AK-47 variants

The AK-47 is almost certainly the most widely used and distributed military firearm in history. As it as proven so durable and reliable, the design has also appealed to civilian users.

What is a Civilian Variant of the AK-47?

Civilian variants of the AK-47 run the gamut from semi-automatic "clones" of the venerable assault rifle chambered for 7.62x39, 223 Rem (5.56x45)and .308Win (7.62x51) cartridges to more exotic offerings like the Saiga-12, a semi-automatic shotgun which employs the basic Kalashnikov action. This article refers to cousins rather than simply variants of the AK-47 because it is inclusive of semi-automatic civilian rifles which are partly or wholly derived from later military versions of that rifle such as the AKM, AK-74 and the RPK.

Fully Automatic/Selective Fire versus Semi-Automatic

Fully automatic AK-47s can fire multiple shots with one pull of the trigger by depressing and holding down the trigger once the weapon is loaded and charged and the selector is set in the middle position.[1] They are also capable of semi-automatic fire if the selector is set in the lower position.

Fully Automatic AK-47s are mostly commonly seen in civilian hands outside of the industrialized world since most industrialized nations pass and enforce outright or effective prohibitions against civilian ownership of these firearms. While the fully automatic AK-47s remain prevalent in some of these nations despite the laws, due to illegal importation they are confined to the hands of criminals. In the United States it is illegal to own a fully automatic AK-47, unless you procure the stamp tax and meet the proper requirements for such a firearm, which was not registered as a National Firearms Act weapon after 1986.

Elsewhere, fully automatic AK-47s are more common, but even their possession is often in nominal violation of the law or at least subject to stringent regulations that many civilians simply ignore for a variety of reasons.

Semi-Automatic AK-47s can only fire one shot with each squeeze of the trigger. As of June 2006, the World Wide Web is rife with information on the conversion of semi-auto AK-47's to full auto capability. Whatever the technical merits of the proposition, in the United States converting a gun in this way is illegal since "Conversion Kits" or parts which are "intended solely and exclusively to convert a weapon into a machine gun" are considered to be Domestic manufactured machine guns which must have been registered by 1986.

Some civilians may simply just resort to Bump fire in order to achieve simulated automatic fire, as it is a legal alternative.

Milled versus Stamped Receivers

According to US federal law, the receiver of a weapon is the only part of that is considered a 'firearm' and subject to restrictions upon transfer of ownership. Most other parts can be owned and transferred without restriction. The receivers used to make civilian Kalashnikovs come in two major types: milled and stamped.

Milled receivers are more expensively machined from a single block of steel while stamped receivers are made from a single stamped piece of sheet steel with additional necessary parts such as guide rails and trunnions spot welded or riveted within. Milled Kalashnikovs are generally a bit stronger than their stamped counterparts. Some authorities also suggest that milled receiver rifles enjoy slightly better inherent accuracy than stamped guns but others dismiss this difference as negligible or deny it all together. Kalashnikovs built with stamped receivers are only a few ounces lighter and much cheaper to manufacture than their milled receiver counterparts.

From a visual standpoint one can fairly easily distinguish milled and stamped civilian Kalashnikovs by the presence of rivets on the front and rear trunnions.

Milled Kalashnikovs generally lack rivets but are more remarkable for "a long deep rectangular milled depression starting at the front of the receiver. This depression is nearly five inches long and should not be confused with the magazine guide on AKM receivers. It too was a type of magazine guide and its depth and size an attempt to reduce overall receiver weight."

Stamped Kalashnikov receivers are distinctive in that they have "a small, shallow indentation approximately one inch long on each side of the receiver centered directly above where the magazine attaches. This indentation is called a magazine guide. The stock and barrel trunnions are also riveted onto the receiver."

Pre-Ban, Post-Ban and No-Ban

The widespread production and sale of civilian cousins of the AK-47 has been highly controversial, and efforts to ban the importation of these weapons have impacted their cosmetic appearance and functional design. The 1994 Federal assault weapons ban specifically targeted semi-automatic members of the AK-47 family from import into the U.S. by prohibiting a whole host of features common to many semi-automatic "assault weapons."

