Difference between AR-15 and AK 47....and Nagants

I saw a video while I was surfing YouTube.  I saw the difference between the M-16, and the AK 47.  It was a very educational video.  I have fired both kinds and still own one of them.  I was trained on the M-16 pattern rifle, I am very comfortable with that platform.  I know it's strength, I know its weaknesses. 

Here is the latest incarnation of this rifle.  Like I said, I love the versatility of this rifle.  This rifle has gone through 3 changes since I bought it back in 1991.  I still am considering buying a shorty stock and a shorty barrel.  My Brother who is used to the M-4 platform calls my rifle "A Musket"  due to the length. 

   This is my same rifle that had the same style for 15 years.  Tactically not such a good configuration.  I had changed the barrel to an A-2 barrel with the same style handgrips, pistol grips and rear stock.

This is the rifle back in original configuration that I bought it back in 1991.  I had kept all the old parts when I upgraded.

I have also owned an AK-47 type rifle for several years back in the mid 90's.  But I had to sell it to pay some bills.  I hated doing it, and basically I had to choose which rifle I had to give up.  I liked the rifle, I liked the reliability and the ease of use of the AK-47 pattern rifle, it is an easy rifle to shoot and operate. 
    

I also own a Mosin Nagant, I bought this rifle back in the late 90's.  This rifle was made in the Soviet Armory in the Urals, when the Germans invaded, the Soviets moved whole industries across the urals to protect it against the fascisti invaders.   This rifle is classified as a model 31/59

  This rifle Model 1891/59 Carbine: Commonly called "91/59s," the M1891/59s were created by shortening M1891/30 rifles to carbine length, with rear sight numbers partially ground off to reflect reduced range. These rifles are almost clones of the M38 except for the ground off M91/30 rear sight. The "1891/59" marking on the receiver suggests the carbines were created in or after 1959. It was initially thought that Bulgaria or another Soviet satellite country performed the conversions in preparation for a Western invasion that never came. Recent evidence suggests that the M91/59 was indeed produced in Bulgaria from Soviet-supplied wartime production M91/30s. Total production of the 91/59 is uncertain; figures as low as one million and as high as three million have appeared in the firearms magazines.

   A lot of people disparage the Mosin type rifles as " Old.......obsolete...can't survive against a modern assault rifle.."  I disagree, this rifle will work when all other will not.  Also the 7.62X54R round is no slouch,  It will flat out knock down anybody it hits.  Also the recoil is rough compared to the AR pattern and AK pattern rifles.   Another reason for the rifle is you could rearm your tribe with a few Nagants for extra rifles until newer rifles are acquired.  Then you can put the rifles back in storage until the next time.

This is the video I saw that started this post.....so there:P.....

I remembered posting this when I first started blogging.

AK vs. AR vs. Mosin Nagant
Written by Head of the old Headsbunker.com, also known as "Ezra Coli" on the various message boards.

There's an ever present, unending debate over which is best, ARs or AKs, raging across the internet and in gun shops every day sending bile and bitter insults spewing both ways. This debate has turned fathers against sons, best friends against one another, and........well you get the point. The author is of the opinion that there are of course pros and cons to each family of rifle, and I refuse to engage in what is "best". As one who loves them all, especially the AK and AR series, I thought I'd pass on some of the knowledge I have gained over the years concerning these wildly different weapons. As a bonus, I'll toss in my knowledge of another favorite family of weapons at the Bunker, just because they are very popular these days and I often ramble about them. So, here, for the aid of those hammering one another in the debate, is some unbiased, non-slanted, untainted raw knowledge about the AK, the AR, and the Mosin Nagant.

