Everything crappy about the: AK-47/74

[Doc Safari]

Lack.of.a.bolt.hold.open.on.the.last.round


This isn't much of a problem when it's set on full auto in a battle where ten thousand other guys are charging the enemy, but when you're a civilian faced with multiple assailants all by your lonesome in the middle of nowhere you just can't accept the rifle going "click" instead of "bang."

No, don't ask me how I know.

[JoshNC]

Lack.of.a.bolt.hold.open.on.the.last.round


This isn't much of a problem when it's set on full auto in a battle where ten thousand other guys are charging the enemy, but when you're a civilian faced with multiple assailants all by your lonesome in the middle of nowhere you just can't accept the rifle going "click" instead of "bang."

No, don't ask me how I know.

Ah yes, good point. I overlooked that.

[Firefly]

Every one has sharp edges.

A 55x anything will spoil you.

[Mr. Goodtimes]

My biggest gripe about it is that it's a crude weapon, everything about it is crude and rudimentary. It's epitomizes "good enough." Everything about the rifle is "good enough." Because R was intended for an army full of conscripts. The rifle works and works pretty well, and it's cheap and disposable, just like Russian soldiers.


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[Doc Safari]

I'll add:

I used to bitch about the M4 having to have parts replacement at a perceived higher frequency than the AK.

But at least most parts that break on an M4 are user-replaceable.

I had a friend who broke the ejector off his milled receiver. IIRC he had to search high and low to find someone competent to weld a new ejector in. An M4 ejector takes a few minutes to replace.

That just made me shudder. I also read about how a broken bolt is replaced at the factory. I don't know if this is actually true or not, but it stands to reason: each worker has a bucket of bolts next to him and he goes through the bucket until he finds one with acceptable headspace.
(Since the barrel is pinned, I can't imagine adjusting the barrel fit to the bolt).

Can you imagine a civilian user like you or me buying a bucket full of bolts to repair one rifle?

[Firefly]

It's bleeding edge for late 40s Soviet Technology. It was also plagiarized from Remington Model 8s and Garands in a lot of ways.

[Big Donger]

4. While true, is pretty funny considering how much they have increased over the years (especially atm). For now we have AKs in the 2k+ price range.

[JoshNC]

A SWISS 55x anything will spoil you.

Fixed it for you.

Yeah, other than a Vector built Polish underfolder that I bought in '03, all of my AKs are Swiss and one Belgian. I am an admitted fan of the 55x and honestly believe that it addresses just about all the AKs shortcomings. It's not perfect though, and I'd love to see a 551 and 553 based iteration of the KAC SLICK in an aluminum chassis.

[Doc Safari]

I have to add that Valmets and Galils are the exception to the quality control gripes.

Wish I still had my Galil.

[Kyohte]

In no particular order:

1. The 7.62x39 cartridge. When the Soviets first developed it, the U.S. classified the AK47 as a submachine gun. Based on the trajectory of the 7.62x39, it's not that far off mark. The 5.45 is much better, but the last estimate put 1 AK74 for every 20 AKMs.

2. The myth of reliability and robustness. The first AK course I took, the instructors AKM would not run. My opinion of their reliability has only gone down from there.

3. Cost. "Quality" AK rifles have almost become boutique items like FALs, G3s, and (older) M14-clones. While 1 in 5 rifles with canted sights at the $500 price point might be acceptable, it simply isn't at the $900+ price point.

4. Accessories. There are good work arounds for most of the crummy ergonomics of the AK. Ergonomically my 5.45 Saiga is almost the same as an M4. Of course it has an M4 type stock, Kreb's safety, magpul grip, Magpul Zhukov handguards, and an Aimpoint. My complaint here is all of the crap accessories. It's hard enough locally finding 74 magazines that aren't Tapco. If I do find a store that carries non-Crapco magazines, they're Pro-Mag!

5. Weight. No matter how you do it, the AK is heavier than anything else in its class. Apparently, the AK market has seen the light with the VEPR. Nothing like an even HEAVIER intermediate caliber carbine to put all those AR fan boys in their place.

6. Ammo. More specifically, bullet design. There really isn't a "good" bullet for the AKM. The best one can hope for seems to be Hornady (expensive) or soft point (unreliable). 5.45 fares a little better. Most 5.45 surplus (and even commercial) performs better than cheap AR ammo, but modern AR bullets have a significant advantage.

7. Its fan boys. You know the ones. "My Rangersealdeltacrane buddy's M4 jammed up so bad in the sandbox pixiedust that he carried a captured AK47".

All that being said, I own and shoot more AK-pattern rifles than I do ARs because I find them more fun.