A good 7.62x39 rifle?

[cedartop]

All three rifles you mentioned would be great shooters, but I would give the AK my vote. Mini's are great, but factory (reliable) mags are uncommon and pricey. The second generation of the Sig 556R's are awesome, but your a little more limited to what mags it will use (US Palm and ((10)) Waffles are a no go) and you'll need to buy optics / sights. The AK is tried and true, as well as in service with soldiers around the globe. Arsenal would be the route I would go, in a Bulgarian SLR. The Izhmash SGL-21's are nice, but are actually AK-74's chambered in 7.62X39 thus making many surplus parts incompatible. VEPR's are built extremely well, but take a lot of work to turn into an evil black rifle since they are imported in a "sporter" configuration. The AR's chambered in 7.62X39 have been attempted by several of the big gun companies(RRA, Colt, etc...), but almost always suffer from reliability issues plus mags are uncommon.

Good post though I would lean more towards the 556R, but just by a little.

 

[Shootin'IN]

Just picked up an AK pattern rifle (WASR 10) and absolutely love it.

I agree, my WASR 10 is tack driver out to 300 yds or so & dependable as hell.

Or I would go with a SKS also very dependable.

 

[remauto1187]

So you are wanting to dive in whole hog into a chambering that the production of is about 95% off shore, and for the most part non-reloadable? It would be far wiser to take that $$$ and invest in reloading equipment and supplies and choose a caliber that is commonly produced domesticaly. You will always be at the mercy of the markets unless you make yourself otherwise.

You do know that winchester among others makes brand new 7.62x39 brass cases, right? You can buy loaded russian stuff by the case of 1000 relatively cheap and affordably stock pile it. I wouldnt even consider the chambering a downside.

 

[Shootin'IN]

You do know that winchester among others makes brand new 7.62x39 brass cases, right? You can buy loaded russian stuff by the case of 1000 relatively cheap and affordably stock pile it. I wouldnt even consider the chambering a downside.

Thank goodness someone posted about that I was about to.
I could see his point if he was talking about the 5.45x39 round but not the 7.62x39.

 

[cumminspwrd02]

I purchased a Yugo SKS a few years ago, it was my first 7.62x39 rifle. I really enjoy shooting it and the gun, other than being covered in cosmoline when I purchased it, has been trouble free. I would like to pick up either an AK or the cz58/vz2008 type rifle some day.

 

[chezuki]

I agree, my WASR 10 is tack driver out to 300 yds or so

Pics of your 300 yard groups? I could see 'combat effective', but WASR 10 (or any AK for that matter) and "tack driver" aren't often in the same sentence.

 

[Voodoo574]

Well since I am currently in the middle of a SKS build right now, I guess I am gonna throw my in here. I think you should get each one that has been mentioned here. Each firearm has it's own special nitch. And thats why we love them all in one way or another. But if it really comes down to it, in the 7.62x39 caliber, my vote is for an AK or SKS. Cheap, plentiful, you can hack on it and not feel bad, and the after market loves them. No matter what, if your not happy with your first choice, you can always sell it and get something else.

 

[kawtech87]

After the ammunition shortage chaos of the last year I am looking to obtain a semi auto rifle in 7.62x39. Right now my choices are narrowed to 3: Ruger Mini 30, Sig 556r and an Ak pattern probably an arsenal or Vepr. I have experience with the Ruger mini 14 having owned one but the other 2 I have no familiarity with. If anyone has any input or experience with these rifle types I would appreciate it. Right now the Mini-30 is what I am leaning towards.

Definitely AK out of those options you listed. Either brand you have listed will serve you well. I have two Arsenals a Milled and a Stamped receiver. The Veprs I have handled are all very nice too. Imported ammo is cheap, surplus mags are cheap and plentiful and usually reliable, parts are widely available. There really aren't many downsides to owning an AK.

And to be honest I really haven't heard many positive reviews of the Mini-30 rifles, but I have no first hand experience with one so I don't really know.

SKS is also a great rifle. We have 5 Russians spread though out our family's collections. Awesome rifles for the money. Chinese, Yugo or Russians are the ones to look for.

 

[tradertator]

Good post though I would lean more towards the 556R, but just by a little.