Stuff you know if you have an AK	Stuff you know if you have an AR	Stuff you know if you have a Mosin Nagant
It works though you have never cleaned it. Ever.	You have $9 per ounce special non-detergent synthetic Teflon infused oil for cleaning.	It was last cleaned in Berlin in 1945.
You are able to hit the broad side of a barn from inside.	You are able to hit the broad side of a barn from 600 meters.	You can hit the farm from two counties over.
Cheap mags are fun to buy.	Cheap mags melt.	What's a mag?
Your safety can be heard from 300 meters away.	You can silently flip off the safety with your finger on the trigger.	What's a safety?
Your rifle comes with a cheap nylon sling.	Your rifle has a 9 point stealth tactical suspension system.	You rifle has dog collars.
Your bayonet makes a good wire cutter.	Your bayonet is actually a pretty good steak knife.	Your bayonet is longer than your leg.
You can put a .30" hole through 12" of oak, if you can hit it.	You can put one hole in a paper target at 100 meters with 30 rounds.	You can knock down everyone else's target with the shock wave of your bullet going downrange.
When out of ammo your rifle will nominally pass as a club.	When out of ammo, your rifle makes a great wiffle bat.	When out of ammo, your rifle makes a supreme war club, pike, boat oar, tent pole, or firewood.
Recoil is manageable, even fun.	What's recoil?	Recoil is often used to relocate shoulders thrown out by the previous shot.
Your sight adjustment goes to "10", and you've never bothered moving it.	Your sight adjustment is incremented in fractions of minute of angle.	Your sight adjustment goes to 12 miles and you've actually tried it.
Your rifle can be used by any two bit nation's most illiterate conscripts to fight elite forces worldwide.	Your rifle is used by elite forces worldwide to fight two bit nations' most illiterate conscripts.	Your rifle has fought against itself and won every time.
Your rifle won some revolutions.	Your rifle won the Cold War.	Your rifle won a pole vault event.
You paid $350.	You paid $900.	You paid $59.95.
You buy cheap ammo by the case.	You lovingly reload precision crafted rounds one by one.	You dig your ammo out of a farmer's field in Ukraine and it works just fine.
You can intimidate your foe with the bayonet mounted.	You foes laugh when you mount your bayonet.	You can bayonet your foe on the other side of the river without leaving the comfort of your hole.
Service life, 50 years.	Service life, 40 years.	Service life, 100 years, and counting.
It's easier to buy a new rifle when you want to change cartridge sizes.	You can change cartridge sizes with the push of a couple of pins and a new upper.	You believe no real man would dare risk the ridicule of his friends by suggesting there is anything but 7.62x54r.
You can repair your rifle with a big hammer and a swift kick.	You can repair your rifle by taking it to a certified gunsmith, it's under warranty!	If your rifle breaks, you buy a new one.
You consider it a badge of honor when you get your handguards to burst into flames.	You consider it a badge of honor when you shoot a sub-MOA 5 shot group.	You consider it a badge of honor when you cycle 5 rounds without the aid of a 2x4.
After a long day the range you relax by watching "Red Dawn".	After a long day at the range you relax by watching "Blackhawk Down".	After a long day at the range you relax by visiting the chiropractor.
After cleaning your rifle you have a strong urge for a stiff shot of Vodka.	After cleaning your rifle you have a strong urge for hotdogs and apple pie.	After cleaning your rifle you have a strong urge for shishkabob.
You can accessorize you rifle with a new muzzle brake or a nice stock set.	Your rifle's accessories are eight times more valuable than your rifle.	Your rifle's accessory is a small tin can with a funny lid, but it's buried under an apartment building somewhere in Budapest.
Your rifle's finish is varnish and paint.	Your rifle's finish is Teflon and high tech polymers.	Your rifle's finish is low grade shellac, cosmoline and Olga's toe nails.
Your wife tolerates your autographed framed picture of Mikhail Kalashnikov.	Your wife tolerates your autographed framed picture of Eugene Stoner.	You're not sure there WERE cameras to photograph Sergei Mosin.
Late at night you sometimes have to fight the urge to hold your rifle over your head and shout "Wolverines!"	Late at night you sometimes have to fight the urge to clear your house, slicing the pie from room to room.	Late at night, you sometimes have to fight the urge to dig a fighting trench in the the yard to sleep in.
There you have it.  In the end, it is clear to any open minded inquirer that the Mosin Nagant is the most superior weapon of all time, but the AR and the AK come out as a draw when compared side by side.