But there is universal agreement that the legislation did little to reduce the supply of the civilian cousins of the AK-47 available to the public. In large part this was because the ban focused on individual features which could simply be omitted or replaced with American-made parts so that newly manufactured guns could continue to be imported in compliance with the language of the ban. Given that pre-1994 civilian relatives of the AK-47 were grandfathered in (along with huge numbers of pre-1994 high capacity magazines) one could still obtain "banned" weapons in gun stores at a modestly higher retail price. Unlike most other bans of its type in the United States, none of the grandfathered guns had to be registered nor did their owners have to be licensed unless that was required by state law. The guns could be privately transferred among FFL (Federal Firearms License) holders in most states and jurisdictions just as with any other firearms.

The 1994 Assault Weapons Ban caused gun owners to divide their civilian Kalashnikov rifles into two major categories which had an important legal significance during the period from 1994 to 2004. Pre-ban Kalashnikov rifles were guns that were manufactured before 1994 with more than the legal number of military/cosmetic features which were later to become prohibited. 'Post-ban rifles' were made from 1994 onward and had to comply with a limit on the number of these cosmetic features. Because the import restrictions outlined in the 1994 Assault Weapons "ban" did not alter the Kalashnikov's ballistics or its semi-auto rate of fire, the main factors comprising its presumed lethality, the law was considered by many as a pointless "cosmetic" ban.

Even experienced gun owners might have difficulty telling a pre-ban AK-47 type from its post-ban counterpart. One reason for this is that the distinctive banana shaped 30-round magazine could legally be used with either the pre-ban or post-ban Kalashnikovs. Though "high-capacity" (more than 10 round (defined as 15 or 20 in some states)) pistol and rifle magazines were banned from being manufactured or imported (except for law-enforcement use), all pre-1994 high capacity magazines already in existence in the U.S. were grandfathered in, and could therefore be bought and sold legally (except where prohibited by State laws)

Given that most post-ban Kalashnikovs retained a pistol grip at the expense of some other feature, continued use of the 30 round magazine ensured that the AK-47 profile remained intact. Only close observation by a fairly knowledgeable examiner would take note of the absence of the AK-47's bayonet lug. Although flash suppressors and muzzle brakes essentially never appeared on AK-47 rifles (however, they are a standard feature on the AK-74, which fires the 5.45x39mm ammunition), the muzzles of "pre-ban" weapons were threaded to accept a compensator or blank adaptor. The muzzles of "post-ban" weapons are not threaded.

"No-ban" Kalashnikovs are guns that are made after the expiration of the 1994 Assault Weapons Ban in September of 2004. While at least some gun owners converted their post-ban AK's to no-ban configuration to celebrate the expiration of the Assault Weapons Ban this practice was not nearly as widespread as it was with AR-15/M-16 type rifles. The AK-47 and its derivatives are not the same as those based on the AR-15 (meaning that doing the gunsmithing job on these guns at home was impractical for many gun owners). Given that Kalashnikovs are almost universally cheaper than their AR-15 counterparts it was usually easier for gun owners to simply buy a no-ban Kalashnikov which could still use the same magazines and ammunition as their old one.

State and Local Civilian AK-47 Bans

A number of states reacted to the 1994 Assault Weapons Ban sunset by passing their own legislation against semi-automatic assault weapons including AK-47s. In this way, they would ensure that whatever happened in Washington, weapons proscribed under that law would continue to be banned in their states. There were also some states which had passed 'assault weapons' bans well before the sunset or even the original federal legislation. Additionally, in states without firearms preemption laws, some local governments have independently legislated against 'assault weapons'. In 2005, Columbus, Ohio passed an Assault Weapons Ban which caused the National Rifle Association to pull its 2007 Annual Meetings from the city.

Civilian Kalashnikov Ammunition

These three calibers are the most commonly employed in civilian Kalashnikov rifles

• 7.62x39 (Soviet)
• 5.45x39 (Soviet)
• 5.56x45 (NATO) These rifles can also fire .223 Remington.

