Kalashnikov AK - 47 Reviews

by **whitehood** » Thu Mar 10, 2011 12:45 pm

Original FEGs that were Hungarian Arsenal made and that were preban are considered excellent and go for about the grand range. Unfortunately all AK's are essentially kit guns made and where it comes from means something. Krebs, Arsenal and AK USA have the rep in that order

by **thunderguppy** » Sat Mar 12, 2011 2:00 am

Thanks for the reply. Big problem I have where I live is 7.62x39 is extremely rare except corrosive foreign brand. I also have two other rifles that use 5.56 and make logistics easier.

Only one dealer nearby that sells AK's and he only sells NORINCO AK's for around $900-$1000. If he has to special order, he'll add $500 for his trouble. I stay away from anything NORINCO after a SKS I bought made by them slamfired, putting me in the hospital and leaving a scar on my forehead as a reminder never ever shoot anything made in China.

LOVE the Krebs and hope to find one at gun show.

by **whitehood** » Sat Mar 12, 2011 9:20 am

If ammo is a problem then I'd recommend a wholesaler online dealer like ammo to go or cheaper than dirt. There are many. Besides 7.62 clones are made to fire any kind of junk. Again the problem with present day AK's is that all of them are kit guns now and the assembly is done here. Who does it makes a difference.

by **rgillgil** » Sun Mar 13, 2011 12:02 am

Thanks for the comment. Does it have to be an Auto FEG to be preban or were there semi-autos shipped to the US also preban? I have checked everything that I have read concerning the originality of this FEG and it checks out. Is there one specific litmus test that will tell you otherwise? Any ideas? Thanks.

by **whitehood** » Sun Mar 13, 2011 10:26 am

Semi auto Hungarian FEG's were imported here and arsenal built BUT they were rare. Here's something else. It might be hard determining if they're preban or not and even an expert might have problems knowing depending on who manufactured it here. If you know and trust the owner and he bought it in the mid to late 80's and knows this then fine. From what I'm told serial numbers won't help. The people who could help you are on the weapon specific AK forums. Some of those guys really know their stuff.

by **rgillgil** » Sun Mar 13, 2011 11:32 pm

Thank you Whitehood, I know the guy that I bought the AK from and trust his word. He bought the AK's (5 of them) a long time ago, he had two left and sold me one of them.

by **exexpat93** » Tue May 10, 2011 11:46 pm

You can't go wrong with and Arsenal. WASR or other CIA slapped together trash you'll get garbage. The Arsenals have milled receivers and Steyr barrels. Most others were put together behind someone's warehouse by halfwits. AR's are better than AK's? Each one works within their intended limitations. Choose your caliber and rifle and have fun!

by **APCMatt** » Wed May 11, 2011 7:07 pm

Cant go wrong with Arsenal but my WASR is always popular at the range. Even my AR buddies respect it

by **Saiga12** » Sun Jul 10, 2011 8:34 pm

I bought a black, synthetic stock/fore-armed, Ak-47 Yugo' underfolder about Memorial Day. Cost about $580.00 incl tax from a local dealer. Cheaper on the net awhile back but by the time you pay a local FFL for handling/registering it was a few bucks cheaper at the local store plus I got to handle all three of the one's he had in stock before purchase.

Ammo around here goes from $6.30 to around $12.00 per 20 have seen it down to $3.70 or so on 'Cheaper than Dirt' .com.

So for the most part 7.62x 39 is significantly cheaper than .223/5.56. I like the heavier round and seriously, just like my Hi-Point .45 this rifle has a very nice trigger , smooth, crisp, light but with a firm take-up. no double clicking or snags. The rifle shoots just as well as several AR 15's and M-4 Clones manufactured by very good names.

I plan on getting both an ACOG and a wide field of view 3-4x9 scope, a bi-pod and at least 6 more 20-30 round mags and 2 75 round drums. over the course of the next 8-12 months .

I'll keep you posted on the results of all, seperately and combined products.

OH yeah, FWIW.

Most of these guns are indeed kit guns ...but that is to be expexcted as until recently, the manufacturers did not make a semi-auto AK.

There are about 6-7 large producers of the semi-Ak's nowa days. For American import a certain percentage of the rifle has to be made of US parts...by Federal law , I forget the exact number. So when modifying the rifle say using double -wound spring trigger assembly's you have to make sure the assy isn't a quality but cheaper foreign made one, same with stocks, magazines, sights, adjustable gas tubes, barrels, dustcovers, even sling mounts. Mine is no doubt a Century Arms 'KIT' gun but she's tighter than a woodpeckers lips.

There are several great AK-47 forums that can explain all the details to the point of total boredom if you want , they are informative and specific.

You don't get a scope mount with the underfolder because the underfolding stock would either hang up on the mount or tear it off. But you can purchase a reciever dust cover drilled and tapped for Weaver mounts and I believe it comes with the mount/rings for under $35.00.

Like that Kel-tec Su-16B -I think- (not the Cali model) you can fold/unfold the stock with a loaded mag in place.

The 2 mags that came with it seat easily and quickly unlige the Saiga 12 mags.As with all AK-47's if you don't fully load the the mags to capacity the seating operation is very easy. If you load to capacity it would be best if you either hold the bolt back or use the lock back mechanism if so equipped to seat the mag.

She, black Zytel or equivalant, came with sling loops, same as the wood version.

I couldn't find a sling so I borrowed an old deployment bag sling and ran it out to single strap /arm lock sling length...works great.

Like the M-16/AR-15/M-4 and clones the 16 and a bit more inch barrel length and the standard ammo have the bulet hitting low out to at least 100 yards before starting to rise ballistically and mine shoots to the right as well but i have alredy developed a compensation sight pictur with open sights out to 100 yards ... x ring might not be my forte with open sights at 100 yds (I'm over 60 now fer Christ's sake!) but head shots are no problem. Supported of course.

I'll keep you all posted

by **whitehood** » Sat Jul 16, 2011 7:52 pm

I hate to rain on the parade but an ACOG or a high power scope on an AK is a total waste. Mounting any kind of optics on an AK is a chore and at the very least you'll need to attach a mount on a gas block and /or you'll have to replace the gas tube, upper hand guard or the forend. If you want a bipod the forend will go and the one you choose will have to fit the receiver and will have to fit the bipod as well. They just don't shoot as well as any AR I've ever seen. An AR is really an open sight weapon. It has a patridge type post which can used with both eyes open and it increases situational awareness. The weapon as designed was to be fully automatic so quick followup shots on semi are pretty much negated. You'd do better to just see if you can replace the upper handguard and forend and put a laser on it.