Guntoter
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Posts posted by Guntoter
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They are snake oil, imho.
The 5.45 mag curvature does not allow reliable use with .223 cartridges, no matter what followers you use. This is what lead to the Sar-3/WASR-3(.223 caliber) being regarded as "a substandard AK", as Century just tossed an East German AK74 mag or two into the box with each, in the early days of their importation.
From left to right: Bulgarian 5.56x45/30, Bulgarian 5.56x45/20, Bulgarian 7.62x39/30 and Bulgarian 5.45x39/30. You can see the differences in mag body curvature.
Thanks for the info. I haven't been around much but back when I bought my Saiga these were being touted here as better than sliced bread. Time must have not borne out the hype, huh? Guess I'll need to scrounge some .223 mags.
Thanks,
Guntoter
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Ernestmayhand said all you had to do is sign up with Vimeo (it costs nothing), and you can have the option of saving the whole video onto your computer. That's what I did. That way, you won't lose it
.Or... if you don't want to register and give another site your email and info you can snag the raw .flv file out of your browser cache and convert it to WMV, AVI, etc. using a free FLV converter. I use Free FLV but there are many free coverters on the net.
Thanks for that link Superhawk138.
Guntoter
Or, or, you can use Firefox, download the DownloadHelper application and it'll snag any embedded video file at the source and save it to your computer in its original state! Isn't the internet grand?
Internet HIGH-FIVE!
Please do! I make a pretty good living repairing Windows after it gets trashed. PineTree Computers wouldn't be where it's at today if it weren't for users looking for a "better way".
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I'd like to pick up a few .223 followers to use in the 5.45 mags I've collected. Is there a source for these other than Robinson? They appear to have them in stock but no on-line ordering and I'd like to find some cheaper than $6.00.
Thanks,
Guntoter
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Ernestmayhand said all you had to do is sign up with Vimeo (it costs nothing), and you can have the option of saving the whole video onto your computer. That's what I did. That way, you won't lose it .
Or... if you don't want to register and give another site your email and info you can snag the raw .flv file out of your browser cache and convert it to WMV, AVI, etc. using a free FLV converter. I use Free FLV but there are many free coverters on the net.
Thanks for that link Superhawk138.
Guntoter
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in Saiga .223
Where is said bastion of reasonable prices... URL etceteraThanks
http://www.ellettbrothers.com/Attachments/...te/Homepage.htm
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Thanks Vjor,
Seriously considered that before but I haven't had much luck getting paint to stick to plastic. If you've had good results from Duracoat then I need to give it a try. When you say "95% Alcohol" do you mean Denatured Alcohol or Isopropyl? I've got everything I'd need to apply the stuff in my shop so I'll give it a try.
Thanks,
Guntoter
P.S. WTH is up with "email notification"? I only get a notice of reply on about a third of the threads I've posted in.
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To tell the truth I'm kind of liking the stock forend right now. That may change once it's converted though. I believe I will get the forearm adapter when I order the bullet guide from Dinzag just so I can try it both ways. I wish the stock forearm was available in different colors. I kind of like the looks of the olive drab stock/pg that K-var sells but it would look odd with black forearm.
Guntoter
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Horseman,
Apologies for hi-jacking your other thread. Can you post a pic or link for the 3rd gen scope mount you used. I still haven't shot my Saiga yet and need to get a decent mount for when I get the chance. Glad to hear yours is working good. Did you get decent accuracy once the scope was in place?
Guntoter
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Mosin, K-31, K98k parts out the wazoo. Shipping included in prices and Layne is great to deal with and ships fast.
http://www.tngunparts.com/Catalogue.htm
If he doesn't have it keep checking back as stock gets updated regularly. Looks like a bayonet for your Mosin is $15.00.
Guntoter
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Here is a great site for reloading info:
http://www.reloadammo.com/reload.htm
Scroll down to second half of page and you'll find a number of tutorials and Faqs that should help you along.
