AK47 question

[Francis]

Was in a pawn shop, here in the greater Memphis area last week. they had some brand new AK47's, for a good price with a layaway program (to hide the purchase from the wife). Not sure of the manufacturer of these AK's. Some AK's are better than others. Looked all of the internet for the answer to the questions:
 "Who makes the best AK47, and which brands of AK47's do you stay away from, and is thier even a bad AK47 made?" Anyone here have any personl experience? Thanks.

[Stan in SC]

They are all good.Some people profess that a milled receiver is better than a stamped one.Some people prefer low cap ones over high cap ones and vice versa.Bottom line is that you will find small differences in AK's but basically they are all good.

Stan

[Mikey]

Francis:  The AK47 is the AK47.  There may be some differences, but very minor.  If you want to make a sporter out of it the milled receivers are supposed to have less 'flex' than the stamped receivers and are better at holding scope zeros. 

If you are looking for a straight out AK47, it doesn't matter much who made it.  My experiences with the AK47 are that it works, and just keeps on workin, and keeps on workin and keeps on workin.  Mikey.

[GRIMJIM]

I've only owned two, a Norinco that I wish I still had. Pre-ban bought it in the eighties for 230 bucks with three 30 round mags, bayonet, sling and tool kit. And the Romanian one I now own. They were both stamped recievers and the only reason I wish I still had the Chinese over the Romanian was it was more of a military copy. No thumbhole, bayonet etc. As far as accuracy the ak is not the way to go for a target rifle, but there aren't many more fun to shoot. One of the ranges I go to has a rapid fire pit, you can throw a bottle of water or stuffed animals or just about anything that won't ricochet in there and just blast away. That's where I have the most fun with my ak and my ar-15.

[Mikey]

Grimjim:  if you don't like the thumbhole stock and (probably) the overweight forward hardguard, replace them with standard AK furniture - it's all interchangeable. 

My Norinco NHM-91 came with that fat thumbhole stock and the tree-trunk for a forward handguard and now wears standard AK furniture.  It handles much easier now and from my perspective is more accurate for my grip and shooting style.  HTH.  Mikey.

[Devy55]

Most Ak's on the market are Romanian WASR AKs.  The SAR-1 is the standard Russian 7.62x39, the SAR-2 is east European 5.54x39, and the SAR-3 is NATO 5.56.

The Romanian AKs are a pretty good buy but the furniture is cheap and the machining isn't a work of art.  I had a SAR-3 and traded it for a SAR-1 because I wanted standard AK parts, and reliability.  I'd say these represent the typical AK found worldwide.

Chinese NORINCO AKs are pretty much in the same category.

Better AKs are produced in Bulgaria, Hungary, and Russia, but you'll pay more.  Plus there are American made AKs available now too, but again you'll pay more.

Basically, the AK is a hard working, reliable weapon regardless of who makes it.  If you stay with the 7.62x39 you'll find plenty of parts to customize, upgrade, or repair your rifle. 

A good web site to get info on the different makes and models of AKs is at:  www.ak-47.us

Whatever you get...enjoy it.