Anybody here know AK-47's? I would like to get one as a collector item. Do I want a russia made one or are others OK too? Any advice would be helpful. Best place to find one, etc. Thanks

I have no idea, but my friend said the Russian ones are better than the chinese ones. Are you going to be shooting it or just displaying it?

I would get a Russian one, but be ready to pay. I have a Romainan AK-47 it was around $375. if I remember correctly. You need to be on the look out for canted (crooked) sights on the cheaper ones like the Romanian's and others. Go to http://www.ak47.net/forums/board.html?b=4 for any AK guestion you might have.

Genuine Russian ones are out there but will cost more because of collectability.

Most new AK's for sale on the market now are built using Romanian parts kits, there's an abundance of the Romanian stuff right now. And because of the recent ban of importing "non-sporting" barrels these will probably be the last complete parts kits available. If you look around you can find decent Romanian builds in the <$400 range.

I'm not a fan of the Norinco / Chi-Com AK's.

My suggestion would be to start looking on various message boards and gunbroker.com to find one for sale.

I'm not much of an AK man myself (I like my ARs, M1As, and FALs) but I do want to build an AK just so I can own *one* gun I don't give a crap about keeping clean or maintaining... maybe I'll build 2 so I can go John Woo style on an old refrigerator or something. :p

For a collector piece, you probably need to go with an older, Russian gun. After all, these were the originals, the rest is only licence built copies. If you just want a nice, good looking AK, you could look for a Russian or Yugoslavian with milled receiver. I have seen a few of them at the gun shows, and the overall quality seems to be a bit better. The receiver will be an American made copy though, unless you can find an original, full-auto gun. I think there are Chinese made versions with milled receivers as well. I have seen several very nice Chinese Norincos, but have also seen some that were very crude, so I can't say what to expect from these.

I have a Romanian AK (or SAR-1, to be correct) and it is pretty rough around the edges. It shoots great though, have put maybe 1,000-1,500 rounds of old surplus ammo through it and haven't seen a malfunction yet. My eyesight is not as good as it used to be, but the original iron sights are very easy for me to see as the rear sight is located almost right behind the barrel. This makes the sight radius a tad short, but the sights are much easier to focus on than sights that are mounted further back, so it's surprisingly accurate.

IMO, an AK is too much fun to just hang on the wall. Even if you get a collector gun, also get a Romanian cheapo and a case of surplus ammo. The AK is usually the first one I grab when I want to go out and destroy things. :D

unless you can find an original, full-auto gun. I. :D

is it possible to find a full auto gun??? i thought those were illegal in the states.

I don't want something just to display. I want a piece of history yet something I can have fun with once in a while.

the AK was built under contract by so many different countrys that you'll be able to find one from every country that the USSR tried to export their form of goverment too !! the better ones have Milled main bodys ... NOT stamped sheetmetal ones ..all tho if you add the recoil buffer to the slide the sheet metal one's will fire THOUSANDS & THOUSANDS of the dirtest most scroungy ammo that you've ever see !!!! without a problem ... P.S. little know fact WOLF ammo is STEEL core ....closest thing to A.P. thats legal to buy ;)

is it possible to find a full auto gun???

Sure it is, just depends on how fond you are about living in Leavenworth KS.



Rocky

How about a chrome milled receiver model that was used as an Iraqi Palace weapon? ;)

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d8/jakeshoe/ChromeAk.jpg

is it possible to find a full auto gun??? i thought those were illegal in the states.


You sure can buy and own full auto guns legally, but you can't register new guns for the private market anymore so they are pretty pricey. I haven't seen many full auto AKs, but here's one (http://www.autoweapons.com/photos06/jan/1130ak.html) for $16,995. If you're serious about it, look for a "fully transferable" gun from a class 3 dealer.

Jake, I guess I never noticed your signiture but I zeroed in on that PT shirt in your picture. I take it you're a fellow former Batt. Boy. I was with 2nd Batt. from 01 to 05, Bco 1st Plt. When were you there?

RLTW

You cherry :)

1995-1999. A co 2nd PLT Blacksheep from 1995-1996 and then HHC from 1996-1999.
Left Batt and went down the road to 1/25 and then 3/2. Got out a few months before 9/11.

