7.62x39

by **pcnightmare** » Thu Dec 30, 2010 5:28 pm

Hey everyone,

I am an admittedly frugal gun collector, and I'm looking to add something in 7.62x39 to my collection. I'm not really that much of a newbie to the sport, I've just never had much experience with that particular caliber. In my area (East Texas) it is fairly easy for me to acquire an SKS for $300 or an AK47 for $500 (maybe a little less for each if I do enough shopping). I don't really have strong feelings in favor of or against either gun. As a price-conscious gun buyer, which would you recommend? I believe I would be happy with an SKS, why would the AK be worth the extra money?

Thanks for your help.

by **ulgydog56** » Thu Dec 30, 2010 10:06 pm

ak accessories are everywhere and you can trick them out omost as much as a ar15.nothing wrong with a sks (the poor mans carbine)the ak is a step above tho......the sks can be tricked out to a lessor extent, the 7.62 is a hell of a round for when it was born,I beleave its better than the.223 in combat,not as accurate true'but more power for battle in about the same size cartrige and if you can hit a paper plate in center of mass whats the differance........

by **whitehood** » Fri Dec 31, 2010 6:13 pm

Ugly, if you actually look at what happened is that the Russkies realized very quickly that in it's FMJ form the 7.62 had poor wounding characteristics which prompted their change to the 5.45mm. It's really not a great round unless you're using soft nose bullets and even then it tends to lose velocity very quickly because of it's low sectional density.

pc, here is where ugly and I disagree. You don't know what kind of quality in an SKS that you're going to get. There are numerous manufacturers and parts are not interchangeable. In addition if just about ANYTHING breaks, you're not going to find parts.

It's pretty much ditto for the AK's. If you really want a good AK you're going to get one from Arsenal USA or Krebs or one of the really good manufacturers. Expect to pay of upwards of a grand for a good one.

by **ulgydog56** » Fri Dec 31, 2010 11:13 pm

white good infro on the 7.62 rd ....on the ak I was talking about aftermarket parts and ad ons as aposed to the sks. and you bet 6,000,000 manufactures not good for mixing and matching......

by **agonist** » Mon Jan 03, 2011 9:08 am

My gun collection is representative of the most common caliber so the 7.62x39 is a necessary member.

Both the SKS and AK-47 were designed for durability,reliability, and the AK also for ease of manufacture. With some exceptions, most will be generally interchangeable among different makers.

Neither rifle is designed for a high degree of accuracy as the 7.62x39 is

rather anemic at longer ranges, but many examples of both can be found to shoot respectable groups out to 100 yds.

For me, since the cartridge was not one that I have a specific use for, and my expectations for either rifle was generally low, I chose the SKS as I was able to find a Chinese military version online for around $150.

by **whitehood** » Mon Jan 03, 2011 12:19 pm

With the SKS parts interchangability is questionable, that is IF you can even find them. With the proliferation of AK's with all of them for practical purposes final assembly being here, you simply don't know, trigger groups being a prime example as well as barrels. Is it pinned or threaded? You might find a milled receiver with a pinned barrel now but earlier models that made it here were threaded. There are simply too many foreign manufacturers out there supplying flats to many builders here in the US who just happen to use parts made here that the Feds mandate be made here.

by **pcnightmare** » Thu Jan 06, 2011 6:12 pm

Thanks for your input everyone. After thinking about it, I think I'm probably going to get a cheap SKS (if I can find one in good enough shape for a decent price) and then get an AK in 5.45x39 at some point down the line. I don't want two AKs, and it is just a superior round compared to 7.62 Soviet. Thanks again for your help.

by **ulgydog56** » Thu Jan 06, 2011 10:58 pm

just remember the 7.62 is a decent rd for military app and asult use, for the avarage schmo in the feild, studys on battlefeilds have shown the avarage kill is at 50 yards.......hence no more full battle rifles................

by **pcnightmare** » Fri Jan 07, 2011 6:39 pm

Well I seriously doubt any AK I get will be pressed into home defense service. I like my Castle Defense Setup as it is right now a lot.

by **whitehood** » Fri Jan 07, 2011 7:25 pm

The 7.62X39 Russian round aka M1943 round began life as round for Russian LMG and not for the AK/AKM series of weapons. Because it was well stabilized it penetrated well but had poor wounding characteristics. The Russians knew this and is one of the reasons why they converted to the unstable 5.45 round. The 7.62 round mated to the AK was always meant to be a fully automatic round.