Saiga 308 to dragunov conversion?

[kruuth 0]

Hey everyone. I've been offered my choice of getting either one of these romanian dragunov knockoffs or getting a saiga in 308. I absolutely love the look of the dragunov. How hard is it to convert a 308 saiga to look like one of these? I'm looking for wood all over. I'm a little green on the saiga stuff.

[Rick_a 13]

Hey everyone. I've been offered my choice of getting either one of these romanian dragunov knockoffs or getting a saiga in 308. I absolutely love the look of the dragunov. How hard is it to convert a 308 saiga to look like one of these? I'm looking for wood all over. I'm a little green on the saiga stuff.

The Romanian PSL is not a Dragunov knockoff. Though it bears a similar external profile it is 100% AK inside and is based on a reinforced RPK receiver.

 

BattleRifleG3 can make a wooden ventilated H/G, and a PSL-style stock is available from many sources for AK's/Saiga's. I thought about doing such a rifle and really feel that an M76 replica would be the easier and better way to go.

 

Or you could just get the Saiga V21, ventilate the H/G and skeletonize the stock.

[WardenWolf 6]

Get the Romanian gun (Romak-3 / PSL / SSG-97 / Romanian Dragunov, or whatever they call it). The Romak-3 is every bit as good as the real Dragunov. Accuracy is just the same. A Saiga is NOT built to the same precision or standards. A Saiga .308 is going to have about 200 yards effective accuracy. A Romak-3 is going to be a strong contender out to 600 yards, or 800 if you get a good one and are a good shot. Just remember to only use 147-155 grain ammunition in it, either surplus or Wolf / PRVI Partisan commercial.

[kruuth 0]

I see. Thanks for all the input guys. With the Romak-3, can I use a standard AK siderail scope mount or is there a special one that they have to use?

[WardenWolf 6]

The Romak-3 can take a standard AK scope mount, although the scope it comes with is excellent. If you DO change the scope, I strongly recommend a UTG 978 lever-lock mount. This mount mimics the original quick-release mount of the Romak and Dragunov, but has Picatinny rails to let you mount any scope you want on it. I bought one of these for my Saiga, but I've verified it works with my Romak-3 as well. One HUGE advantage to this mount is it centers the scope on the gun. The default scope is slightly left-shifted, which is a minor inconvenience if you're left-handed. You can still use it left-handed, no problem, but you just have to lean a bit farther. I love my Romak-3. It's big, it's powerful, but it's amazingly lightweight and low-recoil. When you fire it, you know you're shooting a cannon, but it doesn't hurt you at all. Felt recoil is less than my Saiga .223 thanks to the muzzle brake and recoil plate in the stock.

Edited November 6, 2008 by Mike the Wolf

[Rick_a 13]

To clarify, generally only the SVD mount scopes will fit properly. The AK mounts will fit on the slot but will not lock-in correctly and will mount too high and far forward. Some of the weaver rail mounts and universal mount scopes work for both.

 

The PSL is a great DMR especially considering it weighs only 9.5 lbs with scope.

[kruuth 0]

The Romak-3 can take a standard AK scope mount, although the scope it comes with is excellent. If you DO change the scope, I strongly recommend a UTG 978 lever-lock mount. This mount mimics the original quick-release mount of the Romak and Dragunov, but has Picatinny rails to let you mount any scope you want on it. I bought one of these for my Saiga, but I've verified it works with my Romak-3 as well. One HUGE advantage to this mount is it centers the scope on the gun. The default scope is slightly left-shifted, which is a minor inconvenience if you're left-handed. You can still use it left-handed, no problem, but you just have to lean a bit farther. I love my Romak-3. It's big, it's powerful, but it's amazingly lightweight and low-recoil. When you fire it, you know you're shooting a cannon, but it doesn't hurt you at all. Felt recoil is less than my Saiga .223 thanks to the muzzle brake and recoil plate in the stock.

 

That's reassuring. Now can someone tell me if there's a way to get a synthetic stock or something like that for it? I'd like to get it to look more like my beloved Tigr

[WardenWolf 6]

There used to be a couple of places that made synthetic furniture, but they seem to have folded up shop a long time ago. The stock furniture is very nice, and very comfortable.

[kruuth 0]

There used to be a couple of places that made synthetic furniture, but they seem to have folded up shop a long time ago. The stock furniture is very nice, and very comfortable.

 

That sucks. I figure I can stain the wood. Is it just linseed stained or does it have that shellac on it?

[Rick_a 13]

They typically have a heavy layer of lacquer...with a few runs here and there.

 

These guys are supposed to be ramping up for a production run of SVD-style furniture for PSL's. They claim they are made by Izhmash for them but the buttstock looks more like modified Saiga furniture.