Get several manuals. At LEAST two and preferably three or four. When choosing a load you need to match it to the exact brand, type, and weight of bullet. This is particularly true of rifle calibers. Bullets differ in design even among the same caliber and weight. Reloading is easy but it is a precise art with little room for error. Changing components even slightly can cause pressures to skyrocket so follow the recipe exactly. Really important until you get experience and understand the effects that changing components can have on the load.
Lee makes GREAT stuff. Going Lee you can probably double the complexity of your reloading setup versus the cost of the basics in another brand.
Two excellent places for reloading gear are:
Lots of good info out there just go slow and have patience. One other thing to remember, when reloading for a gas operated weapon you need to keep the pressure at the gas port within range of what the gun was designed for. Too low pressure will not cycle the action and too high can damage or destroy it. Most manuals list loads suitable for semi-autos if they are popular in that caliber. Stick with them and don't try to load as if it's a bolt gun and you'll be ok.
Good Luck,
Guntoter
P.S. Forgot about this one:
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Well, out of curiosity (and a little concern) I emailed RAAC to see if I could get their take on it. Here's what I received back:
HI KEVIN,
THAK YOU FOR YOUR INTEREST IN OUR PRODUCTS. THE 223 WILL SHOOT EITHER COMMERCIAL AMMO OR THE MILITARY STYLE AMMO. THAT IS THE ANSWER THAT I GET FROM THE FACTORY. THE TWIST RATE FOR THE 223 IS 1/10.
CLYDE WOODS
SALES & MARKETING
RUSSIAN AMERICAN ARMORY COMPANY
Now, I don't know if that could be considered the final word or not since it doesn't state SPECIFICALLY that 5.56 NATO is ok. It says "MILITARY STYLE" ammo. It appears he forwarded the question to someone at IZHMASH and this was the answer he received back. I guess it depends on their conception of what constitutes "military ammo". I would think that most Russian weapon engineers would be familiar with the 5.56x45 but you never know. If they approached it as a "foreign" round and consulted SAAMI specs it could actually be a .223 chambering. My understanding is that there is no SAAMI spec for the NATO round.
I wish the answer had been more definitive but, there it is!
I suspect Vjor's initial suspicions are probably accurate for several reasons, one being that most European countries had or still have restrictions on civilian ownership of weapons chambered in the same caliber used by police and military. Even knowing it isn't true (yet!) in the U.S. the perception might be that it just would look better if it was labeled .223 rather than 5.56mm. Kind of a CYA move on their part.
Red Jacket, I have no question what you have experienced is accurate. I wonder if the increase in cyclic rate could be due not only to the higher pressure in the NATO rounds but also to the recoil spring rate used. I have noticed that European semi-autos (no experience with full-auto) seem to be almost universally under sprung whether rifle or pistol. This is so pervasive that I personally believe this is "engineered" into weapons as a reliability measure. I believe this is done to give the best chance of cycling should a shooter encounter a weak or underpowered round with the theory being reliability is worth the increased wear. Considering the length of time East Bloc countries are known to store ammo before surplussing it out this makes sense to me. I admit though that it's just a pet theory of mine and I could be just stone stupid.
Guntoter
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Alright Bob! Another Savage convert
. I think they surprise a lot of people. At least the ones that give them a chance. I have never shot a Savage that I would call less than "very accurate" and they seem to be almost universally "extremely accurate" regardless of caliber. Even the lightweight barrel rifles seem to be tack drivers. I don't think you can get more accuracy for three times the price. After checking out Savageshooters.com I think we are members of a rapidly growing fraternity of shooters who have "seen the light"!When I got mine I only shot one box of factory loads through it before starting to work up handloads. I think it was Hornady Custom Ammo. If I remember right those produced 3/8" groups. Mine seems to prefer the 50-53 grain bullets as well. I got the best groups with Hornady and Sierra bullets and Accurate Arms powder.
