upcoming AK build, suggestions?

[jason41987]

hey everyone.. after im finished building the AR15 im starting soon, im going to start an AK build (my second one overall)... and i was curious as to which country AK parts kits are the best?.. itll most likely be a stamped build and probably 7.62

so... suggestions?

[CLC]

I would do a RPK build if you have a AK already.

[Mrgunsngear]

If you wait a month or so I bet the M92 kits are going to be going down dramatically. This gun should be on our shores shortly
http://www.impactguns.com/pap-m92-pv-pistol-762x39mm-30-rnd-mag-hg3089-n-787450220720.aspx and it'll drive the kit prices down probably to 30-40% of what they're selling for now. They're good guns/kits and if the price drops they'll be worth it over say your standard Romanian kit.

[jason41987]

my end goal is to eventually convert the rifle into 6.8mm SPC, which my AR15 will also be so i wont have to purchase multiple calibers for my intermediate power rifles... would a '74 be better for this than a '47? if so, i would just buy a bulgarian '74 kit, keep it 5.45 for now, and wait until the surplus sources dry up before switching it to a different caliber

i really like the ballistics of the 6.8 over that of the 7.62x39 and 5.56mm, so it would be nice if both rifles were chambered in this... i could have a barrel manufacturer make me a 6.8mm barrel, and either machine out a 5.45 or 5.56mm AK bolt, or just have a machine shop make me one i design myself...

but.. i do want to go stamped, i know people love their milled AKs, but for what an AK is designed to do im not sure its worth the extra cost to me, with the AR15 being my first choice if i had to choose a rifle... besides, an extra thick stamped receiver is easily replacable should something break on it.. or the metal gets dented.. just pop the old rivets out and rivet on a new one

[jason41987]

im curious... is it possible to put an extended barrel on the kink with a longer gas tube and piston for a 16" rifle?.. i dont really have a desire for a SBR stamp

im actually thinking of buying a stamped bulgarian AK-74 parts kit since theyre fairly inexpensive... as well as a quality stamped AK-47 parts kit... who makes the best 7.62 AK-47 parts kits?... bulgarian '47s are milled... would the polish '47s be any good?... but... id like to go with a fixed stock, polish AKs are under-folders.. would i be able to replace the rear trunnion for this? and if so, which trunnion should i buy?

[Mrgunsngear]

is it possible to put an extended barrel on the kink with a longer gas tube and piston for a 16" rifle?.. i dont really have a desire for a SBR stamp

Yes as long as it's pinned. Also keep in mind that the M92/85 series AKs use a 26x1 thread vs the more traditional 24x1. There are barrel extensions/long breaks out there for them though.

[Nickel Plated]

I have a similar question. I'm thinking of building an AK in the near future and want to know the best parts kit to go with.

Would like something with a standard AKM layout, so the Hungarian AMD and Yugo M70s are out with their weird looking front ends. (I actually like the look of AMDs but I want to go with a regular AKM for my first build)

It's going to be a 7.62 stamped receiver. Stock type doesn't matter because I will be replacing it with an ACE sidefolder anyway, but an underfolder would be nice. Keep it for future builds.

I'm trying to pick between a Romanian G or a Polish underfolder.
Would love a genuine Russian AKM kit, but those are too pricy for my blood. Plus if I'm paying for a Russian AK, I want it on it's original Russian receiver, not some BS I cobbled together at home :D

[jason41987]

i dont mind the front end on the yugos at all.. they give a unique look to their rifle... im not sure what the purpose of that piece over the gas block is though.. some sort of sight?.. possibly removable.. or could install a new gas block in place of it

but anyway, the bulgarians dont seem to have made a stamped '47, and i dont feel milled AKs are worth the added cost.. and apparently neither did they if its all stamped with the 74s

so.. im not sure where that leaves me?... i was thinking of going polish, however, the polish AKs all have folding stocks, and side folders tend to clash with side rail scope mounts, and underfolders clash with anything but a standard magazine... i like a rigid, solid stock

so.. for me, best 7.62 AK parts kit with a fixed stock?

