I’ve always been told that the mechanical accuracy of the AK-74 is better than that of the AK-47. Is this purely due to the cartridge or manufacturing tolerances, etc.?
The x39 is a heavier bullet with more drop than the 5.45mm
Either one is going to be an easy shot on a man’s torso at 100 yds, but in my (relatively limited) experience, the x39 is a little harder to work with beyond 200yds
In my opinion, the 7.62x39 is a great “do anything” round. Its got plenty of barrier penetration without a huge amount of recoil. You can use it effectively for human targets but also put it to use against larger 4-legged game that .223 doesnt work quite as well against. Not to mention the inherent reliability of the platform itself.
The only thing that would make the 74 “more accurate” than the 47 is that the 5.45 cartridge is more forgiving of user error. Here is an example with ballistics:
AKM, 200 m zero: +3.9"@150 m, -7.8"@250 m
AK-74, 200 m zero: +1.9"@150 m, -3.8"@250 m
As a general rule, 5.45 trajectory changes half as much per change in distance as 7.62x39 trajectory. This means you are penalized half as much for making a mistake in range estimation. This holds true for wind, as well:
AKM, 20 mph wind, 250 m: 15.3" deflection
AK-74, 20 mph wind, 250 m: 8.2" deflection
It’s just more forgiving.
As for the weapons themselves, they’re all held to the same accuracy standard. Especially when you take the modern AK-100 series weapons into account, there are few differences between the AK-74 and 7.62 AK-103. The AK-74 had few changes over the AKM, and the majority of those changes were incorporated into the AK-103 (aside from caliber differences).
3 AK74s
4 AK47s
Both groups of guns will shoot about 3 inches at 100 yds with irons. In other words, I cannot tell the diff between them as far as accuracy.
I have owned and shot about 10 AK’s over the years and I can say hands down my AK74’s are more accurate than AK47’s.
As for 47’s I had 2 Chinese MAK90’s, a Steyr Maadi, a Arsenal USA made off Polish kit, and Arsenal SGL-20.
74’s I have had a Romanian SAR-2, Romanian WUM, Bulgarian folder made from new kit, Arsenal Bulgarian SLR105R, and Arsenal SGL-31.
The Bulgarian SLR105R has the best trigger and best accuracy hands down, the SGL-31 wound be in second place and the SGL-20 my pop has would be in third, it is the most accurate 47 I have fired. I shoot all of them at 50 and 100 yards, and I recently put some cheap red dots from Primary Arms on UltiMak’s and they are the shiznit on the AK platform.
My SLR105 with only open sights has shot 1.5" 5 shot groups at 100 yards with Wolf 70 grain FMJ.
At 50 yards both it and the SGL-31 can put 20 rounds with the red dot into a 2" square. At 100 they shoot 3" 20 shot groups, the Arsenal edging it out usually.
Most 47’s I have shot are closer to 3" for the 5 shot group and 5-6" for a 20 shot group.
if you meant AKM vs AK74 I would say the barrel is thicker on the '74 due to the smaller hole. Honestly I don’t think that the AK is accurate enough to notice that stuff. I feel its an ammo thing. I have an 5.45 ar that is a 2moa gun easy. I get the feeling from my norinco SKS, VZ58 as well as from a variety of AK47/AKM variants I’ve shot that its the ammo. That yugo stuff that people seem to love is not as good as most people seem to think IMO.
That’s interesting. I think I read that the 105’s have a slower twist than most other 74’s
If there is a difference it isn’t noticeable to me. I’ve had M70s that will out shoot AK74s. I’ve seen builds with cheap American barrels out shoot nice Bulgarian chrome line.
If you’re looking for a “this is X moa better than Y” I’m not really sure you’ll find it.
I have also noted that the 74’s may shoot better with the brake off for pure accuracy testing. Mine are pretty consistant but I have seen some improvement on rifles if you take the brake off and shoot for accuracy. The 70 grain Wolf in my rifles has been extremely accurate, it is made by ULY, Barnaul shoots well in 60 grain also, and the Hornady 60 grain V-Max is also excellent. The Wolf Tula made 60 grain is the least accurate in my rifles.
I don’t shoot past 200 yes so I can’t tell the diff between all of my ak’s.
My 74 was a LOT more accurate at 200-300 yards than my friends’ 47s, less noticeably so at 100 yards, but still slightly so.
Only have 7.62x39 AK’s, so I can’t say. The general consensus seems to be that the 74 is usually the more accurate one. I imagine there are exceptions though. Comparing a WASR to say a SGL31 is not really fair. The SGL31 is going to have a better barrel, and there are other factors.
l have both, they can easily hit a man sized target out to 200yds no problem.
Arguing accuracy is kinda silly, they both are very capable of performing there intended purpose.
A friend of mines Arsenal is more accurate than our wasrs. But I would hope that would be the case. Doesnt the 5.45 have a flatter trajectory over the x39? Also follow up shots are deffinetly quicker with the 5.45 think thats a given tho. I agree with the person above about the x39 being a great sub 200 yard do all round type of thing.
The most accurate AK I have owned is a solid 4 moa gun. It is great that you are getting 3 MOA. That is good. I have heard the AK74’s can do that however.
Pat
Accuracy is an important factor to consider when chosing a firearm. Its not the only decision but it ranks towards the top. In this case while most of the intended purposes of the Ak rifles would be done just fine with a less accurate rifle. Having a more accurate rifle gives you more options as your ability to reach out to threats further away increases.
Pat
This is correct. 5.45 tends to drop about half as much and be deflected about half as much in the wind as 7.62x39 over the same distance.
I have shot a bunch of 7.69x39 AK pattern guns, and while none of them were interestingly precise, most were in the solid 4-5 MOA range in the hands of competant shooters.
I have significantly less experience with 5.45 AKs, but the few I have shot for groups were in the 3-4 MOA range.
Interestingly, I have found that the surplus “Spam Can” 5.45 is more precise than the cost would imply, at least out of S&W 5.45 AR uppers, and I have shot and observed several ~2 MOA 5 to 10 round groups. I think that the ammo may have more of a role in the performance of 5.45 AK pattern guns over the 7.62x39 versions (discounting the abuse and neglect that many older, third-worldy AKs get) than any other factor.
7.62x39 becomes very challenging to hit with beyond 300m because of the amount of drop, especially so if there is wind adding up to the equation.
So where does the 5.56 AK (like the SLR-106) line up in terms of accuracy with the 5.45 and 7.62?
Apologies in advance if anyone thinks I am trying to hi-jack the thread, but this seems to me to be a logical addition to the discussion on the table.