First time trying my new AK47

[PulpBuster]

if you've been a bad kid, don't you get poo in your stocking for Christmas? that wouldn't be a bad stocking stuffer! oh, it's coal, isn't it...

being a newb to ak's myself, and having only researched on as many possible scope mounting options as i was able to find and reading reviews, i would say that most reviews out there agree with crak - the top cover mount will not allow your scope to hold zero, as it flexes during firing, and fits relatively 'loosely'. Ultimak rails may have potential heat issues affecting the mounted device over time according to some, as it sits just above the gas tube.

condensing what i've read down, i arrived at 3 possible options for red-dot or scope mounts that i would consider trying:
1. side-mounted rail
2. LaRue AK Mount (burris red-dot only right now) http://stores.homestead.com/Laruetactical/Detail.bok?no=134
3. a Beryl scope mount (DPH or Krebs?) - http://dpharms.com/beryl-style-scope-mount-p-230.html?osCsid=735cca5c14f5b066055ba03b53e8eb4a

of the 3 options, the side-mounted rail seems to be the most reliable, used, and trusted. for myself, i don't think i have the guts to drill 2-3 holes into my milled receiver, yet, so i'm leaving well alone for now. i think you are a step ahead with a side-mount already in place, ready to take a side-mounted rail, and then your choice of aiming devices.

 

[crak]

I had a huge problem drilling holes into guns.

Until I drilled my first hole into one.

Hey, that was easy! Use a punch to mark the hole, use a small bit first and then the final bit. Use cutting fluid. Easy sauce.

 

[Prepper]

What time were you there? I was in between 2 and 3 with my dad and brother. Dave was trying to fix my brother's Mossberg pump, it's off to Mossberg for further inspection.

It was the busiest I've ever seen in there. I wondered if it was typical of a saturday.

I was there between 2-3 for about 10 minutes looking then left. I had only been in the store once before, and it was empty that time (also a Saturday).

 

[Prepper]

Gringo, which Kobra sight did you get? How does it attach?

I agree the AK's look like poo. I had previously thought all those WASR-10's I had seen in stores were 40 year old surplus guns, because they just looked so ragged. Lo and behold, I find out they are actually new! Man was I surprised.

If I look at AK's costing twice as much, they do look put together better. Higher quality machining, actually somewhat attractive looking, etc. But if I'm going to pay that much for a gun, I'm buying another AR15 for less. The cheaply made one that I got looks like it is made entirely out of [poorly] stamped sheet metal. I'm both impressed and amazed that they otherwise work reliably.

Going back and looking at my (supported) groups at 25 yards, they actually look pretty close to 2" rather than 3". Its just that each group isn't consistently in the same place, due to both the crappy iron sights as well as my lack of experience with those sights. So, there's still hope that I can achieve that high precision shooting of 8" groups at 100 yards... something to look forward to! Barn doors will fear my name.

 

[theGringo]

Gringo, which Kobra sight did you get? How does it attach?

I agree the AK's look like poo. I had previously thought all those WASR-10's I had seen in stores were 40 year old surplus guns, because they just looked so ragged. Lo and behold, I find out they are actually new! Man was I surprised.

If I look at AK's costing twice as much, they do look put together better. Higher quality machining, actually somewhat attractive looking, etc. But if I'm going to pay that much for a gun, I'm buying another AR15 for less. The cheaply made one that I got looks like it is made entirely out of [poorly] stamped sheet metal. I'm both impressed and amazed that they otherwise work reliably.

Well, to put it plainly, I got the one the rifle came with. Until I saw it, I was completely unfamiliar with these scopes. There are Cyrillic markings on the bottom that seem to indicate EKP-1S, and this seems to be an older model because the reticle patterns are not the same as those shown for the newer models I have since learned about. It's side rail mounted.

I also looked at a few of the "new" WASR-10s and there's a lot of that rough, jigsaw-puzzle wood stock stuff around ... looks like an eighth-grader made it with a jig-saw in wood shop.

I agree that the AKs don't always look so purty, but it's kind of like having an ugly sister ... you just come to love her for what she is, not what she looks like. If I had a little more dough, I'd have looked for an Arsenal. I got what I got and am lucky to have it.

And I'm not really a black-plastic-tacticool guy anyway (no offense intended to the many here who are)

As for accuracy ... I think the AK should be adequate for my purposes.

ETA: I did tell the guy at the gun shop that I never thought I'd pay $550 for a stamped receiver AK, but .... here I am. (And then again, I never thought a man could earn an honest living with a glue stick an a pair of scissors ...)

 

[BOBKATT]

condensing what i've read down, i arrived at 3 possible options for red-dot or scope mounts that i would consider trying:
1. side-mounted rail
2. LaRue AK Mount (burris red-dot only right now) http://stores.homestead.com/Laruetactical/Detail.bok?no=134
3. a Beryl scope mount (DPH or Krebs?) - http://dpharms.com/beryl-style-scope-mount-p-230.html?osCsid=735cca5c14f5b066055ba03b53e8eb4a

Do yourself a favor when looking into red dot scopes for an AK and check out the ultimak rail gas tube replacement, an aimpoint compml2 or similar model aimpoint, and the 30mm low mount so you can cowitness with the iron sights.

