Posted on 06/12/2016 4:51:13 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
U.S. Special Operations Command wants to see if it can slap a "Made in the U.S.A." label on the world's most popular weapon — the Russian-designed AK-47 assault rifle.
In war-torn countries like Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, where the United States has an interest, the iconic AK-47 with its curved ammo magazine is a favorite of insurgents and allies alike because it is inexpensive to own and operate. Compared to U.S. weapons like the M-4 assault rifle, it's also more durable and uses ammunition that's easier to find.
Now, U.S. Special Operations Command is scouting for companies that might have the interest and ability to manufacture the ubiquitous gun and other Soviet-bloc-era weapons here in the United States....
(Excerpt) Read more at tampabay.com ...
I had drinks with one of their sales reps... never heard whether or not the company made it. Guess not.
When Gust Avrakotos and Charlie Wilson were making life hell for the Sovs in the ‘80, we were buying AKs from Egypt, (with Russian proof marks just to break balls) for $26 per rifle... and half that was probably bribes to somebody.
So what is a 5.62x45 bullet. I think you meant 5.56x45. Just checking.
The Polish AK is the best. Why can’t we buy it from them? Who needs the Russians.
Yet they jam far less than the M16s and can operate in an environment where there is a lot of sand.
5.62x45?
LOL!
The company still seems to be staffing up, from what I see on its Facebook page. I hope they reject any résumé that mentions Hesse, Vulcan, Century, etc.
Most people I know like 6mm for varmint hunting. I’m not sure an AR-10 6 mm would do OK at 600 meters.
Pat Cadell is essentially a republican now.
I’ve seen a chinese polytech ak that’s still runs great after 20 years and many rounds. I wish I had one of those.
I remember when someone acquired a bunch of Persian Mausers. There was a write up in one of the gun magazines. They were made in Czechoslovakia and the quality appeared to be better than average.
I would have wanted one of the roughly 24 inch models. In 1977 I ordered a new, unfired model 1909 Argentine Mauser from Walter Craig in Selma, Alabama. It was gorgeous. All numbers matched except for some reason the muzzle cover. It even came with the original test target. Mine had actually been made in 1909. There were a few minor dings from being stored all those years but basically they were still brand new.
At that time the Germans were turning out military rifles which had a better finish than the majority of commercial ones. The only problem was they were chambered in 7.65 Mauser which was a little hard to find.
Sorry senior citizen brain fart.
Love my Saiga. I bought it before the ban and got it for a great price.
Don’t forget the 7.62 X 51 (NATO .308) Saiga, that can be 16 inch barrel, and high capacity mags and pistol grip, otherwise an AK.
NICE little gun.
7.62 x 39 ?
Yes sir! Been collecting the ammo ever since. I’m due for more soon.
Got one also. Some days the AR is my favorite, some days the Saiga. It is a kind of “love the gun you’re with” thing.
However, I must confess, the Marlin 30-30 lever action is probably my all time favorite. Just wish the ammo was 25 cents like the Saiga.
” ... You can easily heat treat cast lead alloy using a normal oven, then add a homemade gas check made from aluminum or copper sheet metal and depending on the care used when making up your own cartridges they are as accurate as copper jacketed bullets. ...”
One cannot but wonder, what alloys (lead, aluminum, copper etc) fireman15 is using. Not to doubt his word, but if his mixes are that good, he had better patent the stuff before someone else steals his ideas.
If my memory is any good, 7.62x39 o43g muzzle velocities run around 2360 ft/sec - still rather too speedy for any lead alloy that touches the bore, heat treated or otherwise.
Might work tolerably well in bolt actions, but such actions have never been of much interest to American civilians who want to buy SKS or Kalashnikov clones. Firing cast bullets of any sort in a gas-operated system risks some pretty nasty fouling - even in the vaunted loose-fitted systems the Red Army loves so much.
The 7.62x39 o43g cartridge was never anything but a wartime expedient, like its immediate predecessor the 7.92x33 Kurz. Loading the Soviet round with cast bullets does have a certain appeal in survival situations; but all of that entails additional expenditure - negating one of the advantages of buying Com Bloc castoffs (i.e. cheap). Most imported 7.62x39 ammunition is Berdan primed anyway, greatly complicating reloading. Yet more expense.
