ak 74

[mrmojo32]

Does anyone have any comments on the AK 74? I have been hearing a lot about the inexpensive round and its reliability.

 

[SpeedRacer]

Great shooters, great round, cheap ammo, expensive mags.

 

[03protege]

Biggest plus is the ammo cost, although as time goes on the savings becomes less and less (regarding surplus). Unfortunately the surplus stuff is corrosive so you may choose to go with newly manufactured ammo which IIRC is just about as much as the newly manufactured 7.62x39. So your main advantage of cheap ammo could possibly be a moot point if you are not willing to deal with corrosive ammo or as time goes on and the ammo keeps rising in price. Still a hell of a lot cheaper than .223 though.

Most people I know with the 47 and 74 will say the 74 is a little more accurate. This is basically due to the round and not the gun as I believe there are no mechanical changes apart from a different barrel. bolt face, and a few other little details like feed ramp and magazine dimples.

Shooting one on full auto was a dream though, recoil was so manageable. Quite possibly my dream gun (full auto).

 

[Grendal]

Reliabilty of an ak platform, very good combat accuracy, minimal recoil, reliable and effective ammo (yaws almost immediately on impact), and I could go on. I have owned some for years and I can say it is my favorite style of rifle.

 

[mrmojo32]

Thank you all for the quick responses. So what manufactures are the best and where is a good place to buy one?

 

[03protege]

They also make great jumper-cables.

 

[fng]

AK-74 ammo is cheap, mags somewhat pricey. I have an older Arsenal ak74 and is a very well made rifle that is pretty accurate. It is pretty common to find the 1080 round Russian surplus tins for ~300 bucks or so, which is almost double what it was before this last frenzy.

 

[screamingdemon]

I have an SGL31. Corrosive ammo is to hyped up. It's simple to deal with to the point it's only a problem if your ignorant or lazy. Corrosive ammo stores longer and to get the designed ballistic effects then surplus is the only way to go. Recoil is extremely controllable. The Arsenal 2 stage trigger is rather enjoyable too. I bought mags back when they cheap (less than $15) so that's not a big deal to me. If you have the spare cash to stock pile ammo I'd start doing so. You can never have to much.

 

[dwr461]

The Russian's after seeing the new M16's performance in Vietnam decided to try and duplicate the ballistics of the 5.56 within the framework of their existing AKM platforms. This was done to increase cost effectiveness by not changing the entire weapon system. Thus the 5.45x39mm chamber AK74 was born into the world. Functionally the weapon is almost identical to the AKM that it replaced.

The 7n6 bullet that the Soviets fielded in Afghanistan apparently had a reputation for being effective during that conflict. The bullet was designed as to have a hollow space behind the tip followed by a steel penetrator core. In soft tissues the tip of the bullet by not being reinforced was expected to deform followed by the rearward center gravity causing the bullet to tumble quickly and enhance damage while still on the surface meet international treaties for bullet design. This bullet design when it impacted something hard would have the steel core travel forward and increase the effective penetration of the round. So this round is designed to both penetrate lightly armored targets and have enhanced damage over a FMJ in soft tissue. (This was not a new idea. For more information read about the history of the .303 British bullet design)

The bullet has a good sectional density and ballistic coefficient. It should be more accurate than the 7.62x39mm round.

My real world experience with a Bulgarian AK74 built on a OOW receiver has been very positive. The round is a pleasure to shoot. For me I have not noticed any better accuracy than a standard AKM chambered in 7.62x39mm. But I have never shot either rifle with a emphasis towards measured accuracy at any range past 100m.

Dave

 

[Armed Mage]

I had a Waffen Werks AK-74 for a while. Really fun shooter and the cheap ammo is a big plus, and it was almost as accurate as your average AR.

 

[Kurt D]

I bought in when ammo was very cheap and mags where inexpensive. I've had several of the rifles and currently have a SGL-31 and SAR-2. I'll keep it short - if you like AKs and like to shoot a lot, the `74 is a good choice. Surplus 7n6 is still the cheapest center fire rifle ammo out there. In my experience factory commie guns or at least guns with the original factory barrels handle 5.45 better.

 

[mrmojo32]

Thanks again for all the great information. I think I am sold on the idea of getting one and I have an M1a that never gets shot so I might try to sell it and get into an AK-74.