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"Heavier barrel? Press fit a sleeve over the factory barrel? If so what material and what are the results?" Results are tighter groups, but not AS tight as I expected. The big surprise is the CONSISTENT groups. I can shoot under 2" all day, with 1 1/4" being my best yet with Aussie surplus. The stock barrel design would range from 1 1/2" up to 4". (maybe I'm just becoming a better shooter, and it's not my gun...) More here: http://forum.saiga-12.com/index.php?showtopic=3441

Lookin' good, man! Isn't that pistol grip comfortable with the "shelf" on it? Mine almost spoils me. I kinda want one on all my rifles! BTW - New camo on mine. And the barrel gained a little weight...

Northern KY - Boone county. Some people joke that we're just a suburb of Cincinnati.

The pins drove out easily on mine - right to left (as you would sight the rifle). Tapping it with a plastic mallet only moved it about 1/8". I then heated it up a little with an oxy/acy torch, and it came off easily. I didn't see any silver solder or anything else holding it but friction. Don't worry about messing anything up by beating on it with a rubber/plastic mallet. You can wail on it all day long with one of those, and have no problems... I test-fired mine immediately after removal, and no ill effects, even after the torch heat was applied. Go for it!

Another welder here. I agree with Napolean above. Weld it up.

SWEEET! Another Kentuckian here. Louisville is about 1 1/2 hours from me. I'm amazed at how many Kentuckians I run into on various gun forums. Why is that? Must be that the spirit of the "Kentucky Rifle" is alive and well?!

Check the link in my first post for details on the other parts. Oh yeah, I also removed the rear sight since I don't think I'll use it anymore. A little bit of grinding, filing and good ol' JB took care of things. I think it gives the rifle a much smoother look. New camo scheme added too. I'll post back here with a range report on the "barrel addition" - this weekend hopefully.

I first removed the front sight. Originally, I wanted to have a "sleeve" machined at a local shop that would slip over the barrel and tighten down with set screws. Unfortunately, the machinist is out of town for the winter, so I took matters into my own hands... (Forgive my lack of measurements in the description.) It's basically a metal tube lightly tack-welded to the gas block at the rear. There was about a 1/16" of airspace between the inside of the sleeve and the barrel. I drilled 3 holes along the bottom length of the sleeve, and injected JB Weld into the each hole so the whole c

First, let me say that I haven't test fired it yet. I just got the rifle back together, and the Aluma-Hyde finish won't be fully cured for another 3 days. I originally posted pictures of this Saiga on this thread: http://forum.saiga-12.com/index.php?showtopic=2731 Since then, I've "beefed up" the barrel in an attempt to add stiffness and improve accuracy. I'll add more details in the following posts.

It's there so I can hang it up anywhere without a gun rack! (This actually works, but not the reason) Seriously - it's an "offhand grip". I saw this feature on an aftermarket AR-15 stock. When bench shooting, I pull the stock into my shoulder with my left hand on the grip. Works pretty well.

Great job. Glad I could help. Us Saiga owners need to stick together, don't we? I forgot to ask you about the rear adjustment knob. How did you install it? When I built my stock, I just welded a nut inside before I applied the 'glass. It works great for steady shots, as long as you're on a flat surface, and the cross hairs are in the "ballpark" on your target.

Great work! I wish I could work with wood like that. Give me a good piece of wood and some of the highest-quality shop tools, and I'll reduce it to toothpicks without even trying! Now, if you're talking about metal, fiberglass and PVC, I do OK. Go figure... Those Shooter's Ridge bipods are a great deal - and identical to the Harris. My buddy's got one - at about half the price of my Harris.

It's a Bushnell "Dusk & Dawn". I got it at WallyWorld for about $130. It has a big-ass 50mm objective lens - adjustable for paralax. Works great for low light. Variable zoom from 6-18X. I only wish it had target knobs. They're pretty handy.

All I know is it's a K-Var. Not sure about the model #. I bought it at Knob Creek for $40 or $50. It centers perfectly over the bore and so low the dust cover barely comes off.

I had to trim off the contour at the top of the backstrap so it fit level with the bottom of the reciever. I then steel epoxied a 5/16"stud into it. A lock nut on top holds it in place. Also, I had to Dremel out the front so the trigger guard would sit into the grip a little more. This gives me a comfortable "trigger reach" and keeps the grip from turning should the lock nut come loose (but it won't). It was really pretty easy.

I'm not familiar with any Saigas other than the .308, but it's rumored that the .308 is the easiest to convert. I've been told there are some steps on that site that you can skip completely. Not sure what you mean about "binding posts", but I don't think the .308 has them. Maybe those are the steps you can omit? Of course, I'm assuming you intend to install an AK-type aftermarket trigger, instead of modifying the stock trigger?

The piece that attaches the stock to the reciever is a scrap of thin-wall inch and a quarter square tube. I welded the framework of round tube (made from junk metal folding chairs) into the square. Then it was covered with fiberglass sheets and resin. There's about three coats of Bondo over that to smooth things out. Finshed with truck bed liner and Aluma-hyde. The recoil pad is a cut-down Pachmyr slip-on, Gorilla-glued to a shaped 11 gauge plate, spaced out for my correct length-of-pull. The cheek piece is 16 ga. aluminum plate "expertly" formed in a vise around a pipe. Some of the excess rub

I also have to thank many of the members on this forum for some great tips, tricks and ideas. I'm still a "newbie" here, but I've lurked quite a while to get all of the info I needed. I bought the Saiga with these mods in mind. I had most of the ideas in my head before I even got it. My buddy has one, and I was able to look his over and plan what I would do if I owned it. I eventually couldn't stand being Saiga-less, and took the plunge. I fired about 100 rounds through it to make sure it was sound, and then the disassembly began. It's been a fun project.

Here's another:

Let me try the picture again...

Trying out my new digital camera. I've had the Saiga for about 3 months. It was bone stock when I bought it, and I decided to make a few upgrades. I installed a Red Star Arms trigger. The Panther Arms pistol grip is intended for an AR-15, but with a little "persuasion", I got a nice snug fit on the Saiga. The scope mount is a K-Var with a Bushnell Banner Dusk&Dawn scope. Harris bipod on the front. The stock and forend are completely hand made by me. It took a little more work than I expected. I'll explain more about that if anyone's interested...

I have a .308 Saiga with a 22" barrel. I have a dedicated scope on it, and I have no use for the front (or rear) sight. I've read on this and other forums that the 18" barreled Saigas have better accuracy because the longer barrels tend to "whip" as the bullet exits the muzzle. I'd like to cut my barrel down to 18 (or 19) inches, but the thought of screwing something up worries me. The hardest part I believe would be re-crowning the end of the muzzle. I'm pretty handy with tools, and if anyone has done this with success, I'd like to hear your story.

vjor - Thanks for the conversion link. That's the most detailed procedure I've seen so far. I'll be sure to follow it when I start hacking. I've never looked forward to cutting and drilling on a reciever before!

Hello, A friend of mine bought his .308 Saiga at a gun show about month ago. He was like an excited little kid over his new purchase, while I thought it looked somewhat humble and "homely". That is, until we got it to the range... First time I shot it, I got a 2" 5-shot group with some surplus ammo that was about 50 years old. I fell in love. Call me crazy, but just I sold my Savage .308 so I could buy a Saiga next weekend at Knob Creek. You just can't beat fast follow-up shots. There should also be plenty of money left over for accessories. I understand that I'm not going to ge