Apparently, you do not do much if any bullet casting. I am not using any secret ingredients. Even normal tire weight lead has enough antimony and tin in it to heat treat effectively using nothing but a common oven and a water bath. I do use a hardness detector to check my results and it is necessary to use a gas check on the end of the bullet. I make my own gas checks. One can easily use these bullets in a 7.62x39 cartridge at standard velocities with no leading problems in the barrels.
There is an optimal hardness for a rifle bullet associated with whatever pressure is developed when firing your cartridges. When hardened correctly and used with the optimal charge for the hardness of the lead, cast bullets engage with the rifling more effectively than copper jacketed bullets. If the cartridges are loaded precisely they are more accurate than factory and especially old surplus. The pressures being developed can be accurately determined by using a decent shooting chronograph. And yes I use these in Kalashnikov type rifles all the time.
If you want an easy to understand explanation of the principles involved matching the hardness of your cast bullet to the pressures developed in your cartridge I would suggest you find a copy of Modern Reloading, second edition by Richard Lee. Tire weight lead bullets dropped into water from the mold are actually harder than optimal for many types of pistol bullets.
As far as the economics involved. It is pretty hard to beat surplus berdan primed 7.62x39 ammo. But hand loads with cast bullets and boxer primers are easier on the rifle and not corrosive. For me it adds another dimension and makes shooting much more fun especially when I am perfecting a new cartridge recipe. There is real satisfaction when everything comes together.
Generally 7.62x39 brass can be used several or more times in a Kalashnikov type before you have to start rejecting them. I do anneal the necks to help keep them from cracking especially when they are being used in Kalashnikov style rifles because a certain percentage get dented when they are ejected.
I stocked up on primers, brass, lead and powder a long time ago. Most of my reloading equipment, brass and primers were purchased from Midway USA and the powder came mostly from Powder Valley and Ballistic Products. Do fishermen ever really recoup the cost of all of their equipment and supplies? Saving money was not my first consideration.
7.62x39mm brass currently costs approximately $.65 a piece new; I used to purchase “once fired” brass for a small fraction of that and still get 6 or more reloads out of it on average. Primers are currently less than $.03 a piece if you buy 5000. 8 lbs of powder, enough to load approximately 2,400 cartridges is around $170, about $.07 per cartridge. The lead and gas check cost less than half a cent per cartridge. So you are looking at $.10 for brass per reload, $.03 for the primer, $.07 for the powder and .005 for the bullet and gas check. That comes to right around $.20.5 per cartridge, so this is approximately the same cost as surplus 7.62x39 purchased in a spam can.
If one doesn’t find reloading cartridges to be enjoyable it is not worth it, personally I enjoy it. I have several types of presses and numerous dies for pistols and rifles long with shotgun reloading equipment.
“Apparently, you do not do much if any bullet casting. I am not using any secret ingredients. ...
... If one doesn’t find reloading cartridges to be enjoyable it is not worth it, personally I enjoy it. ...”
I reloaded a great many rounds in some 29 diffferent calibers, from the late 1960s until about eight years back. Cast my very own rifle and pistol bullets. Used various muzzle loaders also. Then cumulative effects from several old injuries caught up with me: disabilities grew to be such that I slowed down and stopped.
fireman15 deserves our praise for keeping at it. Anyone performing cartridge reloading deserves numerous accolades from the forum. That goes double when it comes to casting bullets. Tends to greatly complicate the anti-gun faction’s problems, and multiply confusion for busybody regulators.
I stand corrected on the leading question. Checked some details with a colleague who reloads extensively; he says it is possible to push rifle bullets of proper hardness and suitable dimensions to 2400 ft/sec without encountering leading.
I performed a few experiments with cast bullets for the M1 Carbine, then chanced across technical articles warning against it: heavy leading at 30 Carbine velocities (1950 ft/sec military loadings). I lost interest at that point.
If fireman15 has coaxed any usable accuracy from any average variant of Kalashnikov, he is very much above average. I spent 13 years working for a gun repair firm; many gun owners bragged about how accurate their Kalashnikov clones were, but they never mentioned an actual group size. Not a one of them ever brought us a test target, though we did ask them to, more than once.
Keep up the good work: may you never experience a stuck case.
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