 

http://www.akfiles.com/forums/showthread.p...age=6&pp=35

[WardenWolf 6]

Well I HAD a nice post typed up, but then an IPS driver error hit and wiped it out. The stocks they have are indeed modified Saiga stocks, which are themselves modified SVD stocks. In my opinion, changing the furniture on a PSL is pointless. You can get replacement PSL rear stocks for $10 and finish them however you want, and the synthetic stocks really ruin the character of the gun. You don't even save enough weight to be noticeable because it's a skeleton stock to begin with. One other thing to consider is shooter comfort: the Russian stocks have a rather short grip, and people with larger hands may have their pinky finger dangling off the edge. Even for normal-sized hands, you have to keep all your fingers together. The Romanian wood stock has an extended grip that solves this issue and makes them comfortable for the vast majority of shooters. Also, the Russian stocks do not have the compression plate on them which is so crucial to reducing recoil. If you get a particularly bad finish, you can always sand and refinish it. Learn to enjoy it like it is. A well-finished PSL is a thing of beauty.

[kruuth 0]

Well I HAD a nice post typed up, but then an IPS driver error hit and wiped it out. The stocks they have are indeed modified Saiga stocks, which are themselves modified SVD stocks. In my opinion, changing the furniture on a PSL is pointless. You can get replacement PSL rear stocks for $10 and finish them however you want, and the synthetic stocks really ruin the character of the gun. You don't even save enough weight to be noticeable because it's a skeleton stock to begin with. One other thing to consider is shooter comfort: the Russian stocks have a rather short grip, and people with larger hands may have their pinky finger dangling off the edge. Even for normal-sized hands, you have to keep all your fingers together. The Romanian wood stock has an extended grip that solves this issue and makes them comfortable for the vast majority of shooters. Also, the Russian stocks do not have the compression plate on them which is so crucial to reducing recoil. If you get a particularly bad finish, you can always sand and refinish it. Learn to enjoy it like it is. A well-finished PSL is a thing of beauty.

 

Where do I get these replacement stocks? I'd also like forends.

[WardenWolf 6]

Try Gunbroker.com. I haven't seen foreends, but you can always sand your existing one and restain it. I bought an unfinished PSL stock, thinking to maybe use it in a conversion. Never bothered to convert it, but I'm very happy with how my stain turned out. MinWax makes stains that are very suited to firearms stocks

[Blakeman 0]

Hey everyone. I've been offered my choice of getting either one of these romanian dragunov knockoffs or getting a saiga in 308. I absolutely love the look of the dragunov. How hard is it to convert a 308 saiga to look like one of these? I'm looking for wood all over. I'm a little green on the saiga stuff.

The Romanian PSL is not a Dragunov knockoff. Though it bears a similar external profile it is 100% AK inside and is based on a reinforced RPK receiver.

 

BattleRifleG3 can make a wooden ventilated H/G, and a PSL-style stock is available from many sources for AK's/Saiga's. I thought about doing such a rifle and really feel that an M76 replica would be the easier and better way to go.

 

Or you could just get the Saiga V21, ventilate the H/G and skeletonize the stock.

 

The picture you have is of an M76 Zastava, a Yugoslavian made marksman rifle in 8mm, just so nobody confuses it with a romak-3 or an SVD.

 

To the original question, I would go ahead and get the Romanian and have fun with it. The ammo is significantly cheaper than .308 (440 rounds of 7.62x54R is around 80-100 bucks) and you get a rifle that has a bit of history behind it. I also firmly believe these rifles will go up in price as the surplus of them wears out, though other countries make them.

[WardenWolf 6]

PSL's are still being made. I've managed to piece together how their market seems to work. Long story short, here's what happens:

 

The PSL scope, as originally produced, is lit with radioactive tritium. Unfortunately, this means the scopes have a limited lifespan before they stop glowing. New scopes go directly to the Romanian military. When the scopes lose their glow or are otherwise rotated out of service, they go back to the factory and are packaged with civilian export PSL's. Most of these scopes are in fine condition for civilian use; they just don't glow anymore. So it's not uncommon that you'll receive a brand new PSL with a scope that looks like it's seen some service. Basically, they're selling you an expired scope, but one that's usually in good shape. If you want a brand new scope, you can buy a new Russian 4x or 8x PSO scope from various places. That's how my PSL came to me: the rifle itself was brand new, without even a scratch from the safety lever. The scope, though, clearly had seen some use; it had some mild finish damage and wear around the dials.

Edited November 10, 2008 by Mike the Wolf

[Rick_a 13]

Hey everyone. I've been offered my choice of getting either one of these romanian dragunov knockoffs or getting a saiga in 308. I absolutely love the look of the dragunov. How hard is it to convert a 308 saiga to look like one of these? I'm looking for wood all over. I'm a little green on the saiga stuff.

The Romanian PSL is not a Dragunov knockoff. Though it bears a similar external profile it is 100% AK inside and is based on a reinforced RPK receiver.

 

BattleRifleG3 can make a wooden ventilated H/G, and a PSL-style stock is available from many sources for AK's/Saiga's. I thought about doing such a rifle and really feel that an M76 replica would be the easier and better way to go.

 

Or you could just get the Saiga V21, ventilate the H/G and skeletonize the stock.

 

The picture you have is of an M76 Zastava, a Yugoslavian made marksman rifle in 8mm, just so nobody confuses it with a romak-3 or an SVD.

I didn't think anyone would be confused as they all have a very distinctive look.

 

This is the Saiga Ver 21 just in case...