[jason41987]

ya know what?... i think i might go side folder on both kits.. polish for the '47, with a tantal side folding rear trunnion, and i can also get a bulgarian '74 side folding trunnion for the bulgarian AK-74 kit, which would end up being a clone of a modern AK-74M... the polish 7.62 model would also be the same configuration... probably keep the bulgarian in 5.45 and the polish id convert to 6.8mm SPC by having a new bolt and barrel made for it

[Nickel Plated]

I was thinking along the same lines. Pick whatever kit you feel is best then just buy an extra trunnion and stock to suit your tastes. For me it's be a fixed stock trunnion and an ACE sidefolder.

Though I could have swore I saw some polish fixed stock AKM kits somewhere. Can't seem to find them now. Though maybe those were milled receiver kits.

[jason41987]

are rear trunnions serialed and marked as a matching set or do they come unmarked? just curious...

its a hard choice, to decide if i want a right side wire folder or not... i mean, it has the benefit of being locked without interfering with optics or the forearm... but a left side folder or fixed stock offers me a place to rest my cheek which, for all purpose use would be a lot better... so the '74 will be a bulgarian AK-74, which will be a clone of the AK-74M, and the 47 is what im trying to decide on... which i definitely plan to go left side folding skeletonized stock, or a fixed synthetic...

but.. i will go bulgarian for the 74, and polish for the 47

[jason41987]

hey.. i just noticed i can actually purchase what appears to be never used trunnions, bulgarian made for 7.62mm rifles... would i be able to get a 7.62x39mm bulgarian AK parts kit made for a milled receiver, purchase these trunnions with a new barrel and install as a stamped AK?

[AKsRul.e]

I hope you are aware that kits with combloc barrels are hard to
find and very pricy ($400 up )

Combloc Barrels alone are hard to get also.

By the time you buy a good kit , US parts, and maybe a barrel
you might be better off just buying an AK for $900 -$1000.

Building an AK in a caliber other than 5.45,5.56, or 7.62
would be VERY expensive and problematic.

[jason41987]

ive built AKs before, and plan on using a US made barrel for it... hmm... actually i still have headspacing gauges for 7.62x39mm, i guess i need to get some for 5.45x39mm as well...

if i can buy one of these bulgarian 7.62 trunnions from k-var, and use it with a milled AK kit to build on a stamped receiver, ill probably go that route for the '47.. thats the only issue im having right now, because ive already decided on a bulgarian '74 with a bulgarian left side folding trunnion

[Nickel Plated]

Romanian G kits usually come with a Romanian barrel.

[jason41987]

well, ive decided i will in fact go for a bulgarian AK-74 first... wanting a left side folder for this, so ill get an extra rear trunnion for that...

umm, im also looking for a basic, classic AKM style 7.62 with a fixed stock to have the old school wooden furniture for a later build

---

about the build process... ive seen people using hand tools for removing and installing the barrel, home made jigs for using sheet metal breaks to fold the receiver and i believe i seen someone use two pieces of angle steel bolted to a platform with a gap the width of the AK receiver in the middle... then placed the receiver on top, with a plate along the middle of a receiver that they just tightened some bolts down to press the AK receiver into this form they built.... does this actually work?..

im looking to bend the receiver and i was wondering which of these methods i should focus more into using to bend by hand (without a press) as im also moving soon and wont be able to take any larger, heavy tools with me so im looking to build this without the use of a shop press

as for crushing rivets.. i notice the bolt cutter method leaves a rivet head that isnt the prettiest... would it be possibly to get two plates of steel for each end of the rivet and machine a dimple into them.. and crush them with a large vice or clamp for a cleaner rivet than what the bolt cutter method produces? or would i be better off going with the bolt cutter tool, and polishing and sanding the rivet heads for a cleaner look?

when i did it before, i purchased a 100% receiver so im going to try to use a flat for this build to increase the difficulty for an added challenge, and was also wondering if its better to drill the receiver and weld the holes for the rail installation, or if id be better off renting or borrowing someones spot welder for this task?