ak 47 or 74

[MilitaryArms]

W I N D E X has worked for me, for over 26 years

That's great, but save yourself some money and use water. Ammonia doesn't do anything for you, you're paying a couple bucks for bad smelling blue water.

 

[roscott]

W I N D E X

Why does everybody S P A C E A B U S E when they type W I N D E X?

 

[jlm262]

thanks for the input and i heard that a lot of peolpe have trouble with Century i heard bulgarian makes a really nice 74 and im pretty never in the gun world, plus im a girl so that being said i dont want a big kick, i liked the smooth gentle feel of the 74 but i cant make up my mind!

 

[ftbstrd]

47 or 74???

I Have 4 of the AK74s And 1 Ak47. I prefer the 74 for the recoil and the accuracy and overall they seem nicer and my 3 Bulgarian rifles are finer than any of the 12 47's I have owned. I have a 9yr old son and he has a WASR 2 ak74 and he has no trouble shooting it and is scared to death of the 47. There are several companies that build and or sell the 74s with very high quality and not just Centurys builds. A couple are{ Red Star Arms Inc. and Atlantic firearms - AR15 & AK47 rifles - Olympic arms at wholesale } They sell very nice guns! As far as the corrosive ammo goes, You have to clean after shooting with hot water as soon as your done and then clean as normally would. Wolf and Tula ammo are not corrosive and is readily available and mags are easy to find and are reasonable too.

thanks for the input and i heard that a lot of peolpe have trouble with Century i heard bulgarian makes a really nice 74 and im pretty never in the gun world, plus im a girl so that being said i dont want a big kick, i liked the smooth gentle feel of the 74 but i cant make up my mind!

 

[southpaw.nc]

AK-74, don't let the oddball ammo scare you.

When you couldn't find 7.62x39 anywhere unless it was >$400/1000, 5.45x39 was still <=$150 a can of 1080.

 

[Psode27]

I've always heard "non corrosive" ammo is really only "less" corrosive ammo. Treat it all te same and you will be fine. Opt for a chrome bore if you can, some people have poor opinions of the USA made 74 barrels that were coming out of century. Weather is just Internet bench racing or not, can't go wrong with chrome! I say buy both!

 

[dom1104]

Humm. That is still pretty cheap. Just sayin.

12 cents a round is definatly cheap.

 

[tyler34]

21st century has a bunch of waffen works 74's in and coming in stock.

 

[windellmc]

If you have the money go to Aim and buy an SGL31. There is a coupon code posted in the industry section on one of the big AR15 forums that will bring the price down to $780 shipped to your FFL. They also have the SGL-21 (7.62x39) version for $40 or $50 cheaper.

If you do not plan to use the surplus ammo I think the 7.62 and 5.45 ammo costs about the same. You can sometimes find 7.62x39 at Walmart and Gander Mountain. I have never seen 5.45 at either. Just about all gun stores will also stock 7.62 but few have 5.45. Having said that just order a crate of 2160 rounds of surplus from Aim and shoot away.

There are some of the Waffen works AK-74s floating around and they are in the $600-700 range, but they do not use an eastern bloc barrel like the SGL series does. I would spend the extra $100 and get the known good russian barrel.

 

[INyooper]

Love my SGL21-66!

Reasons I went with 7.62 (in no particular order)

• I love the sound of the round (okay, going for the rhyme on that one )
• punches holes through lots of things; I like the ballistics, in spite of not being a tack driver ...that's okay, I'm not driving tacks anyway.
• historical aspects of the rifle
• I don't consider the amount of recoil an issue; actually, kinda like it.
• Its shape and form is more aesthetically pleasing than the 74 (remember, this is my rifle and reasons, not yours ...it's okay if you don't like it), largely due to the increased curve of the magazine (due to the shape of the cartridge, of course)
• Ammo costs aren't really a factor. Though there is a cost difference, I don't count pennies when I'm firing rounds down range ...and I NEVER wish I would have purchased a less expensive round. That's like someone driving a Mustang (or your favorite car of choice) and every time it's being driven, they wish the would have bought a used Geo or something. ...that wouldn't make sense either.
• It's black ...and so are my Glocks! Guns should be black, unless you're a cowboy who wears a mask and rides a horse named Silver, then you can have a silver gun (and bullet too) to go along with the horse.