Ended up going to Iraq (where the pic is) as a PMC for about a year in 2005-2006 and thinking about going back for another stint.

How about a chrome milled receiver model that was used as an Iraqi Palace weapon? ;)

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d8/jakeshoe/ChromeAk.jpg

now that is cool!

is it possible to find a full auto gun??? i thought those were illegal in the states.

I don't want something just to display. I want a piece of history yet something I can have fun with once in a while.

Yes it is legal to own a machine gun in most states.

Here is a link to gun laws in the states. I went through it quickly and didnt see anything about Machine guns ( Class 3's ) mentioned. But I am sure it is in there, and doubt that it is legal in New York.


http://www.nraila.org/GunLaws/Default.aspx

That plated gun is cool! :cool: Here's some more bling someone found in Iraq:

http://phaster.com/war_is_good/iraqi_miliaty_bling.jpg

That stuff is all over Iraq. You can buy NICE new AK's there for $50.

I have an Ak variant I built but I'm not a fan of the AK's. They work and are cheap to manufacture but I would hate to carry one in a hostile area. Too much of a PITA to do a mag change, etc.

looking at gunbroker.com. when they say full auto kit less receiver, is that just a way to get around selling a gun without going through a dealer? can you just buy the receiver after that?

looking at gunbroker.com. when they say full auto kit less receiver, is that just a way to get around selling a gun without going through a dealer? can you just buy the receiver after that?

Legally, the parts kits are not guns, so they can be sold by anyone to anyone. You can buy a receiver, but you have to get it through an FFL dealer (most guns identity is in the receiver). There's also what they call "80% receivers", which are receivers that still need some work to be functional. The typical 80% AK receiver is a flat, stamped piece of sheet metal that you have to fold and weld some rails to in order to make it functional. These can also be bought and sold by anyone, and it's legal for you to make your own gun out of these parts kits and 80% receivers, as long as it's for your own use. This way, you can have a legal gun that the authorities don't know about, which some people think this is great. I don't think this is such a big deal, you can buy guns without paperwork at any gun show here. Might be a different story in other states though.

You can also get a full auto parts kit and an 80% receiver and build a full auto gun without anyone knowing about it, but this is NOT legal. I think that the dealers usually take the full auto trigger groups out of the kits though.

not only do you get a gun without anyone knowing about the gun, your gun doesnt even have a serial number on it. The gun is still legal as long as you built it and keep it. I think its illegal to be selling the guns without s.n.
For the price though, if its a shooter I think you cant go wrong with one thats already built. I think J&G guns has the romy for $319. jim

From what my dad told me that AK's were better than the M-16's in quite a few ways. But they took his away from him. It was something about hearing the sound of an enemy weapon coming from within you're own perimiter.

Probably the best "off the rack" AK's are the Bulgarian AKM's. They have a small dimple on the receiver and come with noticibly blonde stocks.

I better add that the legal aspects of building a gun (maybe even buying/owning a parts kit) probably varies from state to state, so you better check with the authorities before you build. I believe that NY is one of the states where only criminals can have guns.

You cherry :)

1995-1999. A co 2nd PLT Blacksheep from 1995-1996 and then HHC from 1996-1999.
Left Batt and went down the road to 1/25 and then 3/2. Got out a few months before 9/11.

Ended up going to Iraq (where the pic is) as a PMC for about a year in 2005-2006 and thinking about going back for another stint.

CIB check!!! 25 and recover.:D

What's a PMC, and why would you want to go back? I've had plenty of those two sandboxes.

When I was in, we actually had two guys in Bco with Chevelles as their daily drivers. It was always cool to go out in the parking lot and see those classics out there. I should have figured that there would be at least one other Ranger on TC.

CIB check!!! 25 and recover.:D


How many stars does yours have?;)

I was never into the D & C/ awards thing, but if it's a star for every trip over we made 5 combat deployments while I was there.

The 75th Ranger RGT has been deployed since 9/11 in some way, shape, or form, RLTW. Mark, I see you're from Yelm. Who are or were you with?

