New AK-74 at K-VAR: SGL31-44 (Saiga)

JSGlock34 · July 11, 2009, 4:04pm

Just when I give up on a factory AK-74…for those who missed out on the SLR-105 (like me), these will likely be popular.

d90king · July 11, 2009, 4:21pm

Looks like a great rifle! But, I am not going to add another round to my collection anytime soon. I don’t feel like chasing ammo, mags and spare parts… I will stick to 7.62 for now. It sure is tempting though…

Ray_T · July 11, 2009, 5:34pm

I’m glad this model finally came out! I have been looking for a 74 type rifle.

Boss_Hogg · July 11, 2009, 6:01pm

Great to see but I’m surprised they didn’t keep it under $900. What are milled Arsenal 5.45s going for?

ETA 9/18/09: price is now $799.

d90king · July 11, 2009, 6:23pm

It also appears they jacked the price up from 999 to 1099.:rolleyes:

senorlinc · July 11, 2009, 8:33pm

the only milled 5,45 i ever heard of was the slr102 which i have personally never seen for sale. although i do believe ORF made a milled 5,45 receiver in a very limited quantity (did see one on GB a while ago with s/n ooo1)

Tomac · July 11, 2009, 9:05pm

Makes me wish I’d stocked up on SAR-2’s when they were $250/ea!
Looked over the specs, don’t see any info on the bbl (where made, chrome lined?)
Tomac

RAM_Engineer · July 11, 2009, 9:23pm

these are Saigas. The barrels are most likely made where the rest of the gun is made: at the Izmash (Izhevsk Mechanical Works) factory in Izhevsk, Russia.

M4arc · July 11, 2009, 9:27pm

If you guys want a Russian 5.45 now’s your chance!

kaiservontexas · July 11, 2009, 9:48pm

I know I sit here looking at it thinking nice, but then it would mean finding all the above and adding it. I got other things to take care of as is anyway. I do like the break on the 74s.

RAM_Engineer · July 11, 2009, 11:53pm

I sold my both my Arsenal SLR-105s, all my 5.45 magazines and ammo to fund AR purchases. Now I’m looking at these and thinking…and thinking…and thinking…

rhetorical questions:

What advantage does this round and gun have over a 5.56 AR?
Do I really need TWO 7.62x39 AKs? Wouldn’t one of each caliber be better EVEN THOUGH I couldn’t share ammo and magazines between them?

kaiservontexas · July 12, 2009, 1:30am

Depends on what you want them for to answer the last question. If it is the zombie invasion then no it would be better to have two of the same rifle. If it is for collection and recreational shooting purposes then yes it would be fine.

M4arc · July 12, 2009, 2:26am

While I absolutely love the 7.62x39 round (see my signature line) the 5.45 is a sweet shooter as well. I thought about selling my 105, mags and ammo too but I’m glad I held onto it.

However, in your case I think I’d opt for more 7.62 mags and ammo.

kbi · July 12, 2009, 3:55am

:eek:

Thats all I need to see.

A nice factory 5.45 rifle that I like Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgggggggghhh damn this unemployment!

Hmm maybe I should use the funds from my lmt 10.5 I just sold for it?

Naaaaaaa

RAM_Engineer · July 12, 2009, 4:01am

That’s my plan. Like I said, those were strictly rhetorical questions.

For those that have never owned a 5.45, you won’t be disappointed if you get one.

Magsz · July 12, 2009, 11:10am

While it might be a nice rifle i cringe when i say this but i do believe thats pretty darned expensive for an AK.

I just picked up a bulgarian AK74 for 699 and even then i was a little disappointed i had to spend that much money on the darned thing. While i like the rifle i noticed that i am SIGNIFICANTLY faster on my AR than my AK.

At this point, i need more time on the AK but i can already tell that due to the sharper recoil impulse i will never be as fast on this thing.

I would NOT sell an AR for an AK unless its a financial thing. If you want to buy an AK, mags and 15k rounds right now, it might be worth it to you.

Spooky130 · July 12, 2009, 4:33pm

Mags:
http://www.copesdistributing.net/product_info.php?products_id=1584&osCsid=58d7a5fc3256d39e522045f20d35bb9f

or

http://www.copesdistributing.net/product_info.php?products_id=1583&osCsid=58d7a5fc3256d39e522045f20d35bb9f

or

http://www.aimsurplus.com/acatalog/AK_Surplus_AK74_545x39_Magazines.html

Ammo:
http://www.aimsurplus.com/acatalog/Russian_5.45x39_FMJ.html

I really like my 5.45 guns and took a bone stock one to an EAG AK Operator’s course. It worked well even stock and I went through about 1200 rounds without a hitch. I did clean it every night but more to keep it from rusting when shooting all that corrosive ammo. I shot it better than my LMT MRP with an Aimpoint on the MEU SOC course of fire.

This is the only readily available, factory built 5.45 gun on the market. If they are able to keep up with demand I bet the surplus 5.45 ammo is going to disappear from the market in short order.

Spooky

Business_Casual · July 12, 2009, 5:52pm

If they are able to keep up with demand I bet the surplus 5.45 ammo is going to disappear from the market in short order.

I wonder where all the Polish and other 5,45 stocks went. There were a good few countries that switched to 5.56 but we’ve mostly seen Bulgarian and old new stock Russian.

I don’t know, you could be right or there could be warehouses full of unused 5,45.

M_P

JSGlock34 · July 12, 2009, 5:59pm

SteyrAUG · July 12, 2009, 6:14pm

I’m sure it’s nice but I can’t drop an AR price on an AK unless it is a preban or something. I’ll just have to stick with my Tennessee guns Bulgarian 74 on a Nodak receiver. It is pretty nice and only cost me $650.