This is the AK-47 assault rifle, the preferred weapon of your enemy, and it makes a very distinctive sound when fired at you, so remember it.
T Bolt on familiarity with the AK. I bought an AK once. I hated it.
Yes, they are reliable. And they are tough. But I hated the trigger and it had the ergonomics of a baseball bat.
January 3rd, 2017 at 2:07 am
I’ve fired the Soviet Military vaient when I was in the Guard and I wasn’t impressed either. The accuracy sucketh most heinously.
I aint greatly impressed with the M16 either but you can actually hit what you’re shooting at with those.
January 3rd, 2017 at 3:55 am
Don’t under-rate the AK47.
I initiated an ambush against a platoon of VC once. We were in a swale (hole in the ground) and weren’t expecting to see any action. We were oriented at a foot-trail intersection.
The VC fooled us .. they short-cut across the junction, and came in behind us.
We had set up a couple of claymore mines behind our ambush position, purely as a Pro Forma precaution against what they actually did.
We blew the Claymores, and then everyone in the squad changed their direction from North to South to engage the enemy with machine gun (M60) and M16 fire.
When the smoke cleared, and we had swept the kill-zone, we got back to our hidey-hole and called in tanks to help secure the area.
One of the guys had set his helmet on the back side of the hole we were hiding in. He hadn’t had time to retrieve it before we initiated the ambush. The light of the tanks revealed three close-grouped holes which had obviously come from an AK on full auto.
We were glad our guy’s head wasn’t in the helmet at the time, and more amazed that someone on the Bad Guy side had the presence of mind to return fire.
Say what you will about the AK47 … that was a very tight group from 10 yards for someone who was just blindly ripping off a burst under fire.
January 3rd, 2017 at 10:33 am
“…the ergonomics of a baseball bat.”
That’s because an AK can actually be used as a baseball bat.
Got one. Like it. But then again I like all but one of my guns, so I’m an easy date at the gun range.
January 3rd, 2017 at 10:50 am
I have a Century Arms under-folder AK in 7.62 and I’d have to agree with your assessment of trigger pull and ergonomics. Though reliable and fun, not the most comfortable to shoot. Clanky…like holding a bag of pots and pans. And I think the trigger is made with 60 grit sand-paper.
However, I also have Norinco AK in 5.56. That thing is a dream to shoot. Buttery-smooth trigger, accurate as all hell, and fairly comfortable ergonomics and beautiful original wood furniture.
If the only FORD I’d ever driven was a Pinto, I’d probably have a much more negative opinion of FORD, had I not also driven a SVT Cobra. There are some really nice AKs out there.
January 3rd, 2017 at 11:37 am
Yeah, but can you put a round in a flea’s ass at 200 meters?
January 3rd, 2017 at 11:57 am
@Ravenwood
With about the same consistency as I can with my iron- sighted AR, which is not often. 😉
Now, if you’re talking about grouping within a more realistic/practical size of pie plate at 200 meters with iron sights and no bench vise, the difference is negligible.
January 3rd, 2017 at 12:47 pm
Yes, Gunny!
January 3rd, 2017 at 5:05 pm
@Phelps, It sounds like we sure as hell chewed some of the same dirt…
January 5th, 2017 at 9:27 pm
Many AK configurations have what some aficionados deem a design fault: the safety/selector switch makes a significant ‘THWACK’ when moved from/to safe/fire. Basically, it hits against the frame. On a stealth mission, that could make the difference between success and failure. No such problem with AR, HK, and 90% of other rifles.
I’m not speaking against the AK; as Jerry’s experience demonstrates, it fires a larger and more deadly / penetrating round than the AR, and the AK has been tested on more battlefields than the AR.
I’m ‘tolerant’. Why can’t we have both?