---

Russia to modernize the AK-47

I have fired the AK-47 as have many GI's, I have also owned a civilian copy of the weapon, I think mine was norinco.  Traded it for some rifle parts( should have kept it but money was real tight)  It was really simple to break down and clean, compared to the AR-15 that I have.   I was more comfortable with the AR because of my military background and I like the accuracy.   That being said I have heard that the AK was the "god of war"  It would work in conditions that would kill any other weapon.  That says a lot for the design from that tank sergeant
    I also remember a line in the movie "heartbreak ridge"

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Moscow announced plans on Tuesday to modernize the Kalashnikov, giving a new lease of life to the Soviet-era assault rifle that is the mainstay of the Russian army and weapon of choice for paramilitaries and gangsters around the world.

Part of a 20 trillion-rouble ($690 billion) modernization of Russia's armed forces that includes the addition of new armaments, submarines and aircraft by 2020, the new-look Kalashnikov will get a detachable sight and light, Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin told parliament.

"We are planning deep modernization of the Kalashnikov assault rifle," said Rogozin, who oversees the defense industry. "This will be a weapon with detachable equipment, such as an optical sight and a lamp."

The Russian army said last September it had abandoned new purchases of the AK-74 assault rifle, the updated version of the AK-47 designed in the 1940s by Mikhail Kalashnikov. Rogozin said negotiations with the Defense Ministry on future acquisitions of the modernized weapon were ongoing.

The easy-to-use and much copied rifle has been described as the world's most dangerous weapon based on the number of deaths it has caused in wars and insurgencies, but industry critics say it no longer fully meets the requirements of modern warfare.

"With demands for precision and engagement range on the rise, a new weapon must replace the Kalashnikov in the very near future," Ruslan Pukhov, director of CAST, a Moscow-based defense think tank, told Reuters.

Rogozin said the army would also receive a new pistol by the end of the year to replace the semi-automatic Makarov, another weapon from the 1940s and now a Cold War relic.

Izhmash, Russia's top firearms producer, last week presented the prototype of an updated Kalashnikov, the AK-12, which some industry analysts lampooned, saying it offered only a cosmetic update. ($1 = 29.0450 Russian roubles)

(Reporting By Alexei Anishchuk; Editing by Robin Pomeroy)

The Russian firearms manufacturer Izhmash unveils new Kalashnikov assault rifle AK-12.

Russia's largest firearms manufacturer, Izhmash, has unveiled a prototype of its new Kalashnikov assault rifle with improved ergonomics and tactical flexibility. The new assault rifle, dubbed AK-12, is being designed as a basic platform for the development of nearly 20 different modifications of the weapon. It could be adapted for cartridges varying from 5.45x39 mm to 7.62x51 NATO.

The state tests of the rifle may begin at the end of 2012 despite the fact that the Russian Defense Ministry has not shown interest so far in the new weapon citing the financial difficulties of the Izhmash company and a huge surplus of AK-74 assault rifles (about 17 million) in the Armed Forces. Izhmash said on Wednesday that the testing of the AK-12 will continue and the company will offer the rifle to foreign customers and Russian police. Russia's Interior Ministry has reportedly ordered about a hundred AK-12s for testing by its personnel. According to Izhmash designers, they “adapted the weapon to modern combat requirements, having preserved Kalashnikov's unique qualities - simplicity, reliability and relatively low production cost.” The rifle features three firing modes: single shot, three-shot burst and automatic fire. The muzzle of the AK-12 has been designed to shoot foreign-standard barrel-mounted grenades. The weapon is also equipped with Picatinny rails to mount optical, and night sights, grenade launchers, target indicators and other special equipment. The AK-12 has a folding stock, and a height-adjustable heelpiece. The weapon can be used by both left-handed and right-handed people, and can be easily handled with one hand. The development of the new family of sophisticated and effective assault rifles is a priority for the future of the company, which has been experiencing severe financial difficulties and even filed for bankruptcy.