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- The Kalashnikov Premium: An Analysis of the AR-15 & AK-47 Civilian Market Price Inversion July 20, 2025The United States civilian firearms market has witnessed a fundamental and counterintuitive inversion in the pricing structure of its two most popular modern sporting rifles: the AR-15 and the AK-47. For decades, the AR-15 was positioned as the premium, higher-cost platform, while the AK-47 was its affordable, utilitarian counterpart. Today, the opposite is true; a ...
- Pragmatism at Work: An Analysis of the Soviet AK-47 Slant Compensator July 19, 2025The introduction of the iconic slant-faced muzzle device on the Kalashnikov rifle was not an incidental aesthetic choice nor was it part of the weapon’s original design. Instead, its development and eventual adoption represent a case study in iterative, problem-driven Soviet small arms engineering. The device emerged as a direct and necessary response to a ...
- Performance Ranking the Top 50 Vendors in the AK-47 US Market July 17, 2025To aid buyers in understanding the greater AK/AK-47 firearm and accessory market, in the US this post is a companion to another post that looks at AK firearm brands in the US and social media standing. This post focuses on report performance of firearms and accessories and selection is based on the volume of mentions ...
- Cutting Through The Fluff – The US Civilian AK Market: A 5-Year Analysis of Consumer Sentiment and Brand Performance (2020-2025) July 16, 2025Ever get tired of trying to figure out what AK vendors might be worth buying a rifle from in the US? Well, I did but the thing is that I have the tools and experience to do something about it – namely a formal customer sentiment analysis. What I did was to have my analytics ...
- An Analysis of the Soviet AKM Rifle’s Rear Trunnions July 15, 2025The story of the AKM’s front and rear trunnions is inseparable from the larger narrative of the Kalashnikov rifle’s evolution. This evolution was driven less by a desire for radical redesign and more by the dogged pursuit of a manufacturing concept that was ahead of its time. The AKM, introduced in 1959, was not so ...
- An Analysis of the Soviet AKM Rifle’s Front Trunnions July 14, 2025The 1959 introduction of the Avtomat Kalashnikova Modernizirovanniy (AKM) marked a pivotal moment in the history of Soviet small arms manufacturing and global military doctrine. This modernized rifle represented the culmination of a decade-long effort to refine the original AK-47 design, moving away from the costly and time-consuming milled receivers that characterized the Type 2 ...
- AKs Around The World – The Proliferation of the Kalashnikov Design July 12, 2025Growing up in the 70s and 80s, I was patriotic and was mainly interested in American firearms. In 2006, I read an article about building your own AK by the late great Steven Matthews and I changed course dramatically. I’ve always liked history, machines and firearms and started reading books about Mikhail Kalashnikov ...
- The Engineering History of the Not So Lowly AK-47 Rivet July 4, 2025I’ve been involved with AK rifle building since 2006 and there’s something we take for granted – how rivets are used to secure the forged trunnions, and trigger guards to the sheet metal receiver. Not to mention the center support and side mount scope rail. Some have asked why rivets were even used thinking ...
- How to insert spark plugs without a dedicated socket June 28, 2025I was helping my brother in law do some basics on his 2020 Hyundai Kona – oil change, etc. One thing he wanted to do was to put new plugs in. So, we used a Craftsman 5/8″) spark plug socket to remove the plugs and lost the rubber insert along the way. ...
- History of Zastava Arms – A Summary of 170 Years May 17, 2025Zastava Arms, or Zastava oružje (Застава оружје) as it is known in its native Serbia, stands as a monumental testament to the nation’s industrial and military history. With origins stretching back to the mid-19th century, this Kragujevac-based manufacturer has not only equipped generations of soldiers but has also been a significant contributor to Serbia’s (and ...
- Yugoslavia’s AK Path: The Venerable M72 RPK May 16, 2025If you’ve ever held a military era Yugo M70B1, you know it’s heavy for an AK. If you thought that was heavy, now lift an M72B1 … now’s that’s heavy. The M70B1 and M72B1 are my favorite AK variants. I’ve owned and sold M76s, M77s, M92s and just keep returning to the ...
- Yugoslavia’s AK Path: The M70 Family of Rifles May 15, 2025Really, my experience with Yugo rifles began with the stamped M70 series. We’ve spent these last few posts providing the backstory, but how did Zastava move from the M64 to the M70 series? Let’s find out. 1. Introduction: Yugoslavia’s Independent Path to the Kalashnikov In the complex geopolitical landscape following World War II, the Socialist Federal Republic ...
- Yugoslavia’s AK Path: Where Did the 2,000 Russian AK-47 Rifles Come From May 14, 2025So far, we have covered the history of Yugoslavian and Soviet relations and then the two Albanian defectors and early Yugo AK development leading to the M64 but we glossed over an enduring mystery that deserves its own post. In this artice, we dive into the riddle of what third world nation Yugoslavia purchased 2,000 ...
- Yugoslavia’s AK Path: The Launch of the Zastava Family of Automatic Weapons and the M64 May 13, 2025In the last post, we reviewed the political climate and how the USSR did not want to share their revolutionary AK-47 design with Yugoslavia. At this point, we need to look at the ambitious 1959 launch of the project “Familija Automatskog Oružja Zastava” (FAZ), or the Zastava Family of Automatic Weapons and how the ...
- Yugoslavia’s AK Path: The USSR Would Not Share Their AK-47 Rifles or Designs With Yugoslavia May 12, 2025I’ve owned and built a number of AK-47 pattern rifles over the years and slowly one of my favorite series are the ones from Zastava when they were part of Yugoslavia partly because they are unique. Now, that opens the door – why were they unique? There is some very interesting history behind ...
- PSA has CCI Blazer 9mm 115gr FMJ on Sale! March 22, 2025Folks, I have shot a ton of this Blazer 9mm 115 grain FMJ ammo over the years at the range. Palmetto has it on sale for $219.99 + S&H – click here for it.
- How to repair a leaking SCUBA or high pressure air (HPA) tank valve stem o-ring March 8, 2025My 6.8L 300 bar/4,351 PSI Air Marksman tank had a slow leak. How slow? It would lose a few hundred PSI per month so real small and slow. I used the CRC Aerosol Leak detector to track it down. The seal between the 7/8ths inch valve stem and the tank/bottle is accomplished via an O-Ring ...
- Savior Equipment ID Patches – A Brilliant Affordable Innovation For Knowing What’s In Your Firearm Cases March 6, 2025Have you really stopped and looked at the modern tactical pistol, rifle, and range bags lately? They have evolved dramatically over the years to accomodate the needs of a wide range of shooters with tons of pouches, mounting points and straps all over them. What else do they have? Velcro. Wow. ...
- How to waterproof boot seams using Sno-Seal March 5, 2025My youngest daughter told me her favorite winter boots were leaking. She’s long since grown and on her own so I told her to bring them the next time she visited and I would see what I could do. She showed up a few weeks later with some nice winter boots made by Columbia that ...
- Why is surplus 5.56 and 7.62 ammo discolored around the neck? Is it bad? February 15, 2025I was asked this question just the other day and the short answer is no – it’s just fine. The reason it is discolored is that the brass is annealed in that area. This means the brass is heated and allowed to cool to remove stresses when it is being formed. If ...