Posted on 05/27/2010 4:40:33 PM PDT by 2aberro
I will weigh in with my opinion, and choice of long gun btw. I have a Saiga 12 semi auto shotgun. Despite the reworked trigger (which can be returned to the original position) it s a fantastic weapon. AS a home defense weapon (close quarter battle) I would prefer the point and pull (double tap of 00 buck). That will sort out all the problems *grin*
Flgoldwingguy
VERY nice.
Those com-bloc guns are mass produced and the price only goes up and down a little from month to month (the Obummer runup excluded). Ammo, on the other hand, is a commodity that can have wild swings in price.
I make a habit of stocking up on ammo when the price is real low then getting the gun later. I bought an AK-74 from Centerfire systems for $369 with free shipping and 3 mags, but I had already had 10,800 rounds of ammo for it for a good bit. I was just waiting to find a good deal on the gun. My next purchase is going to be a 7.62x25 AR-15 upper.
When the price of ammo goes way up, as surplus ammo always eventually does, you can always sell a couple cases and get the gun for “free.”
Now that’s a damn fine idea.
I already have several shotguns; the eyesight comment was more [a lead-n for] an observation of worst-case-scenarios for eyeglasses in a shit-has-hit-the-fan world.
But thank you for the links.
Two of my wishes that will never come true are a suitcase full of cash and a time machine :)
But shooter's eyeglasses ... I'm lost.
In a shit-hit-the-fan world repair [of eyeglasses] might be unavailable due to price, [lack of] expertise, or [lack of] materials.
Your glasses could be damaged a number of ways; tripping, for instance. Or a fistfight you didn’t expect.
Unless the engine flames out. Then you'd better hope the ejection seat works as advertised, and that your parachute was packed okay.
I’ll take the chance that someone will call me crazy, but I do expect “things” to come unhinged sometime within the next few years. So, if it were me looking to buy a new rifle, I’d go for something that uses ammo I already stock. Somehow, I think it would be embarassing (to say the least) to head out the door with an AK-74 in one hand and six magazines of 7.62X39 in the other.
Simplicity, simplicity, simplicity. Just because you CAN do something doesn’t mean you should.
Get two. Get yourself one of the Romanian CUGIR AK74-semis or a Polish WZ-88 TANTAL, the first available with its factory-installed chrome-lined barrel, and the second most lokely a Century rebuild, though there are other options. Get the Romy with the wooden stock, and the Tantal with the sidefolding unit for use as an accessory should you require either rifle to fit in a more compact space. I'd then pick up another wood butt for the Tantal, allowing the use of the folder as an accessory on either rifle should it become necessary.
I far prefer the folder on a 5.45 rifle over its use on one in the original 7,62x39 chambering, but if you also have a 7.62 AKM-semi, it can 8indeed be used on one instead or as well. I'd also pick up an additional AMK-type flah suppressor/barrel nut for the Tantal as a replacement for the Tantal's grenade launcher; a very nice *birdcage* unit is available that's similar to the M16A1/M16A2 flashhider. This'll reduce the overall length of the Tantal to approximately equal to that of the Romy, and you may find that you want one for it as well. Remember, lefyt-hand threads on AKM/AK74 barrel accessories!
Beyond that, it's all about ammo and magazines. Both plastic and metal 30-round magazines are made and available for Tantal, and I've used Romanian, Bulgarian and East German synthetics with the Romanian SAR-2 and WASR rifles favoured by my fiancee since back around Y2K. There are also now very reasonably cost US-made magazines from TAPCO and others for the 5,45 rifles; I hear even MAG-PUL has one in the works.
By way of advanced studies, you might also look at picking up a SAIGA in 5,45 and refitting it in military yrim, and one with the 24-inch long barrel of the RPK-74 might be worth some thought, and might well offer enough accuracy to consider use of a scope on the usual receiver siderail.
The '74s are nice little carbines, and milady has picked up about four of them over the last decade. they don't seem to heat up as badly as a 7,62 AK after 6-8 magazines worth of ammo, but offer about the same reliability, if less effect on auto body sheet metal.
The other nice thing about the Romy and Tantal versions is the abailability of surplussed former military versions as parts sets and spare parts, and spare magazine to boot. For which, check these folks out.
No, for this use, I don't want an M4 or CAR-15 either. The AK74 was designed to work with a 16-inch barrel, and the M16A2 was intended to have at least a 20-incher. If you're going to use a shorty carbine, the one that was designed from the gwet-go for that usage is my preferred choice.
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