State of the market for 5.45x39 AKs

[Vintovka]

Can some members here in the know provide some fact-based speculation as to whether or not the 5.45x39 AK market will experience a resurgence or has that boat sailed for good? Are there any more rifles coming? Is there more ammunition waiting to be shipped from the former USSR? What's the deal with SLR-105s and SGL-31s? They seem to have fallen off the face of the Earth. I had an SGL-31 for almost 2 years. I so stupidly sold it. The 5.45 bug has bitten me again, but I can't seem to find a fix.

[Bret]

There were really only two major sources, Russia and Bulgaria (three if you count Romania), for 5.45x39 rifles. Bulgaria changed over to the 5.56x45. In the process, they dumped a ton of demilled rifles on the US market. This is where the majority of 5.45x39 rifles come from. When the kit supplies dry up, that should pretty much be it from Bulgaria. Russia still makes 5.45x39 rifles. I bought a Saiga about six months ago and recently bought a Vepr from Centerfire Systems for $500+shipping+transfer. Overall, I wouldn't expect the future supply to be what it has been, but so what? There are enough rifles out there to keep the manufacture of ammo going. If you want one, then buy it. A regular AR74 should be relatively easy to find. If you want a particular Arsenal veriant, then you may have to search and/or pay a premium.

[w3453l]

I have 3 ak's in 5.45 and I have been debating on whether or not I should sell them and switch to the 5.56 ak. My reasoning is that no matter what 5.56 is always going to be standard here in the US. While I don't think that 5.45 is realistically going to disappear anytime soon, it's just not as common as 5.56. If I were to go with the 5.56 I would consider buying a beryl. It's really the only option I have for a 5.56 AK where I live and from what I hear the only real downsides to it are that it is not a "correct" clone if you are a collector. I would have the barrel shortened and safety selector replaced anyway. Sorry for getting a little off track there