Since I don't have my reloading gear set up right now I've been thinking about trying some factory loads to see if there is one I could get decent groups out of for the time being. There has been a lot of improvement in factory loads since I bought it in '92 or '93 so I expected there would be several that would do fine if I could get them at a decent price.
Those Federals sound like the first ones I need to try. If you have them handy and get the chance would you post the part number for the ones you have? I live down here in BFE South and don't have squat in the way of gun stores so I will most likely have to order them on-line. It would sure help me get the right ones if you could.
The nearest range is 120 miles+ round trip so when I make the trip I have to go prepared to spend the day.
I try to stick with Federal brass anyway regardless of what I'm loading for so that would be a bonus too.
Thanks,
Guntoter
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It's on there. Maybe the bottom front?
Horseman - that is the trunnion ID. There's also one on the receiver somewhere...
also the bolt & carrier.
Thanks for responding guys.
Dinzag, I just rechecked it for about the tenth time. If that number is anywhere on the receiver it's printed in invisible ink and I can't see it or I'm going blind. The last three digits of the serial are on the bolt, carrier, etc. but not even those are on the receiver itself. The only full serial on the weapon is located on the left side of the front trunnion where it extends above the receiver.
Someone smeared white paint across it to bring the numbers into clear relief. I couldn't believe it either. That's why I went over it so many times before posting. I even used my visor magnifier on it thinking maybe the numbers had filled in with black paint when the receiver was coated.
From what I've seen this is the way the genuine AK's are serialed. All the kits I've looked at have the full serial on the trunnion and the last three digits on everything else. I'm just dumbfounded that one earmarked for the U.S. would be the same way.
Horseman, does your Saiga have the "read manual first" warning on the left side of the receiver?
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Just curious if everyones serial number is located on the front trunnion? When I got my new Saiga from Stanleys a couple of weeks ago I was surprised to see that it didn't have the "Read manual first" crap slathered across the side of the receiver. I've seen pics of ones that do have it and thought I'd find it on any new firearm. Since it drives me up the wall I was thrilled with its absence.
The second shock was discovering there was no serial number whatsoever on the receiver itself. I know it's usually on the trunnion on the AK kits that come in but as probably everyone here knows under BATFE rules the receiver and therefore the gun is the part with the serial on it. Is this standard on Saigas? If so I sure don't see how they got that one by. In my case at least the front trunnion is the receiver. I guess if the trunnion gets damaged it would be junk unless RAAC would replace it.
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That guide looks pretty straightforward. The only thing I'd add is you really need sandbags to accomplish this. You have to have the rifle secure enough that it doesn't shift at all when you move your head from the sights to the scope.
If you don't have sandbags you can make them out of old blue jean legs. Use the coarsest CLEAN playground sand you can find. A bag of it shouldn't be more than 3-5 bucks and will be enough for you and all your friends to make sandbags with. Do not use thin or dirty sand unless you want to get covered in it every time you pull the trigger. Some people use rice but I don't care for it as it shifts too easy for my taste. Oh, and don't overfill the bags as then they won't let the rifle nest down in them if you do.
I'd also use a better target than the one shown in the pic. If you use a larger target with a lot of aiming marks it's easier to get the rifle situated on a mark. It doesn't matter where on the target the iron sights rest at as long as you can identify that same mark when you move to the scope. Hope that makes some kind of sense.
Guntoter
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If you really, really want to find out what kind of accuracy your Saiga (or any other rifle) is capable of, it's been my experience you need a decent high power scope on a rock solid mount, plenty of sandbags so you can set up a comfortable rest, some clear easy to see targets, and of course the time and patience to get set up and do the job.
It's possible to shoot for accuracy with open sights at 100 yards but for most of us, even those with good eyes, it's damn difficult. Every time you have a flyer you have to wonder if it was the gun or did you move slightly. Even a mediocre shooter can hit the kill zone of most animals at 100yds with open sights but for determining accuracy that doesn't cut it.