Sorry about turning this into an old war story thread, so I'll add my part to the AK question. They are a nice gun and it would be fun to own one. Short of bending the gun in half, there isn't really a way to make one jam. They can be dirty, wet, run over by a truck, or whatever and they will still shoot.:thumbsup: They can be accurate in the right hands and the make a very distinct sound when fired, if you know what I mean.

IMO, an AK is too much fun to just hang on the wall. Even if you get a collector gun, also get a Romanian cheapo and a case of surplus ammo. The AK is usually the first one I grab when I want to go out and destroy things. :D

where do you buy surplus ammo?

AK-47 advise? Don't talk too much on here about what you might have that might not be quite legal!:thumbsup:

where do you buy surplus ammo?

I have several cases, I bought some at the gun shows and some from a friend who stocked up before the world was supposed to come to an end in the big Y2K disaster. Unfortunately for him it didn't, so I bought several cases from him for $60/1000 rounds. :D

If you pick up a copy of Shotgun News, you'll find several places where you can buy it. When I got mine, you could still find it for about $90/1000 rounds, but I don't think you can find it that cheap now. The explanation I have heard is that the US Army is buying everything they can find, so that makes it a bit more difficult to come by. It's still dirt cheap though, compared to other calibers.

I still have thousands of rounds, but I'll probably check the gun shows next time I need some. Ammo is heavy and I'm afraid that shipping costs will eat everyhing you save by buying on the Internet. And of course, any gun store will have it, and you might be able to negotiate a good price if you buy a case or two.

You can find lots of sources if you google "surplus ammunition". Here are some links I found in Shotgun News:

http://www.cheaperthandirt.com

http://www.aimsurplus.com

http://www.jgsales.com

http://www.grafs.com

http://www.gulfcoastammunition.com

Olle.....you da man. thanks

CIB check!!! 25 and recover.:D

What's a PMC, and why would you want to go back? I've had plenty of those two sandboxes.

When I was in, we actually had two guys in Bco with Chevelles as their daily drivers. It was always cool to go out in the parking lot and see those classics out there. I should have figured that there would be at least one other Ranger on TC.


PMC = Private military contractor. Providing security for civilian clients who are working in Iraq.

No CIB but I spent a year in the sandbox and got plenty of the two way live fire range so I don't feel like a badge would do much for me :)

You would only have a star or stars on your CIB if you were involved in multiple wars. Everything since 9/11 has been the GWOT, so no star. If you had a CIB from a previous conflict, then you would have gotten a star for deploying in the GWOT.

I trained for 6.5 years and got out right before everything kicked off, so I went to get a piece of the action. Iraq is a pit, but I had some good times over there.

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d8/jakeshoe/TeamPic.jpg

No CIB but I spent a year in the sandbox and got plenty of the two way live fire range so I don't feel like a badge would do much for me :)

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d8/jakeshoe/TeamPic.jpg


Sooo, what you're saying is you still owe me 25.:beers:

I guess I have no stars then, we were field Rangers the awards and crap didn't mean anything to us. In 4 years I never even owned a pair of jump boots and my class A's still have PV2 rank on them.:)

Being an old Alpa-bot, I'm sure you can understand my confusion and what I thought of when I saw PMC.

I know why you want to go back now, you guys make huge cash doing that. Man you all are strapped. Do you have to buy your own equipment or does your company set you up? I see that you're a fellow lefty and that you're holding a SAW. I loved that weapon. Now you guys want a real gun get yourself.... J/K, not quite legal full auto only on that baby, and you can shoot it standing or any position that you can shoot an M-4 or AK in, AWESOME.:thumbsup:

Not real nice to us lefties though, the brass shoots out the bottom and hits us in the right bicep. I used to wear a vollyball type kneepad on my right arm when we went to the range otherwise it would bruise the crap out of my arm, that stuff comes out with some authority.

Sooo, what you're saying is you still owe me 25.:beers:



I know why you want to go back now, you guys make huge cash doing that. Man you all are strapped. Do you have to buy your own equipment or does your company set you up?

Not real nice to us lefties though, the brass shoots out the bottom and hits us in the right bicep. I used to wear a vollyball type kneepad on my right arm when we went to the range otherwise it would bruise the crap out of my arm, that stuff comes out with some authority.

