Maximizing The Kalashnikov

[Gabe Suarez]

I am a firm believer tat every American should at least know how to operate a Kalashnikov Rifle. Why?

Because there have been more AKs made than virtually any other rifle in history. The likelihood of coming accross one when overseas is high.

Next, because most of our enemies are equipped with it...as well as most of our friends.

Finally, because the skin of commie, liberal, pieces of sh (oops I almost vilated my own rules) crawls when they see one of these.

I think you should keep your AK as close as possible to stock to avoid the "Excalibur syndrome". However, there are things you can do to enhace its utility without changing the design.

1). Remove the sharp edges at the safety lever, the ejection port cover, and any other place you find them. This is easily done with a dremel, or a file. Don't worry about the finish. Its an AK, not an heirloom. A little paint and you are good to go.

2). Loosen the safety selector lever slightly by pulling it back and away from the receiver. Go easy, but this should decrease the tension to activate it considerably. be sure it is still under tension, but just not as bad.

3). Keep a short stock on it. Unless you are built like a tactical behemoth, you will benefit from a shorter stock than from a longer one.

4). Remove any sharp edges on the magazine release lever and at or around the magazine well. Again...a little spray of black paint.

5). Add a sling to the rifle. Keep the sling simple. What slings do I use? Currently, I am using MilSurp Soviet rifle slings. There are better ones, but avoid the ones that come with a 30 minute DVD on how to use a sling. SIMPLE IS BETTER.

6). Magazines. Do I need to say this? Make sure all your magazines fit your rifle. All of them are good. I'd avoid some of the US made magazine as they often do not fit the rifles.

I like the Bulgarian Polymer Waffle Types. Just as good are steel magazines from East germany, Bulgaria, Russia, Poland, Czechoslovakia, and even China. Want to know how to lose a great deal of money? Build a business that repairs AK magazines. You'll be lonelier than the Maytag guy!.

Get at least 5 magazines. More is better here. I have close to 30 for my various AKs.

Now grab your warthog of a rifle with your heavy steel magazines and go shoot it. Once you get used to working an AK, you'll spend less time with other rifles...its kind of like the Glock.

[Guantes]

That pretty much says it all.
Chevies run great, don't try to turn them into Caddies.

[TEAK]

gabe,
what is your view on changing the sights? at a recent class i found that with semi poor lighting and a little rain on my glasses it was almost impossible to pick up the sights on my ak. i dont want to go with some ueber tactical replacement that is a far from stock as you can get but i would like something a little better, what would you reccomend?

[AKGunny]

gabe,
what is your view on changing the sights? at a recent class i found that with semi poor lighting and a little rain on my glasses it was almost impossible to pick up the sights on my ak. i dont want to go with some ueber tactical replacement that is a far from stock as you can get but i would like something a little better, what would you reccomend?

TEAK,
Gabe may have some other ideas but here is what I found a couple months ago. I plan to install a set on my "go-to" AK.

http://www.polytechparts.com/ (Scoll towards the bottom of the page and find the tritium sights.

Cheers1

[MTS]

gabe,
what is your view on changing the sights? at a recent class i found that with semi poor lighting and a little rain on my glasses it was almost impossible to pick up the sights on my ak. i dont want to go with some ueber tactical replacement that is a far from stock as you can get but i would like something a little better, what would you reccomend?

Does your AK have the full metal circle around the front sight or an open top?

If it has the full metal circle some have found by opening up the top of the circle it allows the front sight to be more visible.

[Teutonic]

Nice post Gabe!

What exactly are you doing to the magazine release lever?

Thanks.

[mlhoward]

Can you post some close-up pics of the dremel work you did?

[karl johnson]

I have never been able to get confident and good with the open sights on the AK. I grew up with aperture sights on match rifles, then on AR and MP duty guns, and find the AK sights much harder to use under any but the best lighting conditions. I can use them adequately in a pinch, but don't feel as warm and fuzzy about them as I would prefer.

Every AK I've owned or used operationally has had an Ultimak and Aimpoint. This doesn't add enough weight or bulk to matter, and is as reliable a setup as the AK itself. With the incredible battery life of the M2 and especially the M3 series, and its insensitivity to the temperature of the gas tube, it's a solid setup.

Other than that and a dust cover that has "Allah hates you!" engraved on it in arabic I have no modifications beyond a little dehorning. I've considered one of the notched safety selectors for range day convenience as they like to see the action fully open, but it hasn't been a priority yet.

[Gabe Suarez]

Dehorning is basically all you need to do on the various parts. Nothing else. Remove the sharp edges.

[Teutonic]

Dehorning is basically all you need to do on the various parts. Nothing else. Remove the sharp edges.

Thanks for the clarification.