deldgeetar 0 Posted July 26, 2007 Report Share Posted July 26, 2007 Hey everybody, first post here. I have been reading these forums and am considering purchasing a Saiga 7.62x39. I am a big fan of this caliber and am sick and tired of messing with SKS's of all countries! I am looking for a new and reliable weapon chambered in this caliber. I have a few questions regarding the Saiga: How is the accuracy of this rifle in 7.62x39? Does the barrel length make much of a difference? Do you prefer 16 or 20 inch? How is the reliability of this rifle? Does it function well when dirty? Stovepipes, FTF's, etc? How "tight" is the rifle? Does it rattle a lot like an SKS? The looseness drove me NUTS! Please share your experiences with this rifle. I am looking for a fun rifle to shoot around that won't break the bank and this seems to fit. Keep in mind I am in the PRK, so pistol grips and high-caps are out of the question. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that you can still bring this rifle into CA, as it is currently "off-list." Quote Link to post Share on other sites
DamDanger 0 Posted July 26, 2007 Report Share Posted July 26, 2007 get one, its godly.. 16" is sexier as an assault and 20" as a sniper, has been very accurate for me.. just buy one. Its pretty tight, no rattling, its a warhorse. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
wdavid431 0 Posted July 26, 2007 Report Share Posted July 26, 2007 I bought a 16" Saiga just because it was Russian. However, upon shooting it I fell in love with the rifle. Little recoil, no feeding problems, and field strips easy for cleaning. This is one great rifle and a joy to shoot. Mine is the new black poly stock and hand grip. I will not change a thing on it because this is the way it was made and for me looks perfect. I can only recommend you buy one and enjoy it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MD_Willington 11 Posted July 26, 2007 Report Share Posted July 26, 2007 Pretty tight, but it's not an AR it is not loose as the "town bicycle"... Reliable?... I think you'd have to get a really bad example or one that was run over by a tank to get one that wasn't reliable... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
UnidenStew 1 Posted July 26, 2007 Report Share Posted July 26, 2007 Welcome to world of Saiga and to the forums, deldgeetar. I'm sorry to see that you live in occupied territory in the PRK. On the other hand, I'm happy to see that you are considering a Saiga purchase. Very good choice. The Saigas are not tack drivers per say, but they are one of the most accurate AK types available. As others have stated, they are moron easy to disassemble, repair, maintain, and modify. I've seen videos on youtube where they get thrown down in the sand, run over by a car, then picked up and shot until empty. When you get your Saiga, there is a certificate of conformity. In there you will see where the gun was test fired at a 100mm range for accuracy, and the extreme spread of a four shot session. These extremes vary, however, it is in no way an accurate measure of just how accurate your particular gun is. For example, mine shows a < 150 mm spread. That's almost a six inch spread. In reality, it's shoots between 2" and 3" at 100 yards with Wolf ammo. Accuracy is relative. It all depends on shooter, conditions, ammo, trigger control, sights, etc. Rate of twist affects accuracy in a big way. A general rule of the thumb is that the tighter twist rates shoot better with heavier bullet weights. For expample, 1-9 rate of twist is less than 1-7. So the 1-9 may prefer lighter bullets. As for barrel length, I prefer the 16 over the 20, but to each his own. Another factor is the burn rate for a given powder charge. In shorter barrels you would want a faster burning powder. But that's a science all it's own. For a really worth while improvement to your new gun, give Dinzag a shout. He's got a FCG (Fire Control Group) that is highly polished for the transfer bar type FCG in factory configuration Saigas. It will improve the other wise terrible factory trigger by leaps and bounds. As a plus it's counts as two compliance parts for 922r. Not that you need it in a factory gun, but it's still a good investment just for the smoother trigger alone. Dinzag can be reached at: dinzag@yahoo.com. Very soon now, Dinzag will have a new web site on-line that offers a smorgasbord of custom parts and services for the Saiga family of rifles and shotguns. I know, I built the web site. Good luck and happy shooting. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Navy87Guy 1 Posted July 26, 2007 Report Share Posted July 26, 2007 Dinzag can be reached at: dinzag@yahoo.com. Very soon now, Dinzag will have a new web site on-line that offers a smorgasbord of custom parts and services for the Saiga family of rifles and shotguns. I know, I built the web site. Good luck and happy shooting. +1 on Dinzag's products and service -- but his email address is dinzzag@yahoo.com (With two Z's -- don't ask me why!) Jim Quote Link to post Share on other sites
scoutjoe 276 Posted July 27, 2007 Report Share Posted July 27, 2007 How is the reliability of this rifle? Does it function well when dirty? Stovepipes, FTF's, etc? Its an AK...if your talented (insert my name here) you can mess something up but its also an easy fix, because of the insane ammount of knowledge that is here Quote Link to post Share on other sites
