JK-47

great writeup and pics, thank you!

I would argue that you can just slap on a heavy barrel and expect improvements in group size. If the quality of the barrels are on par with each other, the heavy barrel will be an improvement. It won't give you a tackdriver but it's a step in the right direction.

dude, thats nearly 1/2 - MOA !

IF you are deciding which to convert, the heavy barreled models will not readily accept any hand guard retainer I know of. You options are much more limited swapping barrel parts because of the barrel dimensions (really it's a medium-weight barrel profile, being half way between standard AKM and the RPK's heavy weight barrel- it shares dimensions with the Saiga .308 ONLY AFAIK).

YodaMaadi, thank you for the pics... Now I must have one.

WOW, unbelieveable. How did heavy barreled saigas sneak into the country like this? No hype or even advertising on the new model. The dimensions seem to fall short of RPK barrel dimensions, but is still a heavy barrel as far as AK's are concered. I guess those are Saiga-308 barrel parts repurposed. Very interesting. ROMANIAN RPK PATTERN BARREL: Chamber .908" (23mm w/ .003 - .006" press fit) Rear Sight Base .884" (22.45mm w/ .003 - .004" press fit) Handguard Retainer .863" 8.0938" (8 3/32") / 205.58mm from breech face Cleaning Rod Retainer .756" 15.6875" (15 11/16") / 398.46mm from br

Wow, that is awesome news. I just assumed Classic was using the wrong picture (again). Does any one have a pic of one of these elusive and rare H-Bar Saiga's the wild?

I just saw 20" barreled 5.45 rifles listed on the Classic Arms website. Has anyone seen one in person yet? This is the first I've heard that a 20" barreled version even exists.

Should be good/great on an AK based bullpup.

18" is the federal minimum length for a shotgun barrel to be legal. Any shorter and it is considered a "short barreled shotgun" and is illegal to own/make without a tax stamp.

I have no idea, though it certainly sounds like the wrong way. I guess if solder does not block the gas port you might be ok. Then again, the gas block should be easily replaced by most AKM pattern gas blocks, that'd be my recommendation.

all this Teflon / PTFE talk sounds like bullshit to me. If you are familiar with the concept of "occam's razor" the simplest explanation is the most likely: rounds are hitting the muzzle device.

I woudl take between 4 and 8

would you be able to clarify, what shells 2 3/4" ? what is your magazine marked, 20 x 76mm? the more detail you give the easier it will be to figure out.