Whe most shooters think about the Avtomat Kalashnikova, they picture the rugged, wood and steel carbine churned out in the millions by the Soviet Union and dozens of its satellite nations.
In a word: rough.
The original AK-47 was built with a beefy milled receiver and over-gassed-yet-reliable long-stroke piston system.
But the Russian military hasn’t fielded a wood and steel AK of any variety for decades. They quickly replaced the heavy milled receiver with a folded steel one, and in the ’90s replaced the furniture with lighter polymer.
Russia imported the sporting version of these arms into the US under the Saiga name for years, but these imports have all dried up as a result of US sanctions.
Despite these changes, and even changing calibers from 7.62x39mm to 5.45mm, the AK has several shortcomings that make it inherently less accurate and modular than the M16/M4 carbine.
In an attempt to drag the AK into the 21st century, Arsenal of Las Vegas has unveiled their new super modern AK, the AK-20.
Details are scant at the moment, but YouTuber Tim Harmsen of Military Arm Channel had a chance to fire the new weapon in Las Vegas with Arsenal. Check out Tim’s video below for more details.
Two things are very interesting about the guns shown. First, unlike nearly every AK derivative, these feature free-floated barrels and gas tubes which are adjustable. This could make these new guns very effective suppressors hosts - especially since they seem to lack the self regulating gas system of standard AKMs.
Second, the guns are 100% made in America. This is great news as it helps cushion against potential parts supplies drying up if some overseas conflict breaks out.
The new AK-20 and other rifles shown in the video are certainly interesting, and it would be very interesting to see how well the market receves these firearms. Especially given the purist nature of AK owners. Hopefully, we’ll get a chance to try out these rifles at SHOT Show 2020, but it’s unlikely. For more information, visit https://www.arsenalinc.com/usa/
