Category Archives: AK & Related Rifles

Used to discuss AK-47, AK-74, and related rifles

AK & Related Rifles, AKBuilds, AR & Related Rifles and Pistols, ARBuilds, Firearms Building and Gunsmithing, POF, PTR, Roller Locks - HK, Shooting in General, Shotguns, Zenith

Switched to Super Lube Multi-Purpose Synthetic Grease For All of My Firearms

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I’m always searching for better lubricants.  Many of the so-called specialty weapons lubes are just marketing hype with some bulk lubricant poured into their container.  In terms of greases, I’ve used quite a few over the years including wheel bearing grease and Tetra Gun Grease.  I wanted to find something effective, non-toxic and less expensive.

A name popped up when surfing – Super Lube.  To be honest, the first few times I totally dismissed the name because it sounds like some overly-hyped wonder lube that is sold in infomercials.  However, the name did keep popping up so I actually started reading up on it.

Super Lube products are made by Synco Chemical Corporation of Bohemia, NU, that was founded in 1980.  Their specialization is in the space of synthetic food grade lubricants and hold a number of patents.

There are a number of interesting characteristics about their grease that should be noted:

  1. It is designed to disperse very finely ground micron-sized PTFE (Polytetrafluoroethylene) which is a non-stick coating and lubricant.  You probably know it by the brand name of Teflon.  The approach they developed is one of their patents.
  2. It does not contain silicone
  3. It will work in a wide range of temperatures from -45 to +450 Farenheit
  4. It’s thickness is NLGI class 2, which means it’s about the same as vaseline or peanut butter.
  5. It’s non-toxic and food safe – here is the MSDS/SDS
  6. It will not melt or separate
  7. It will not dry out or get gummy
  8. It is waterproof
  9. It does not stain and is odorless – for you folks who do concealed carry or shoot a lot in uniform, you might want to take note of that.

Their website has a ton of information on Super Lube and also on lubrication in general if you want to spend some time reading.

I bought a 14.1oz tub of the Super Lube Multi-Purpose grease off Amazon – very affordable to say the least – clicking on this will open a list on Amazon.

To apply it, I use either a chip brush that I store in a zip loc bag to keep from getting dirty (as shown in the featured photo above) or a small flux / resin brush that I also keep in a baggy.

So, for the last few months I have been testing it.  When I cleaned one of my rifles or pistols, I would replace whatever I had been using as grease with the Super Lube Multi-Purpose grease.

I go by the old saying that if it rotates, oil it.  If it slides, grease it.  That is my rule of thumb so it goes on AK rails, bolt carriers, where the trigger hook grabs the hammer, etc.

It works great!  The weapons feel well lubricated after cleaning and they function great.  When I take them apart again for cleaning, the Super Lube shows no sign of breaking down, drying out, becoming gummy, etc.

If you are looking for an excellent affordable grease, check out Super Lube.  I’m definitely very happy with it.

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AK & Related Rifles

The Custom Yugo M72 Carbine and Vepr FM-AK47-21 Meet

Okay, I had them both out to shoot photos so I had to take some side by side photos.  In case you want to read the blog posts about each rifle, click here for the Yugo M72 Carbine or here for the Vepr FM-AK47-21.

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AK & Related Rifles

Custom Built Yugo M72B1 Carbine By Two Rivers Arms

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I have always liked Yugo AK rifles.  One of my favorites is the M72B1 RPK.  It’s a big rifle and really overkill for me with the long barrel and bipod.  For quite some time I wanted to either build or buy a carbine length RPK.  I was talking to Tim at Two Rivers Arms one day and he said he could absolutely make one and custom fabricate a side rail to boot.  That was just what I wanted so I sent him my parts and then waited my turn in the build line as those guys are so busy.  After a few months Tim called and said it was ready and he shipped it to my FFL, Scott Igert at Modern Antique Firearms in the Fall of 2015.

Seriously, this rifle shoots like a dream but I didn’t get a chance to take some decent photos until now.  The most telling difference is that this is a 16″ cut down Green Mountain barrel vs. the normal 21.3″.  It has a 1:9.5″ twist and not chrome lined – I’m going to keep it clean and will not be burning through tons of mag dumps so I wasn’t really worried about the chrome.