The vast majority of civilian Kalashnikovs use the 7.62x39 cartridge which was used in the original AK-47. The chief reason for this is economics. The vast majority of military surplus AK-47 magazines are designed for the 7.62x39 Soviet and thus most AK-47 cousins are designed to use that caliber. While the calibers listed above are by far the most common there are exceptions. For instance, there is a Romanian version of the Kalashnikov known as the AK-22 which fires the .22 Long Rifle cartridge along with Saiga rifles chambered in .308.

Ammunition for civilian AK-47 rifles comes in three major types:

First, one has corrosive military surplus ammunition made with steel cases and Berdan primers. Given that most civilian Kalashnikov's have the chrome lined barrels and bolts of their military counterparts gun owners are less leery of using corrosive ammunition in these rifles than they would be in other cases. Still, even in this case, Kalashnikov rifles should receive the same thorough cleaning as other firearms when they are used to fire corrosive ammunition.

This ammunition is largely unsuitable for hunting because it was manufactured to comply with the Hague Convention of 1899 and thus does not expand on impact. Because it uses steel cases and berdan primers this ammunition is not reloadable.

Second, one has non-corrosive ammunition made with steel cases and Berdan primers. Much of this ammunition is manufactured on the same tooling which produced the surplus ammunition described above and in the same countries, particularly Russia.

Third, one has a vast array of non-corrosive high quality copper jacketed ammunition offered by almost every major and minor manufacturer. Most of this ammunition is Boxer rather than Berdan primed and it comes from both foreign and domestic suppliers. Much of this ammunition is designed with both hunting and self-defense clearly in mind and thus possesses bullets meant to deform on impact. This ammunition is also typically reloadable thus allowing users to use the cases to make rounds which meet with their specific needs or wants. The major drawback of these higher quality civlian offerings is the much higher price which makes this ammunition less attractive for users primarily interested in "plinking" (target shooting).

Civilian Kalashnikov Magazines

The vast majority of the AK-47's civilian cousins are entirely capable of taking military surplus magazines. These magazines were either manufactured in Eastern Bloc countries or in the People's Republic of China.

The sheer variety of military surplus magazines is remarkable. In the realm of magazine capacity alone there are a number of choices open to civilian Kalashnikov owners. Obviously, the iconic 30 round banana shaped magazine is the most common. Larger magazines include 40 round and even 55 round magazines although these can prove unwieldy and unreliable and are not very suitable for the benchrest shooting typical of most civilian rifle ranges. There are also 20 round "tanker" magazines designed for use in the tight quarters of an armored vehicle.

As far as materials are concerned most surplus magazines are made of blued steel. They are well known for their sturdiness and reliability. However, the AK-74 employed its distinctive orange thermoplastic (bakelite; an early plastic) magazines and since that time plastic magazines have increasingly gained ground with the users of civilian Kalashnikovs in all common calibers. These magazines were formerly prone to problems such as cracking of the feed lips but are now commonly accepted. Particularly highly regarded are the Bulgarian "waffle" magazines (so known for their distinctive texture pattern). These have been produced in a variety of colors including black, plum, and OD Green.

Owners of civilian AK-47 cousins less frequently purchase steel drum magazines for their rifles. These magazines typically hold 75 rounds or 100 rounds apiece. There are two major varieties of drum magazines available, the Russian and the Chinese. The Russian drum is somewhat more common and less expensive than its Chinese counterpart but is generally more tedious to load. The Chinese drum can be opened in the back and loaded much faster, though there are reports that careless users can cut their fingers. Both magazines are considered to be highly reliable and both have their proponents and detractors.

A minority of the magazines used in the civilian variants are specifically manufactured for the civilian market. Some of these are simply new copies or slight variations of military magazines. Other magazines intended for the civilian market include magazines for use with AK-47 variants that cannot accept military magazines.

See also

• WASR series rifles
• List of weapons influenced by the Kalashnikov design

Online Sources and Links

• EliteFirearms.net
• The AK Forum
• AK-47.us
• AK47.net
• AK-47.net
• AK Files Forums
• Bear Ammunition
• Romanian Kalashnikov Rifles
• Semiautomatic AK-47 Shopper's Guide
• Wolf Ammunition's Centerfire Rifle Product Chart.
• Bureau of Alcohol, Tobbacco, and Firearms Questions and Answers Sheet Concerning US Gun Laws
• Department of the Army AK-47 Operator's Manual