urotu 1 Posted July 27, 2007 Report Share Posted July 27, 2007 I bought mine out of the blue about 8 months ago. I was actually there trying to order another gun, and ran across the Saiga. All I knew was that it was some sort of AK variant, and it appeared to be a good, clean, solid gun. It's fairly accurate for what it is, I can get shots out to 100 yds with iron sights, sometimes more (I know, I'm no marksman), and as far as loose, not that I notice, I like it. It shoots harder than a .223, but it's supposed to, I like it at least as well as my buddies Armalite AR-15, more because of the power of the 7.62. His AR is a bit more accurate, but it's also a no bull Armalite from about 1964, I couldn't afford the gun myself. I love my Saiga, wouldn't trade it for the world (unless I get that Yugo underfolder from classic arms for my birthday), but it is a gun (the AK) that was specifically designed to be mass produced from inexpensive parts and production technique. I think a lot of folks think that means cheap, but shoot one for a while, you'll be impressed. This gun could be buried in the sand, pulled out, wiped down and shot. Very few moving parts, almost impossible to stop shooting. I do have a few issues with hollow points in hi-cap magazines (non-Saiga), but a bullet guide will fix that. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
BullShark012 1 Posted July 27, 2007 Report Share Posted July 27, 2007 (edited) Deld, 1st welcome, 2nd get one. I prefer the 16" and I really doubt there is any accuracy diff. w/ the 20". Just range tested my new 16" x 39. I Love It! The rifle is really pretty tight...only rattle I hear is a little from the sling fittings hitting the buttsock if you shake it (I think most guns do that) and mabe a slight sound from something inside the mag if I shake it real hard??? The gun fires flawlessly, period. Not an issue. I use Golden Tiger .124 and Wolf .124 FMJ ammo. I think I'm leaning to the Golden Tiger, but both fire fine. For me to judge the "rifle's" accuaracy, I think I'd need a scope. With my eyesight, (not the best) I just know I was able to put bullets in a 3" circle almost all of the time at 25 yrs. with the iron sights set one the #1 position (100 m position). No real adjustment seemed to be needed on the factory front sight setting (windage or elevation). I'm keeping mine 'stock' right now. The only reason I see to convert it would be to use 30 rd. mags. (Can you even use 30 rd. mags in PRK??) BS012 Edited July 27, 2007 by BullShark012 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Res 0 Posted July 27, 2007 Report Share Posted July 27, 2007 I'm keeping mine 'stock' right now. The only reason I see to convert it would be to use 30 rd. mags. (Can you even use 30 rd. mags in PRK??) BS012 You are legally able to use magazines with a capacity greater than 10 rounds, as long as you have owned them prior to January 1, 2000. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
grimper 0 Posted July 27, 2007 Report Share Posted July 27, 2007 I'm keeping mine 'stock' right now. The only reason I see to convert it would be to use 30 rd. mags. (Can you even use 30 rd. mags in PRK??) BS012 You are legally able to use magazines with a capacity greater than 10 rounds, as long as you have owned them prior to January 1, 2000. Are you sure about that? I was under the impression that you could have them if they were 1. purchased prior to January 1, 2000 and 2. have them fixed with a pin at the 11th round- limiting it to 10 rnds? Can anyone confirm or deny this? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Res 0 Posted July 27, 2007 Report Share Posted July 27, 2007 Are you sure about that? I was under the impression that you could have them if they were 1. purchased prior to January 1, 2000 and 2. have them fixed with a pin at the 11th round- limiting it to 10 rnds? Can anyone confirm or deny this? Yes I am sure. You do not have to modify your magazine if you owned it prior to when SB23 took effect. That is why designs like the mmg, u-15 stock, and the Blackstar Rifle were made. They would all be kinda lame without "hi-cap" mags. Also, all the guys who were buying saiga parts to convert their pistol grip AK's to Saiga style grip so they could use their 30 rnd. mags. MMG U-15 stock Blackstar Rifle Quote Link to post Share on other sites
deldgeetar 0 Posted July 28, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 28, 2007 Alright, thanks for all your help guys! Just wanted to let ya'll know I ordered a Saiga 7.62x39 with the 16" barrel today. I'm stoked! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
sulphur 7 Posted July 28, 2007 Report Share Posted July 28, 2007 All I can say is that I own all three calibers! I think u made a good choice. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
vjor 2 Posted July 29, 2007 Report Share Posted July 29, 2007 One thing I will say, on the 20 inches barrels the recoils is a lot lesser than the 16 inches barrels on plane vanilla rifles, the ones I used to have don't rattle at all, new barrel, new receiver, new everything on the gun, trigger is sloppy on plain vanilla guns but good enough to hunt with it and other stuff on the 7.62x39 a short bullet guide like 1/2 long and you can use the original mag and ak mags just file the mag catch on the rifle, fit the saiga mag and the ak mags as you file to get a good fit and you will be ok, on 7.62x39 I do my guides of 3/4 black steel pipe and use 10-32 or 8-32 bolts, no really a big deal to drill and tap the trunnion, just use tapping oil as you go and patience is kind of good thing to have. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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