Here’s a run down of the parts:

Glamour Shots 🙂

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AK & Related Rifles

Finally got a Russian Vepr 7.62x39mm Side Folder – The FM-AK47-21

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Well, the when I heard the Treasury Department blocked further importation of Veprs, I jumped and bought the FM-AK47-21 that FIME imported.  I’ve owned a number of Molot Veprs over the years so I knew I would be getting a quality rifle.  I’d not bought one earlier because I didn’t see the need to rush – then the Treasury blocked them and that caused me to pull the trigger.  So, I rushed and ordered one from Classic Firearms and had it delivered to my FFL, Scott Igert of Modern Antique Firearms.  Here’s what showed up:

It’s one solid rifle.  As usual, Molot did a great job – fitment is excellent, heavy 1.5mm RPK receiver, heavy barrel, RPK recoil spring guide rod, pretty good trigger and cool folding stock.  Things I don’t like – the folder hinge is going to make installing an optic rail interesting, the grip is way too small for my hands (Gee, I know a guy who makes grips that will fit).  I’m also not a huge fan of the ribbed RPK handguard.  I get that it would help with insulation on a full-auto RPK but I find the ribs annoying.  I may make a polymer version of the Russian wood originals – it’s something I’ll need to think about.

It shipped with a tiny 5 round magazine but at least it is a double stack.  I’ll replace it with normal AK mags.  I bought a bunch of rock solid Romanian steel mags years ago and that’s my go-to magazine for reliability and looks.  I used a Romy for the photos in this post.

So, I decided to go ahead and make some changes right up front.  I wanted a good muzzle brake so I reached out to Justin McMillion at JMac Customs.  We talked about my desire for a good brake and he recommended his RRD-4C which comes with the required 14mm x 1mm left hand thread.  He shipped fast and the quality of the machining and finish are excellent.  I like the way the porting is done.  With the top opened up, the gasses will vent up pushing the barrel down.

To install it, I pushed the spring loaded detent to release the muzzle nut and then turned it clock wise for removal – AKs are reverse threaded so you do the opposite to remove or install them.  I then threaded the RRD-4C on and was done in just a few minutes.

 

Next, I cast, drilled and finished a black Molot Generation II grip for the rifle.  I thought about using a Bulgarian ARM-9 but decided a Russian designed grip made more sense on a Russian gun – or at least it made sense to me.  I may yet go to the ARM-9 but the Molot Gen II feels pretty good.  To install it, I then removed the dust cover (you will need to hold the grip nut in place later), took out the recoil spring assembly, unscrewed the original grip and removed it.  I then held the grip nut in place with one hand and installed the Molot Gen II using one of my heavy duty grip screws (they have a bigger head and are an alloy hardened to 12.9) to secure the grip.

So here is the rifle at this point.  I’ll decide about the optics later.  I may well go with a RS!Regulate mount and Vortex Strike Eagle but that is a project for a later date.

 

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AK & Related Rifles

News: Vepr rifles now on the banned list – June 20, 2017

Well, this sucks – Molot, the maker of Vepr rifles and shotguns has been added to the treasury’s list of people and organizations US businesses can’t engage in commerce with.

Here’s the website source:  https://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/sanctions/OFAC-Enforcement/Pages/20170620.aspx

MOLOT-ORUZHIE, OOO (a.k.a. OBSHCHESTVO S OGRANICHENNOI OTVETSTVENNOSTYU ‘MOLOT-ORUZHIE’; f.k.a. OBSHCHESTVO S OGRANICHENNOI OTVETSTVENNOSTYU PROIZVODSTVENNO INSTRUMENT KACHESTVO), 135 ul. Lenina, Vyatskie Polyany, Kirov Obl. 612960, Russia; Registration ID 1094307000633 (Russia); Tax ID No. 4307012765 (Russia); Government Gazette Number 60615883 (Russia) [UKRAINE-EO13661] (Linked To: KALASHNIKOV CONCERN).

Notice the part I set in bold black – linked to Kalashnikov Concern.  It may be because Molot was bankrupt and the speculation was that only Kalashnikov Concern was in a position to buy them.

FIME has not commented yet – they are the importer and their website is at:  http://www.fimegroup.com/home.php

So, we’ll see what happens next but do expect supplies of Vepr rifles to be limited/run out on the primary market and prices to rise.

AK & Related Rifles, Russia and also USSR

Video: Процесс производства оружия на ВПМЗ Молот // Production process at the VPMZ MOLOT factory March 2017

     

Molot published this walk through of their production facility in March 2017.  It’s in Russian but with English subtitles.  It’s only 5:31 long and worth your time.  Yeah, I drooled when I saw the injection molding.

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AK & Related Rifles, China, Weapons by Country

Video: Chinese Type 56 AK-57 (Shooting and History) by Forgotten Weapons

 

This is a cool review of an actual North Vietnamese Army (NVA) Chinese Type 56 AK.  It was a captured rifle and brought back to the US.  Ian of Forgotten Weapons does one of his usual exemplary reviews of the rifle and discusses its history.

 

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AK & Related Rifles

Video: I Have This Old Gun – Chinese Type 56 (AKM) Rifle

The NRA did a nice American Rifleman TV segment on the Chinese Type 56.   It’s only 5:37 long and worth your time.

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