My uncle bought a TSD Christmas packaged 556R, and I spent the better part of last Sunday running it. I was extremely impressed with it (as well as the Kompressor brake and Zurich Wedge). Honestly, the only reason I gave my SLR107FR the edge is A) I'm heavily invested in US Palm and ((10)) Waffles, and B) I'm way more familiar with it. I do my best to be impartial with these threads, but the honest truth is I've ran AK's since I was a kid and its become second nature. I was pretty apprehensive with the 556R at first because of the first generation issues, but the new ones are slick. I'd say I'll be picking one up when my SDN-6 can gets approved next year.

 

[McGraw]

I have a saiga AK and for $500 you just can't beat it. But if you have the extra cash I highly recommend the Sig 556r SWAT model. It takes AK mags has an AK operating system and even though I have not gone to 500 yards I have read reviews that say the rifle will do so accurately. The longer sight radius makes for easier iron sight distance shooting. I put diamond head flip ups on mine. For a battle rifle I also really like that the safety is like an AR so it can be manipulated while maintaining a shooting grip. Two words of caution on the Sig, make sure you either get a later production gun or one that has already received the updates, mag shelf, ejection port etc. I also have one magazine that will not feed the sig right all of the time. 95% yes but not 100. Never had that problem with the AK. Fortunately I got plenty of mags so no big deal but make you run them all so you know before you need to know.

 

[roadrunner681]

well my only experince with the caliber is with akm's, i would recommend a yugo m70 or a sar 1 ak if you can find one. my sar 1 shoots 2-3moa with cheap ammo,and every now and then it shoots better(not often) but thats plenty for a pop can killer and works well against coyotes just make sure you have soft points.

 

[88GT]

Another vote for the AK.

Gotta love the ak. Cheap reliable mags, plenty of aftermarket stuff, and the rifle itself doesn't break the bank. Plus there's something about it that's so "evil" and makes the antis pee themselves.

Define "doesn't break the bank." Just bought Mr88GT a VEPR and nearly crapped my pants. Of course, I remember when the high side of AKs was pushing $300 and Bradis still sold milsurp in their $49 rack.

So you are wanting to dive in whole hog into a chambering that the production of is about 95% off shore, and for the most part non-reloadable? It would be far wiser to take that $$$ and invest in reloading equipment and supplies and choose a caliber that is commonly produced domesticaly. You will always be at the mercy of the markets unless you make yourself otherwise.

He'll be at the mercy of the markets even if he reloads. The components aren't immune to supply/demand just because they aren't put together in a finished product.

 

[3badkids]

Sig 556R (bottom gun is sig 522)

 

[YoungMilsurpGuy]

Ever look into a Vz-58. I hear they are sweet guns, being lighting, more accurate, and having less recoil then an AK and generally having better workmanship. Key difference is it works on a short stroke gas piston and has a bolt that is like an SKS

 

[xdmstu]

Forget all the evil black guns. Go classic. Go compact. Go Euro-style.

http://www.cz-usa.com/products/view/cz-527-carbine/

This is on my shortlist.

 

[Cerberus]

You do know that winchester among others makes brand new 7.62x39 brass cases, right? You can buy loaded russian stuff by the case of 1000 relatively cheap and affordably stock pile it. I wouldnt even consider the chambering a downside.

Yeah I know Winchester and Remington domesticaly produce 7.62x39, but it is not very cheap, not any cheaper than rounds that perform much better. If I am going to spend nearly $1 a pop, I am going to buy something that has lots more capability over 300m. And let's be honest, how easy is the brass to buy? The bullets? Have you ran into the different sized primer pockets yet? I did. I went down this road already, spent three years exclusive time on the domesticaly available AKs, and playing with the real kind since 1988. I am no AK neophite. There is a very good pragmatic reason I don't own anything in the 7.62x39 chambering anymore. Have fun buying any brand of domestic AK fodder in bulk, and then have fun getting decnt brass life once you start to reload it.

 

[teddy12b]

Pics of your 300 yard groups? I could see 'combat effective', but WASR 10 (or any AK for that matter) and "tack driver" aren't often in the same sentence.

Put me on the list of guys wanting to see these tack driver pictures.

 

[Cerberus]

Put me on the list of guys wanting to see these tack driver pictures.

Me too. 5 MOA is "tack driver" in AK parlance.

 

[McGraw]

I see some fellow 556r owners here. Looking for the old folding collapsible stock... Please help. Or a DDLES stock adapter.

 

[YoungMilsurpGuy]

I see some fellow 556r owners here. Looking for the old folding collapsible stock... Please help. Or a DDLES stock adapter.

What, do the new ones have those collapseable AR stocks? Besides an AR with the gas tube and the stock in a straight line, they sorta suck, like when people put them on AKs and shotguns and their angled down