Any rifle I test for accuracy gets a 6-24 or 8-32 scope mounted on it no matter how silly it looks even if I'm planning on using a 4, 6, or 3x9 scope on it in the field. Not only does this eliminate screwing with a spotting scope but I can tell the instant I pull the trigger whether or not I pulled the shot. On a really hot day heat waves will cause problems at 32x but I've shot on 100 degree plus days and never had a problem at 24x. I like to use a standard Redfield sighting target myself as it has proven to be the easiest for me to see the bullet holes and they are large enough that you can shoot a number of 5 shot groups before you have to change the target. I also use dime size sticky dots to give myself more aiming points and extend the amount of time between target changes further. You can get them at Wally World or an office supply place and at 24x there is a lot of dot visible even if your scope has thick cross hairs which most target/varmint type scopes don't.
Once you've set up like this, shot several varieties of ammo or handloads, and done it on different occasions to verify your results are repeatable you can be pretty sure what kind of groups your rifle is capable of. At that point you can slap a normal scope back on it, sight it in, and then be comfortable in the knowledge that if you shoot at and miss something by six inches or a foot it was you and not the rifle
.If you have to use open sights or a low power scope stick to 50 yards max and, theoretically at least, you can double your group size to get an idea of what your rifle is capable of at 100 yards.
One of these days I'm going to get out to the range with my .223 Saiga and see what it will do. It would be nice if it comes near my .223 Savage varmint rifle but somehow I think 1 hole groups are a bit too much to ask of it
. Actually I'll be thrilled if it will hold them inside three inches. For a semi-auto military based weapon that would be fine.Guntoter
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Well, looks like Stanleys got some stock back in but as could be expected the prices went up. I guess the supply and demand thing went into effect. Glad I got mine at $240.00 shipped. At that it was a good buy.
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This issue has probably caused more confusion than just about any other gun related topic. Here's a good place to start for an explanation of the differences between .223 Rem/5.56mm :
http://www.thegunzone.com/556v223.html
There are a number of links in that article that will take you to more in depth explanations if you so desire.
One of the reasons I prefer not to reload for gas operated weapons. Most people seem to either not know or not grasp the fact that regardless of where the designer chose to tap the barrel for gas bleed, it was engineered for a specific pressure at that point. Changing components can cause the pressure peak at the gas bleed to be much higher than the weapon was designed for. Too low pressure will probably only cause cycling problems but too high can cause excessive wear or damage to the weapon and could even cause a kaboom. This won't always be apparent after shooting a few rounds. It may take hundreds of rounds before the damage shows up and when it does it could be catastrophic.
I will happily shoot my own handloads through my Savage varmint rifle but when I shoot my AR or other military type semi-auto I stick with mil-spec factory ammo. I haven't got around to shooting my new Saiga yet but I hope it has a mil-spec 5.56 chamber rather than .223. If it does have the short .223 throat that would really suck.
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Sorry for butchering your pic but it looks like you are referring to the area circled in yellow. That looks like a leaking area to me. Are the blocks just pressed on or are they silver soldered?
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Hi All,
I have a Saiga .223 on the way and have been reading the FAQ's and Tutorials. I've found plenty of info on 30+ round mags but can't find any mention of 20 rounder availability. Aren't there any 20 round magazines made? 30+ rounders certainly have their place but I find 20 round mags better for field work. I have dozens of 30 round mags for my AR but for bench or bush I almost always use the 20's. I assume it will be the same with the Saiga so I'd like to get a few 20's for it if they are available. Anyone have a source?
Thanks
Guntoter
SPAMMER ALERT
in General Discussion - Any topic is welcome here!!!
Posted
+1. I received a PM from him as well. I believe he's probably harvesting email addresses as well. I tried to send a PM to an Admin but never could get it to go through.
Guntoter