This is a promotional video hosted by the Kalashnikov Concern of the 7.62×51/.308 AK-308 rifle. It looks pretty slick and borrows quite a bit from the AK-12 but some noticeable differences are the 20 round magazine and different muzzle device.
Here’s the Video
Please note that all images were extracted from the video and remain the property of their respective owner(s).
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In 2017, the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation held their annual international military-technical forum known as ARMY-2017 outside of Moscow. There were over 1,000 exhibitors and over 500,000 visitors. It was an ideal spot for the Kalashnikov Concern to show off their short AK-12K, AK-15K and RPK-16K weapons.
In the video, Vladimir Onokay, a technical consultant with the Kalashnikov Concern, does a great job showing the three weapons and giving an overview of each’s design points.
AK-12K in 5.45×39
Some things he pointed out were:
Free floating handguard
It has Picatinny Rails for mounting accessores
Front sight on the gas block and with the rear sight at the end of rail, the sight radius is longer than traditional AKs
The muzzle device is more for controlling flash during night operations
He showed the windowed magazine for quick round counts
The rear stock is adjustable
AK-15K in 7.62×39
The AK-15 is simply the AK-12 but chambered in 7.62×39. He does make the interesting comment that they found a sweet spot in weapons weight of 3.2-3.3 kilograms for controllable fire in 7.62×39. They try to make the weapons as similar as possible and this is really a family of weapons that can be made in different calibers.
The RPK-16K in 5.45×39
This light machine gun sports a 95 round drum and has swappable barrels. A short one for close quarters battle (CQB) that requires a shorter weapon and a longer barrel for other use.
The Video
It’s an 8:00 video and has some great footage.
I hope you enjoyed this!
Please note that all images were extracted from the video and are the property of their respective owner.
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Larry Vickers and his team assembled this really cool video of a Bulgarian AK-74 firing. They do different angles plus shots at normal speed and slow motion. You get very clear shots of the fire control group, bolt carrier, gas piston and the muzzle brake.
Here is the link to Larry’s book on AK rifles that he is selling directly and not through Amazon.
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While many Westerners focus on the Mosin Nagant and Kalashnikov rifles, Russia has a very long history of submachine guns (SMGs). SMGs are typically fire weapons that use a pistol cartridge as opposed to an intermediate- or rifle-sized round.
In this cool 25 minute video, Jmantime takes you on a journey with a lot of historical video footage starting with the experimental Tokarev Model 1927. It was a blowback operated 7.3 pound SMG that fired the 7.62x38R round that the Nagant M1895 revolver.
On to more modern weapons that we see currently such as the PP-19 Bizon.
And my current favorite, he also has footage of the PP-29-01 Vityaz-SN:
He also covers many, many others such as the PP-40, PPSH-41, PPS-43, OTs-39, and PP-2000. Here’s the 25 minute video – I think you’l find it very interesting — I just wish the clips were higher resolution :-):
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This 3:40 promotional video from Kalashnikov Concern was released in 2017 but I am unclear as to exactly when it was made. You’ll note that they spend a lot of time showing their assault boats and they were unveiled in 2015.
You’ll see small arms, AGVs, optics and assault boats. Pretty cool! You can definitely see they are expanding their product line.
Here’s the video:
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Before I bought my Hatsan AT-P2 QE Pistol, I did a bunch of research. I wanted a very compact yet powerful and accurate pre-charged pneumatic (PCP) carbine or bullpup that was a repeater for quick and accurate follow up shots for pest control of tree and ground squirrels.
I needed something smaller than my Gladius Long, lighter and did not need the power levels that the Gladius Long bring to the table. The Gladius Long is an absolutely wicked PCP bullpup but for what I need most of the time – discrete firepower to dispatch squirrels and rabbits inside of 12-15 yards most of the time – it was overkill. I love it and am not selling it, but definitely needed a different go-to airgun.
So, I watched a ton of videos and decided on the Hatsan AT P2 and decided to go with the QT-P2 QE Pistol. It was compact, lighter, had solid reviews and had both an adjustable stock and in integral noise moderator built in. Hatsan refers to these as their Quiet Energy (QE) line.
