Your thoughts on a 5.56mm AK.....

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  • edsinger

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    Apr 14, 2009
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    Your thoughts on a 5.56mm AK..... Well Maybe not now.....

    Well I see that Rural King has a Ruger AR556 for $500. I have wanted one for a while but before I saw that I was thinking it would be nice to have an AK. The problem is I do not want another caliber of ammunition to buy. I have been looking at a Century Arms one, and I have read some nice things but I also remember some bad things I have read over the years.

    I started down this road knowing that it would cost me around $700 or so to get one but there are so many. I could settle for the Ruger as I love my SR556's but I want something new and the AK's reliability is legendary.

    I have started to do so research and such but I thought I know where I will go for some advice. (HERE)

    I have not been around for a while, simply as I have had many things going on lately and firearms have not been at the top of the agenda as of late.


    If you have some thoughts or suggestions or links to good information, please enlighten me INGO.


    Cheers:ingo:
     
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    indykid

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    The problem with the 5.56x45 AK variants is that there were no common mags. What works in one might not even fit in another. Shame because 7.62x39 mags were made to a single standard country to country. Shame to because 5.56x45/.223 AKs are some really sweet shooters.

    That said, my Norinco 84S-1 is my most accurate AK, and a Romanian SAR-3 which initially had a bad reputation (Century 922(r)'d the hammer and didn't get the profile correct on some to squarely hit the short SAR-3 bolt) turned out to be one of my most reliable AKs. I have fired nearly 10,000 rounds through it and other than bad ammo has not malfunctioned once attributable to the rifle.
     

    Woobie

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    AR is a good rifle. No reason to get an AK in a caliber you can get an AR in. I tend to stick with cartridges that the rifles were designed to shoot. I don't like 5.45 or 7.62x39 ARs either.
     

    warriorbob

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    They say you take a slight hit in reliability due to the 223/556 being a straight walled cartridge and the ak being designed for tapered cartridges but that said my saiga 556 was great and I'd recommend trying to find a saiga 223 on the used market. If you find one you might have to install a bullet guide but it's really easy to do and cost about $15. After that you can use Bulgarian circle 10 556 mags. They are a little pricey but not much more than what you'd pay for 545 mags.
     

    indyguy333

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    I'd get it in 5.45x39 -- 5.45 was specifically designed for the AK-74 and the tapered case makes it more reliable than a 5.56 AK. SGAmmo just got some Golden Tiger 5.45 in stock, which is very good non-corrosive ammo. But I hear you on not wanting to stock new ammo, but just know it's out there and relatively cheap.

    Plus, cheap 5.45 mags are inbound (Izhmash true blacks were once impossible to find, can now be had for $30). Quad-stack (60 round) magazines will also be imported in the near future.

    Really no benefit to getting an AK in 5.56 -- get an AR if you want to shoot 5.56. Just my $0.02. I love my Saiga 5.45, and Arsenal makes a good one too (SLR104). Accurate, very little recoil impulse, reliable, and just something about 5.45 makes it "cool" to me :)

    Now, if Poilsh Beryls were being imported, it'd be a different story, as they were built from the ground up to shoot 5.56 NATO. Probably THE most accurate AKs available.
     
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    edsinger

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    hog slayer

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    What makes the AK reliable generally revolves around the ammo. Take that away and you will lose that reliability. This article does a better job than I'll do.

    6 Reasons the AK-47 Is the Most Reliable Rifle in the World: A Guide to Kalashnikov's Magic for Aspiring Gun Designers, Part II - The Firearm BlogThe Firearm Blog

    Ammoseek.com listed (just took the cheapest per round regardless of all other factors):
    .223 = 20.5 cents per round
    5.56 = 29 cents per round
    7.62x39 = 20 cents per round

    biggest difference there is you'll be picky about what you feed the little 22. You won't care so much about the standard AK.
     

    Yamadog35

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    I shouldn't even bring up these because they're not being imported any more, but I've seen them on Gunbroker. PAP M90np which is 556 and has a magwell that allows you to use standard AR mags. I know someone who has this this rifle and he loves it.
    Pics Here
    I have the pistol version (M85np) which is now an SBR. I've shot the crap out of it with many different types of ammo and many different types of mags and it's been 100% reliable.
    Mine started out as this:
    Base%20M85_zpsrxmtlf4k.jpg


    and ended up as this:
    M85_Extended_Right_1_zps7ymlp8za.jpg
     

    kscessnadriver

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    If you search around enough, you can find a 223 Saiga for a reasonable price online. I've personally got 2 (one 16 inch and one 20.5 inch barrel) of them, but my biggest complaint has already been stated, magazine availability. Circle 10 5.56 magazines work great, but they are $$$. For plinking and range use, I've got a stack of Tapco Galil 223 mags, they work decently enough, as I've never had a magazine related issue with the firearms.
     

    Vigilant

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    Ok, there is only ONE 5.56 AK that works. That was a period. It's called a Galil, and they are stupid expensive, and you might as well sell your first born for magazines. Allow all the others on this forum to change your mind, but if you do your own research, you'll find that an original Galil is the only 5.56 AK worth having.
     

    Bfish

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    I agree with some of the guys here saying to just go 5.45, you get the benefits of 5.56. I do understand that's not an option for you if you want to keep the calibers you are buying to a minimum, but I wouldn't worry about it with this really.

    I don't own a 5.56 AK, and can't speak a ton of them, but I know that the MOD outfitter guys build them for friends and themselves. If I'm not mistaken I feel as if I remember Gary Hughes maybe saying that he prefers a 5.56 AK but I could be mistaken. I know for a fact however that guys do make them run and make them run well. They run them suppressed, and full auto both. If you want one, pick one up... Just get a quality one.
     

    edsinger

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    Ok, there is only ONE 5.56 AK that works. That was a period. It's called a Galil, and they are stupid expensive, and you might as well sell your first born for magazines. Allow all the others on this forum to change your mind, but if you do your own research, you'll find that an original Galil is the only 5.56 AK worth having.

    Yeah I have looked at those, $2k.

    Was my favorite gun on Zombies.....till the dingo.
     

    snorko

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    I have a saiga that was converted with a riveted bullet guide but no other mag well modification,; it uses cheap tapco galil mags and is reliable. If you want a good quality factory 5.56 AK, I would go with an slt106. Yes mags are pricey but it sounds like it will be more of a range gun for you. For cheap mags the yugo guns with the mag well conversion work well.
     

    Clay

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    IMO if you want a 5.56 AK, then buy one from a country that actually fields (or has anyway) 5.56 AKs. Look at it this way I would go with an Arsenal SLR106. They are, in my experience, just as reliable as any other AK.

    Other options might be the Vepr or a Yugo M85 or the M90. The yugo takes either its own mags, OR if you get the newer US versions they take AR mags...... but I would still go with the Arsenal.

    Quad-stack (60 round) magazines will also be imported in the near future.

    boy this would be awesome!! I hope it happens but I don't see it being much more than a pipe dream. The quad stack ak74 mags were never fielded, at least not in any real quantity and were really nothing more than a prototype that saw limited use, but it would still be awesome!!
     

    ACC

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    I have played this game over the past couple years. AR's in 7.62x39, AK's in 5.56. What I have learned is to stick to the calibers that the guns were originally designed for.

    AR= 5.56
    AK= 7.62
     
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