ar or ak?

[gunman41mag]

I have both, but if limited to one i'll take the AR-15, cause there is more options & you can convert the AR-15 to shoot different calibers

 

[dom1104]

when do you wanna test my AK skills? I'll bite
Ill bring a couple AR's too and we can test those too.
If your AK isnt doing well on the accuracy then its either the operator, or the AK is a POS because it was built wrong by the importer like century. You get an AK that is the way it was meant to be and I will run it to 300 yards against an AR. If you wanna shoot farther than that then obviously the AR will dominate and destroy. But the AK wasnt designed for that long of a distance shooting. it serves its designed purpose well. no sissy bench shooting allowed either.

do I think im the best there is? no, but I am sure I can do the AK justice and surprise you. Dont get me wrong, I love the AR too, but i just cant stand misconceptions about the AK. A lot of which are from people who have zero first hand knowledge of what they are saying. they are just echos of a bad opinion of many moons ago.

Seriously, what is up with the whole "AK's" are not accurate crap. Yes, the AR is a more accurate platform overall. However, a good AK will be plenty enough accurate to get the job done. I enjoy shooting my AK, more than I do an AR. That's me though, everyone is different.

Ok first off, I agree with both of you in theory. Yes the AK is more than capable, and all the "its not accurate" stuff is crap.

HOWEVER.

Lets say I was to bring a new shooter into the fold, not the OP, lets say... my brother in law.

Whats he going to do with his newfound gun?

A. Shoot pop cans. <any gun can do this>
B. The end of the world will come, where you have no time to clean your gun and are living off the dead bodies of communist invaders. <Ok, the AK clearly wins here, but its not too likely.
C. He will go to Appleseed events, shoot High Power, IDPA DMG, USPSA, 3 gun, or toss a scope on there and go coyote hunting.

Now which of these three do you think is most likely?

And of the most likely scenarios, which gun would most reflect the shooting skill of the operator?

Dont get me wrong, I love AKs.

Do I want to spend 2 full days, prone, shooting an AK at a Appleseed event?

Nope. And frankly, neither do you. If you goal is to LEARN MARKSMANSHIP which is what the new shooters goal should be.

The new shooter should learn to love SHOOTING, not the gun.

Gun love will come later. And the gun that the new shooter should learn to shoot is the one that is EASIEST to shoot well.

And frankly, AK shooters are not tearing up the 3 gun world, and JP doesnt make "Race AKs".



So. Hopefully that will quiet the AK loving horde, which ... I am a member.

However I do not recommend it for a first gun.

We are civilians, in peacetime. Our requirements are different. We play GAMES with our rifles, and anything different is simply dreaming or preparation.

Stopping power means nothing on paper.


So I repeat myself, if you like to hold your gun, blow up pop cans, and dream about SHTF where you run around with a rifle and dont need to hold down a day job, the AK is fantastic.
If you plan on actually DOING SOMETHING with the gun, buy a gun that lends itself to competition, which is in fact where the rubber meets the "civilian" road.

Anything else, is just talk.

 

[mammynun]

My Uncle Sammy issued me an M-16 at Ft Benning, and again at Ft Bragg. He let me carry it everywhere. It was (and is) a fine weapon. It's tough enough to smack a DZ at approximately 20'/sec. I like them.

Now I'm old, fat, and lazy. I have an AR. I also have an AK. I'm a lot more proficient with the AR (reloading, clearing malf, accuracy, etc) as a result of years of training with a similar rifle (M-16). My Uncle only let me play with an AK a few times... NTC and JRTC, IIRC.

I own a Draco (7.62x39) and an AK-74 (sic) now, and I'm really starting to enjoy them. I'll leave ballistics out of the discussion as any of them will ruin your day.