 

[Prepper]

Now I'm feeling really stupid... how does this side rail on the AK47 work anyway? I'm trying to attach a side rail mount to it... the bottom of the mount has this lever thingy which doesn't seem to do much. I can slide the entire mount into the rail from the back end, but it still moves forward and back without much effort. Pushing the lever thingy is useless since its motion is blocked by the mount itself getting in the way. Am I supposed to detach the lever first or something? I'm confused here...

 

[Twigg]

how does this side rail on the AK47 work anyway? <snip>...

OK go here and read the tutorial on adjusting the side rail.

 

[Prepper]

OK go here and read the tutorial on adjusting the side rail.

Thanks for the tutorial. One more really stupid question... the mount slides on from the back, but where exactly should I stop sliding it forward? Should I push it all the way forward? When I do so, there isn't any satisfying mechanical feedback that I'm "done"... it seems I could push it a couple mm more if I tap it with a rubber mallet. Before I get it all the way forward, there's no other obvious feedback that I'm getting that it has settled in the right spot. Will the clamping be OK if I just clamp it on anywhere along the rail?

Meanwhile, I'm still waiting for the little red dot sight that I ordered... so I have time to ponder this thing.

 

[crak]

No tapping necessary. Slide it in and close the latch.

 

[Prepper]

OK good, although I tightened it without having it all the way forward. Hopefully that's OK.

This mount is the strangest thing. The way they have it is that the lever can only easily swing on the inside side of the mount, not the outside, since a little thing sticking down from the clamp is blocked by the mount itself. Once the whole mount is in place, that lever isn't going anywhere since it obviously can't swing into the receiver cover. If I pull the clamp down (basically bending it), I could pull the little blocking thing away enough to move it past the mount and get it to the outside (where it could then swing a full 180 degrees), but something doesn't seem right about having to bend it, so I'm not.

So what I had to do was tighten it before the retaining clip was on it, then I put the washer, clamp and retaining clip on. It seems to be working but isn't exactly quick release. If I need to remove this, I'll have to take the clip out first. Hopefully I won't need to do that much.

 

[Prepper]

I finally brought this to the range with the new red dot scope on it. I quickly got it zeroed at 25 yards, where it easily groups less than 1" at 25 yards... this is a huge improvement over the near useless iron sights it came with. However, I quickly realized another problem... everything loosened up and I had to stop after 30 rounds. The mount started moving forward/back on the gun. The rail on top of the mount loosened way up (screws rose up about 1/8" inch). The latter I can fix easily with Loctite. The former is going to be more tricky since that little lever on it is useless for tightening it. It seems to be designed backwards.

 

[Prepper]

I think I need some pics to show what I'm talking about with this mount. Notice that the lever only swings inward. There is a little tab that sticks out which causes its motion to be blocked by the mount, and there is a notch on the inner side (the side that faces the gun) for this tab on the lever to fit into. So, whoever designed this thing clearly intended the lever to only swing back and forth from the side of this mount that faces the gun. Which is, of course, impossible since the gun would be in the way, making the lever 100% useless.

I would expect the lever to be on the outside of the mount so that I could push it closed, and tighter, while the mount is on the gun. The notch would likewise be on the outside to block the lever from moving further when its little tab bumps into it.

Am I missing something really obvious here? Note that this mount isn't the same one I ordered... it is somewhat different, doesn't match the picture from the web site I got it from.

 

[01SVTvert]

The lever itself doesnt bend slightly down to make it go to the right side of the mount and then turn it to the left until it locks into the depression? Or could you tighten the screw with the handle removed (without the locking bar) and then replace the bar in its proper place?

EDIT: looking at the turorial you remove that locking bar and then adjust the screw with the arm once on the rifle, tighten and THEN reposition the arm to the secured position and reinsert the locking bar.

 

[SKS Ray]

Stick a flat blade screwdriver under the tab and fold it down so you can have the lever swing on the correct side. Its a tight fit and it should be. Someone just snapped it to the wrong side.

Tantal's site has clear info on how to adjust any Russian style clamp adjustment. http://tantal.kalashnikov.guns.ru/pso/clamp_adjustments.htm

 

[Prepper]

I did think about bending the lever down so the tab clears, but something doesn't seem right about it being necessary to do that. Seems like a design flaw. (Metal has a tendency to remain bent once you bend it... well unless of course it is a spring.) Sigh. OK I guess I can live with doing that...

 

[01SVTvert]

Looks to me like no bending necessary, just adjusting it with the little locking bar off and then replacing the long arm in the correct place securing it with the locking bar. Basically using the long arm like a wrench rather than a permanently attached arm. Am I correct?

EDIT: looked at the Kilinka site and it does show the tab on the arm at the fron of the mount, sounds like bending it to get it in front is the way to go.

http://tantal.kalashnikov.guns.ru/bstmounts.html

about 1/2 way down the page