Home Forums Hunting & Shooting AR and Tactical Rifles Best AK for under a grand

Arsenals are fine. They're just not easy to find and they have discontinued some popular models for whatever reasons.
Some of the custom makers have great reputations but I don't have any personal experience with any of them.

Here's the PTR in 7.62x39:

https://ptr-us.com/products/7-62x39mm/

I got to run a couple mags of 5.45x39 through an Arsenal AK74 clone a few years ago. Real easy to hit with, surprisingly accurate.and easily the smoothest operating AK I ever fired.

For 7.62 a SAR 1, for 5.45 a SAR 2. If they function and the trigger doesn't bite your finger they will need only ammo.
Most of the addons and part replacements are hobby stuff. The animus of the Kalashnikov is about being armed. As range toys they look funny like poodle.

so the Wasr 10 buried in the mud for 5 days, can be washed off and fired, the AR cannot.

I have more issues with my WASR functioning properly than my AR's.

I don't know. Have never done it. I just reported what an Afghan vet told me.




Any idea why? I've not had any problems with any of the factory AR's I've had. Can't say that for some builds, though.

Add: I did have some problems with Lake City '66 or '67 ammo that I bought in 1968 or 1969. It was the stuff that was causing problems with M-16's in Viet Nam and the new ball ammo had about ten times too much calcium carbonate (IIRC) in the powder and after just 10-15 rounds there was caking of that stuff on the bolt. A relative in the Marines couldn't believe it. That caking was HARD to get off-- had to scrape it-- and I can just imagine being in some firefight and all of a sudden there's no more bang.

Does the WASR-10 come in a pistol variant??

I don't know. Century imports different AK's:

https://www.centuryarms.com/century/century-firearms/ak-pistols

https://www.centuryarms.com/century/century-firearms/ak-rifles-import

The Draco's are imported and from that site it looks like they are made in Romania, too.

I fired a mini draco, it worked at the range, don't know the barrel or piston treatment, or the construction of the gun. You don't know what you don't know anymore. Renegade50's information on the wasr-10 gp is in depth and from a practical standpoint if you can examine the gun before you buy it, odds are you will get a good reliable 7.62 x 39 launcher. The pistol concept in this caliber is interesting as well if you had something that was compelling in its specifications such as Renegade50 has published regards the WASR-10. So for $700 or so now vs. a $1500 Jack Haley BCM carbine, the gun could if compact enough to be suitable to tote in your truck provided you lived in a non socialist state.

I did look at an underfolder WASR recently and that is pretty compact, too. Some years ago I had a side folding Arsenal but let it go for some unfathomable reason. That also was compact.
Of course none are as compact as the pistols and I have zero experience with them.

Arsenals can be found for $1000. Bought this one slightly used for $1k with AKT trigger already installed.

Where I am a $1000 Arsenal like yours would be rare. You have a fine rifle there! Congratulations!

A rifle similar to yours, but in 5.45, is available in a nearby place-- 100 miles away -- at $1800.

There are a few variants at around $1000 but not that I'd care for.

g5m, It's an SLR107-FR (side folder) in 7.62x39. I picked it up off gunbroker a while back from a nice young KY fella starting to build his family. Former USMC machinegunner in the Afghan sandbox.

nice rifle! I just researched the Galil ace pistol, it looks well made but its not under a grand..

I'm saying I have more failures to function with my AK.
My AR's run great.
The A2 I had in the Army ran great never failed me, not once.

In no way do I doubt that. I just wonder why.

Put them together right gas them properly, keep them well lubed, run good mags, and feed them good ammo, and in them and you will have very few problems with an AR.

And if you are going to bury one in the sand, close the dust cover first and it will be better sealed to the sand then an AK.

Jimmyp
I sent ya that pm cause you had a genuine interest and contacted me.
Glad to share knowledge, not eager to be nitpicked.
Nuff said about that.....
Have run numerous akm and ak platforms.
Used A1,s a2,s m4,s for 24 yrs in the Infantry all over the planet.

Apples and oranges
Used ta like apple,s,will again eventually with probably a stag arms retro rifle.
Dont have any desire to build anymore.
You can take most any well built ar with a good Cl barrel
Put a good comp brake on it
And some sort of decent trigger in it
An ergo grip
And have your self a wpn you can depend on, providing you do your part.

Oranges are what I like now.
Thinking of a large AES- 10B orange possibly in the future




What ever ya buy .
Run it.
Maintain it .
Enjoy it.

Looking at compact with abilty to go full size?
Look for a left side folder kit for stamped receivers.
Some right side folders make no sense to get into action sensibly or quickly. Some of the right side folders are not wpn or user friendly to how an ak is set up to be operated with right side dominance.

IMO.

8 cycles of function
What is happening ?


Feeding
Chambering
Locking
Firing
Unlocking
Extracting
Ejecting
Cocking

It seems to me after some brief research that so many of the newer so called AK’s made here in the USA from parts just don’t function with the legendary reliability of the original weapons. The WASR-10 now gets good reliability reviews at $700 a pop. Gone are the days when a $135 rifle from Norinco would provide a lifetime of reliability. The US Communists don’t want Joe Average to be well armed.