Advices on an AK47 purchase, US banned variants.

[HOLLA]

Hey guys i'm from Italy and i'm looking to buy an ak47, we can still get all the chinise models and all the demilitarized varaints from east europe that you guys in US can't get anymore. I'm going to list the ones i can get, can you guys give me advices on what is best and why?

-Yugoslavian Zastava M70B1
-SDM AKS103/AK47
-Norinco T56
-AK VZ58
-Romanian AK47 SAR1
-Polish AK47
-Hungarian AK47
-DDR AK47
-IDF GALIL 7.62
-Russian AKM
-IZHMASH SAIGA M4

 

[ebb]

I am not an AK guy I've owned a few but from what I have heard from friends is the Galil or a Valmet are the best. The friend was issued a Galil at the local Sheriff's office and loved it, the Valmet is even better. After that The Russian AKM and Saiga have always had a stellar reputation.

 

[ebb]

By the way, the Russians have by passed the ban. Kalashnikov has opened a plant in the USA, and you can't ban the import of some thing that is not imported. Ar s are so cheap right now that no one is looking to buy an AK when an AR is 2 to 3 hundred cheaper.

 

[Sniper338]

By the way, the Russians have by passed the ban. Kalashnikov has opened a plant in the USA, and you can't ban the import of some thing that is not imported. Ar s are so cheap right now that no one is looking to buy an AK when an AR is 2 to 3 hundred cheaper.

And way more accurate and functional.

I still have an AK though for fun.

 

[ebb]

Yea Ive always heard about how reliable they are. Ive got a Ford 2910 tractor its way more reliable than my pickup , heck the tires on the tractor lasted 30 years. Guess what I drive to work. By the way I hear that an Arsenal Brand AK is the best there is, Made in the USA.

 

[akajun]

The Saiga's or the Zastava's have the best fit and finish IMHO, but they are all basically the same physically.

 

[Gman]

And way more accurate and functional.

I still have an AK though for fun.

I'll agree with the accuracy statement, but I disagree with the FUNCTIONAL part.

 

[Sniper338]

I'll agree with the accuracy statement, but I disagree with the FUNCTIONAL part.

Ok to diesagree... imo the military would use AK's if they were better functioning. But they dont.. nor does law enforcement.

Big differences in design between the two. They dont compare apples to apples.

 

[Gman]

Bury your AR in sand & tell me it will still function.

 

[Ggmac]

Bury your AR in sand & tell me it will still function.

Function is one thing but if it will not hit what you want it to , it's just a noise maker

 

[Gman]

Function is one thing but if it will not hit what you want it to , it's just a noise maker

I guess that you didn't read my comment above.

 

[Howfar]

Don't forget Arsenal, like their sam7 sf, fit and function.

 

[simo hayha]

http://www.akfiles.com/forums/index.php

 

[Zero333]

The Czech VZ58 is one of best of the bunch but uses it's own magazines and not AK mags. Which is a big downer since AK mags are much cheaper.

 

[nakneker]

Galil.

 

[Mozella]

And way more accurate and functional.

I still have an AK though for fun.

Actually, AR's out of the box are only a little more accurate than an AK, not "way" more. True they can be modified or even highly modified to be quite a bit more accurate but I certainly wouldn't say they're "more functional" if by that you mean you can count them when the chips are down. I own both and when push comes to shove I'd rather have an AK in my hands, at least at close range. For sniping, give me one of my bolt guns.

Plus, if you are interested in killing someone, hitting them with an AK round is a better bet. You hardly ever read about a victim being shot seven or eight times by an AK who survives. Of course nobody wants to take seven or eight rounds from an AR either, but a number of people in the news over the past few years have done just that and lived to tell about it.

When it comes to fun, you're absolutely correct. The AK is indeed fun. Plus there is all that history which goes with an AK, one of the most ubiquitous weapons invented by all of mankind, ranked right behind the rock both in popularity and reliability.

 

[yotehater]

I have 3 ak's and have never had a single malfunction in 20 odd years of shooting them. I sure can't say that about my AR's.

 

[gat]

I own an Arsenal AK it has always functioned perfectlyl. It has a 4 lb tigger from factory and shoots 1"- 1.5' With Wolf ammo at 100yds or at least did when my eyes were good! Perhaps the US did not choose to use it for the same reason we did not fly MIGS. They were the weapons of our enemies. I know a lot of US soldiers who grabbed AK's for use in the sand box. While they were not official weapons issued to the troops their use was overlooked. My friends tell me the Krinkov versions were easy to get in and out of HUMVEES with and accurate enough for the close range work required of them! I think they are a great weapon!

 

[jbhotrod]

Galil simply due to the better sights

 

[Depart123]

On your list, in order of quality highest to lowest, is the Galil, Hungarian, then the Yugo. The only drawback to the Galil is proprietary magazines.