In this next photo, I literally set the AT-P2 QE on top of the Gladius Long and tried to line up the muzzles as best I could so you can see the size difference.
So here’s the comparison of the two:
As you can see the actual package weight including the scope of the AT-P2 QE Tact is 4.6 pounds lighter that the Gladius Long and it is 6-5/8″ shorter.
In terms of energy, I did a lot of reading and can’t tell you for certain. Hatsan themselves says the Gladius Long will produce the following power levels but they don’t tell you the velocity or the weight of the pellet.
From the 2018 Airgun catalog, Hatsan reports the AT-P2 QE in .22 has a muzzle energy of 27 joules. All things being equal, that puts it between power levels 3 and 4 of the Gladius Long. I tend to switch between those two settings so for me, the power of the AT P2 is right in the sweet zone of what I wanted.
In terms of sound, the Gladius is relatively quiet at 3 and louder at 4. The AT-P2 QE is remarkably quiet. To me as the shooter, cocking the pistol is louder than firing it!
Both pistols have the noteworthy Hatsan Quattro adjustable trigger. I thought the trigger of the Gladius Long was the best factory airgun trigger I had tried until shooting the AT-P2 QE. From the factory, it is light! I need to measure it but it is a dream to shoot because I can hold it rock solid on target effortlessly. On the point of accuracy, it can shoot 1/2″ groups at 10 yards over and over using JSB Exact Jumbo Diablo 15.89 grain pellets.
Summary
I’m keeping the Gladius Long for distance shots and/or when I want more power. I will be using the AT-P2 QE for my normal close-in pest work.
6/29/2020 Update: Still very happy with both airguns. We now have replacement fill-probe O-rings and caps to keep your fill probe clean. Click here to learn more.
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Hatsan Arms Company is an innovative builder of air guns and shotguns that was founded in 1976 and produce over 300,000 units per year. Hatsan is located in Kemalpaşa, which is a large town located in the Izmir Province of Turkey. There they product Hatsan airguns, Escort shotguns and Optima shotguns.
One interesting facet of Hatsan is that they handle all facets of production – machining of wood, machining of metal parts, heat treatment, finishing of work such as honing, different types of chemical plating & bluing, injection molding, metal injection, mold making, welding, barrel manufacturing, laser marking, laser engraving on wood & metal parts, camouflage coating, assembly, quality assurance testing, and test shooting.
Hatsan has over 650 workers, 599 machines in 35,000 square meter production area. To produce products to high standards, Hatsan uses total quality management (TQM) and are ISO 9001 certified.
You’ll note factory looks well used, is relatively organized and bright.
Work centers are organized and appear well equipped.
Substantial automation including a variety of CNC systems.
This is an interesting 5:28 video that showcased their facility in 2015:
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I always find turnaround stories interesting. While we often focus on the older AK rifles, there is a fascinating story about how Kalashnikov Concern modernized and developed world class capabilities. They produced the video that spurred me to write this post to share with you.
In the 1990s, Izhmash and Izhvesk were in tough shape. They were only using 10% of their capacity and government orders were reduced. By 2010, they were in a deep crisis. In 2012, the two groups were consolidated into the Kalashnikov Concern as part of RosTec — I’ll just say “Kalashnikov” going forward.
Kalashnikov leadership embarked on a large scale improvement journey leverage lean quality management concepts, CNC automation, and significant IT investments (ERP – Enterprise Resource Planning, MES – Manufacturing Execution System and WMS – warehouse management system are mentioned or briefly shown).
Kalashnikov wisely focused on their people — and I think this last part is key. They addressed a poor work environment with medical facilities, a cafeteria and training in modern methods. They even have a university that produces 300 graduates each year. Getting people to learn and change are always the hardest things to do yet also the most critical.
As a result, they improved productivity by 2.5 times, shrunk their time to market and removed a considerable amount of waste.
This video is a few years old but is a fascinating 8 minute journey starting with their origins through their turn around story. There are a lot of photos of CNC systems, brightly lit and clean factory areas, the warehouse, class rooms and more. It’s very impressive.
If you are interested in more information on the Kalashnikov Concern, click here.
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