I guess I owe 25 then :)
I do miss the cash.
The SAW was provided by the DoD, as well as my M4 and M9. We were issued the Interceptor body armor and some basic kit (a lot of unnecessary junk to carry around the world). If you look close at the SAW you can see it was issued to me with no real buttstock. I did some bartering with an armorer in Tikrit and got my whole team (3 SAWs) shorty kits. ;)
Team leader freaked when I appeared with a shorty SAW and he asked where I got the stuff. I told him a PVT left his SAW unsecured by the porta-potty and I swapped the parts real quick. :D

I bought my own desert boots, plate carrier, mag pouches, MICH, etc.

The EOTechs were provided.

As for the SAW not being lefty friendly, I have scars on my right bicep to prove it. When it is already 120* outside, you are riding down the road in a Mamba armored vehicle, wearing a short sleeve shirt, and have to engage a car, the rounds take off flesh and what they don't take off they burn. BTDT.

olle,
looks like the golden tiger is the cheapest I can find at 160 per case. Did you ever fire that brand? I am told some of the cheap ammo is very corrosive?

Glad this discussion came up. I have been looking to buy either an SKS or an AK-47 for a short while and would like some advice.

I'll mention that my gun experience/ownership has been limited thus far to a Cobray MAC-11, a Marlin .22, a Bryco .380, and a Glock 9MM.

The owner of a local gun shop is trying to sell me on a "reconditioned" Romanian AK for $499. I thought that was too expensive and have read on this site where guys with experience think the Romanian-built weapons have a less than sterling reputation for quality. When I mentioned the opinions I'd read to this guy and asked for his comments he had little to say beyond that I'd have more fun with an AK than an SKS. He wants to sell me a Yugoslva SKS in "excellent" condition for about $250.

I like the look and feel of an AK, but if I buy one I don't want an inaccurate POS that only looks cool and does little else. I think I could be satisfied with a good, solid SKS, especially at half the cost. I want a good, reliable, reasonably accurate gun that I can have some fum with from time to time.

What do you guys think?

Thanks for any input.

Accurate.... used in the same sentence as AK47 is ok I guess as long as your idea of ACCURATE is basketball size at 150 yards !!! lets just say for killing people they are hard to beat .... cheap plentiful & dam near impossible to screw up .... BUT 99.9% of them couldn't hit a quarter at 100 feet !!! but then that wasn't what it was made for either :D

Buy a Chinese one or an Egyptian Maddi. They are about the best quaility for dollar. Stay away from the Romanian junk.
The Bulgarians are very good quality as well as the new American made ones. Very expensive though.
If you look hard enough you can find a Chinese made in the american .223 and you will be suprised by the accuracy.
Milled recievers are nice but don't get hung up on having one, the stamped are lighter, and more reasonably priced.
A lot of the Ak's bad rap for not being accurate is the surplus ammo. American made ammo will tighten those groups up a lot.

Freshayr,

You don't work for the post office do you????

Freshayr,

You don't work for the post office do you????

I did.....but they just fired me.

olle,
looks like the golden tiger is the cheapest I can find at 160 per case. Did you ever fire that brand? I am told some of the cheap ammo is very corrosive?

I don't know about the golden tiger... to be honest, I don't think I have ever seen that brand. I lucked out and got one case of Wolf for $90, and it works great. The rest of my ammo is "real" military surplus and seems to be just as good. You shouldn't have any problems with corrosive ammo as long as you pay attention when you buy it, most dealers will tell you if it's corrosive or not. If they don't, don't buy it. I might be going out on a limb here, but I would say that just about any ammo on the market today that is not surplus will be non-corrosive, most I have seen declared as corrosive has been military surplus from the 50's or older. But if you happen to find corrosive ammo, I'd say that it will be very cheap, as no one wants to buy it anymore.

As far as accuracy goes, you have to think about it as a military assault rifle. It's not a target rifle by any means and as Mark said it was never meant to be, but I have tried quite a few rifles of different types and was very surprised by the accuracy first time I shot my Romanian AK. I usually use it just to shoot things up for fun, and I feel that it's very easy to bring on target quickly and I can put several quick rounds in that basketball sized target at 150 yards without problems, even shooting off hand. I'm sure that the accuracy can vary a whole lot as some can be built from worn out parts kits, but mine is great and I can't wait to put a scope on it to see what it really can do.

