AR v. AK

AR v. AK, part 96

For you few new readers, I despise semi-auto weapons for the Apocalypse. I won’t rehash the reasons- you can read my free book "Apocalypse Gun Porn". Yet, there are no longer any war surplus rifles available at a cost commensurate to their shortcomings ( my nipples perk up at the very thought of the British Lee-Enfield, my sphincter tightening at the prospect of its no. 9 bayonet being attached- yet, they are NOT worth $400 for a loose fitting shot out barrel ). The only other option for a rifle under that cost is civilian hunting long arms ( you MIGHT still find the odd surplus gun, but never much less than $300 ). Yet they have their issues. One being the less than stellar reputation of most companies, the thinking being more on the quarterly profit rather than an old style reputation. And the bigger one being, compared to military arms, they are rather fragile wallflowers. NOT what you want to enter the Apocalypse with, if you can help it ( no gun save the HK-91 generics are the perfect survival gun, and they suffer from being priced accordingly ). One option is to turn your semi-auto into a bolt gun. An AK can be rather easy, the AR requiring a gas tube block that will need a gunsmith to screw it down. To my mind, this is the way to go if you can afford a $600-$800 rifle. You get the rugged military construction, in a proven design ( in other words, you don’t have to worry about the manufacture, usually ), using relatively cheap ammo ( the days of 25 cent ammo are over-be happy it is still at 35 cent ) and, if you assemble it yourself, the bayonet option, without the ammo waste issue.

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So then, we have to ask ourselves, after choosing for the mid grade price option ( frugal-civilian bolt, mid grade-AR or AK, high price-HK91 ), which one should I pick? I actually like the AR, once the powder fouling problem is eliminated. It is light weight, has zero recoil, and shoots like a mid range sniper rifle. But I like the AK ( I owned the SKS at one time, but the systems are similar enough ) because it is built like a tank and won’t fail you in the field, even if it is a poor marksman. Will the AR fail you if the fouling problem is eliminated? Sadly, yes. It is too high tech with too many fragile parts made to too high of tolerances. Which is why it is accurate compared to the AK which is built lower tech and sloppy. The AR is far superior, in a modern society with resupply, until the thing binds up in the field from dirt and residue. The AK is superior where re-supply is a problem and a gunsmith is not around. You know, like in an Apocalypse. You can garage tool fix a few AK problems ( remember the guy building a AK receiver from a shovel blade and its stock from the shovel handle? ), whereas the AR is strictly a part replacement proposition. Now, I grant you, there will be a LOT more AR’s out there, so in theory this won’t be a huge issue. Yet, an AK won’t demand a replacement, AND it won’t jam on you in combat. I still maintain ( as shown by my choice of the Enfield over the Mauser ) that dirt resistance is still better than tighter tolerances. It IS your life on the line, not a random soldier you command.

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