Of course, you can get either ...and be happy with either as well. Heck, some of my best friends have AR's!

 

[Tombs]

Arsenal makes the best non-custom AKs. They cost quite a bit more than a Century but they're much better made and the SGL are real Russian made rifles (with the necessary US parts count).

The whole "arsenal makes X" is starting to get annoying. Especially since they started selling saiga 12s that aren't even converted.

Arsenal does just like most people who buy a saiga do, they convert it, refinish it, etc. It's an izhmash rifle, and more specifically it's just a relabeled converted saiga. They are the more economical option for people who won't work on their own guns though, as their entry models are roughly equal to the cost of a saiga+conversion parts.

If you have hands, tools, and a small amount of time, get a saiga. You'll know the gun inside and out after you do a conversion.


If you go that route you can convert a 308win saiga. Mine is a blast. AK47 platform in 308win, what's not to love.

 

[Clay]

your thinking of K-var. Arsenal is a manufacture, and is based in Bulgaria. K-var is a distributor of some Arsenal equipment, and some Saiga/Izhmash equipment as well.

Arsenal does import some Izhmash rifles (ie SGL rifles), but they dont "convert" anything. Those rifles come in country as semi auto AKs and arsenal makes the 922r compliant. The rifles do NOT start out as a bare bones saiga with the funky trigger setup, extra holes, and neutered parts.

so it is VERY different from what people do to a saiga.

The whole "arsenal makes X" is starting to get annoying. Especially since they started selling saiga 12s that aren't even converted.

Arsenal does just like most people who buy a saiga do, they convert it, refinish it, etc. It's an izhmash rifle, and more specifically it's just a relabeled converted saiga. They are the more economical option for people who won't work on their own guns though, as their entry models are roughly equal to the cost of a saiga+conversion parts.

 

[MilitaryArms]

Thank you Clay, you beat me to a response.

Also, if you want a side folder like the SGL-31 94 you'll be hard pressed to do that yourself unless you have the necessary jigs and tools... Not to mention experience.

 

[Tombs]

Thank you Clay, you beat me to a response.

Also, if you want a side folder like the SGL-31 94 you'll be hard pressed to do that yourself unless you have the necessary jigs and tools... Not to mention experience.

It's mostly expense and patience.

Trying to get a SVD style side folder w/trunnion in the US is very very hard.

If you can do that, it's likely installing it won't be much trouble for you.


Also I could swear I saw saiga marked on the side of almost all of the SGL rifles.

 

[MilitaryArms]

Tombs, I have no idea what you're talking about regarding a "SVD" style side folder. The SVD is not an AK, it's a totally different rifle.

Here's the stocks I'm talking about: Russian Side Folding AK-74 Stock. Gunsmithing Required : Parts4ak47.com:

It's not a drop in part and it's not something a novice could easily install.

 

[Tombs]

Ah right the triangle stock. Yea, the front lock I would have no idea of how to install without some information and templates.

I was thinking you meant this:

 

[windellmc]

The SGL might start out as some sort of Saiga. They do not necessarily start out like the Saigas you can buy though. They could be legally imported with one of the following: the pistol grip, bayonet lugs, or muzzle brake. I suspect they come into the country with the pistol grip in or with the bayonet lugs and a nut welded onto the FSB. Then the conversion gets finished at Arsenal in Nevada. Given that you get a US made muzzle brake with an SGL and Kvar seems to have a lot of Bulgarian handguards for sale, I have some thoughts on how those rifles look when they come into the country.

Plus if you buy a regular Saiga you get a little Russian catalog that shows some interesting variants that must be available outside the US, and a couple of them look a lot like an SGL rifle missing a couple of parts.