Here's my take:

AK's shoot cheaper ammo and are easier to clean (yes, I clean my AK's).
AR's are more accurate. For me, they're more accurate at ALL distances but the point at which that actually begins to matter is is probably more dependent on the shooter than the platform. AR's have better "out of the box" iron sights than AK's. AR's have LaRue. AK's have Ultimak.

If I could only have one rifle, I'd go with an AR. But that's ONLY because of MY background/training. If I were starting from a blank slate (with zero experience with either platform), I'd choose the AK.

 

[CVMA544]

Either or, what ever you pick. Go out and shoot, get proficient with it, learn and know your abilities and the abilities of the weapon platform you choose.

Shoot both if you can, whatever feels right, get it and learn it and enjoy shooting with friends.

As for a SHTF situation, a good marksman with a 10/22 can cause alot of havouc and deter even the most hardcore Rimbo's out there.

Once the rounds are incoming, reality sets in and everything becomes clear and changes drastically.

 

[Zoub]

The more you can use the gun, the better off you will be when you really need to use it.

If you hunt at all, maybe one gun has more potential field use for you then the other. I hunt with both the AR and AK platforms but the AK is .308. Using them for more than punching paper and carrying them farther than the truck tailgate to the shooting bench will do you wonders.

If it is a non-issue for now, both have potential field applications later. Women prefer AR's because they are sexy! For me, my Daughter and GF love shooting the AR's so it was easy to get them to want their own as well. That was a good thing for my needs and family.

 

[redpitbull44]

Why not both?
Why not a VZ58?
You will spend less on a VZ58 and all the upgrades than you will on a stock AR, and they are better than the AK.
AK's and AR's are NOT the beat all end all of battle rifles. They are just the two most common offerings. Personally, I don't care much for either.
Just a thought.

 

[mammynun]

Why not a VZ58?

I've considered a VZ58 since I seem to leave my ComBloc rifles pretty much stock. That said, mag prices and the lack of an Ultimak have always led (pun? mis-spelling? you decide.) me back to AK's. If I knew that there was no possibility that I would want to put a RDS on a VZ, I'd overlook the cost of their mags. I'm just not that sure.....

 

[E5RANGER375]

Ok first off, I agree with both of you in theory. Yes the AK is more than capable, and all the "its not accurate" stuff is crap.

HOWEVER.

Lets say I was to bring a new shooter into the fold, not the OP, lets say... my brother in law.

Whats he going to do with his newfound gun?

A. Shoot pop cans. <any gun can do this>
B. The end of the world will come, where you have no time to clean your gun and are living off the dead bodies of communist invaders. <Ok, the AK clearly wins here, but its not too likely.
C. He will go to Appleseed events, shoot High Power, IDPA DMG, USPSA, 3 gun, or toss a scope on there and go coyote hunting.

Now which of these three do you think is most likely?

And of the most likely scenarios, which gun would most reflect the shooting skill of the operator?

Dont get me wrong, I love AKs.

Do I want to spend 2 full days, prone, shooting an AK at a Appleseed event?

Nope. And frankly, neither do you. If you goal is to LEARN MARKSMANSHIP which is what the new shooters goal should be.

The new shooter should learn to love SHOOTING, not the gun.

Gun love will come later. And the gun that the new shooter should learn to shoot is the one that is EASIEST to shoot well.

And frankly, AK shooters are not tearing up the 3 gun world, and JP doesnt make "Race AKs".



So. Hopefully that will quiet the AK loving horde, which ... I am a member.

However I do not recommend it for a first gun.

We are civilians, in peacetime. Our requirements are different. We play GAMES with our rifles, and anything different is simply dreaming or preparation.

Stopping power means nothing on paper.


So I repeat myself, if you like to hold your gun, blow up pop cans, and dream about SHTF where you run around with a rifle and dont need to hold down a day job, the AK is fantastic.
If you plan on actually DOING SOMETHING with the gun, buy a gun that lends itself to competition, which is in fact where the rubber meets the "civilian" road.

Anything else, is just talk.

good points