SKS is also a fun and cheap rifle, but if you're looking for the most bang for the buck in an evil looking package, you just can't beat an AK! :thumbsup:

I have an SKS and MAK-90 (sportized AK basically) both are Norinco mfg. I picked them up awhile back when they were blowing them out dirt cheap. Like $85 for the SKS and under $250 for the MAK-90. I was looking at the russian made ones later but did not have the dough plus I could not see that much difference other than the blade bayonet versus the spike bayonet. The noricon had the chrome lined barrel and milled receiver.

The quality and accuracy seems pretty good. I can say I have never had a problem with either of them. I have used them for plinking and deer hunting. Seems to function fine at -10* to 90*.

The MAK-90 is short barrel gun and I used that for deer hunting the swappy areas and thick brush; easy to handle and maneuver in the thick stuff or sling on your back and not stick out so far that it gets snagged on dang on stuff. I bought an after market stock for my sks; fits just about right for quick sighting. I would get the looks from some deer hunters, but it's not a prima-donna pretty gun and get used in all conditions.

The disadvantages I see are the MAK-90 is a short gun, so ranged shots are possible, you just need to know your gun. Mag changes are somewhat cumbersome because of the design. Sks has a top load 10 shot capacity feature that you can use stripper clips to speed load.

That plated gun is cool! :cool: Here's some more bling someone found in Iraq:

http://phaster.com/war_is_good/iraqi_miliaty_bling.jpg

Give me a can of Gold paint and I could duplicate that for a lot less.

Give me a can of Gold paint and I could duplicate that for a lot less.

Why not go for real gold plating (http://www.caswellplating.com/kits/goldpl8.htm)? :yes:

From what my dad told me that AK's were better than the M-16's in quite a few ways. But they took his away from him. It was something about hearing the sound of an enemy weapon coming from within you're own perimiter.

I would beg to differ. The M16 is much more accurate, and more ergonomic, to me anyway. The advantage the AK has is that its loose and you can throw the thing in mud and it will fire ( read sand in the desert). M16 is a bit more picky about it's cleanliness. And guess what, these days, you want something you can put a bead on a head at 100yd and hit it. Think of the typical Marine patrol in teh middle east. It aint a jungle boys, its wide arse open. Accuracy helps a ton.

And yeah, the reports are completely different. Although we played with some 74s using their 5mm round, and they are similar. ( a long time ago)

I did some plating on magazine floors, triger housings, bolts, as a kid, using a kit from Brownell's. You couldn't do a receiver like that though! Cool! Pos gun, but COOL!

Guys, if you're not looking for full auto, why not a mini-14?

I dig my Varminter ($850), but want an L1 ( fn-fal) in .308 for , um, vehiclular duty. Think I might settle for an NRA Garand.

Guys, if you're not looking for full auto, why not a mini-14?

I dig my Varminter ($850), but want an L1 ( fn-fal) in .308 for , um, vehiclular duty. Think I might settle for an NRA Garand.

Gene .... GMTA !! Fn-fal with a 12power & Bi-pod ... kind of like AT&T ...you know that saying REACH out an touch someone :)

but please explain Vehicular duty .... you using A.P. on engine blocks ? :thumbsup:

I bought a Chinese AK-47 and within a week sold it for anything I could get. That thing was a POS, i am a good shot so it wasn't me.
When I was at the range after I bought the AK, I also had my Ruger Mini 14
.223 with me, and hit the sweetshot everytime.
Very aggravating when you hear how good they (AK's) can be.
Basically, it's the luck of the draw.
Mine was a crappy AK but there might be good ones out there.
Me? I stick with my mini 14, shes great!
Me and some buddies had a "Master Blaster" on Memorial Day at Finger lake State Park range in Columbia, we all bring eveything you own and lots of ammo, everyone just takes turns shooting! Fell in love with a 9mm auto rifle, much easier to carry on matches then my heavy .223!
Also had some great exploding targets that brought out the local cops to see what we were doing.:D

It was an assident officer!!:yes:
rachael anne

what are exploding targets?

what are exploding targets?

I'm guessing she's talking about Tannerite (http://www.tannerite.com/). Has been on my wishlist for quite a while. :)