - History Channel Video