Saiga .223 Bolt

[essohbe 47]

I will most likely purchase a Saiga for my next rifle. I am debating back and forth between the .223 or the 5.45 and I was wondering what kind of AK bolt the .223 has it it? The 5.45 apparently will be very hard if not impossible to find replacement bolt for (should that ever be the case) but I am wondering what the .223 uses and if a replacement bolt is easier to find than the 5.45's?

Ultimately, this will likely affect my decision on which rifle I will buy.

 

Thanks you for any info.

[BKLYN_C 14]

I will most likely purchase a Saiga for my next rifle. I am debating back and forth between the .223 or the 5.45 and I was wondering what kind of AK bolt the .223 has it it? The 5.45 apparently will be very hard if not impossible to find replacement bolt for (should that ever be the case) but I am wondering what the .223 uses and if a replacement bolt is easier to find than the 5.45's?

Ultimately, this will likely affect my decision on which rifle I will buy.

 

Thanks you for any info.

 

5.45 Saiga bolt is unique to the rifle, meaning the AK74 bolt will not fit.

On of the requirements BATFE had for Siaga to be imported was to have bolt/bold carrier not interchangeable with military production guns.

The conclusion, no other bolt will fit your 223 Saiga besides the one taken from another Saiga 223.

 

Any way, why would you need an extra bolt? The only situation I can imagine that will require new bolt is if you lose the original one. They dont fail, there is nothing to break and they last as long as the rifle itself.

Edited August 9, 2010 by BKLYN_C

[essohbe 47]

Yeah, I know about the 5.45 one. I'm just thinking about parts in general but the bolt (to me) is a pretty important part.

So any AK firing pin goes in them then?

[GregM1 241]

5.45 Saiga bolt is unique to the rifle, meaning the AK74 bolt will not fit.

On of the requirements BATFE had for Siaga to be imported was to have bolt/bold carrier not interchangeable with military production guns.

The conclusion, no other bolt will fit your 223 Saiga besides the one taken from another Saiga 223.

 

Any way, why would you need an extra bolt? The only situation I can imagine that will require new bolt is if you lose the original one. They dont fail, there is nothing to break and they last as long as the rifle itself.

 

 

The East German ak-74 bolt carriers will work as a replacement. I do not think the bolt will.

 

I forget when it was posted, but there is a thread about a broken bolt from within the last year. Unfortunately, they are not indestructable, just very tolerant to wear and tear.

 

Has anyone got one of the newly imported Russian AK 74 kits coming in and compared the bolt yet?

[BKLYN_C 14]

Yeah, I know about the 5.45 one. I'm just thinking about parts in general but the bolt (to me) is a pretty important part.

So any AK firing pin goes in them then?

My 7.62x39 Saiga has standard AKM type pin. Its a $5 part

my .308 and .223 Saigas have spring loaded pins. Those are common in East German AK's. Thats a $10 part.

Go to CopesDistributing dot net and you will find everything there.

 

Anyway, pardon my ignorance but why would you need a bunch of extra parts? These guns dont break that easily unless you really abuse it or do some unreasonable modifications, something like the thread about cracked front trunion. During almost 40 years I have been around AK's, I have seen few failures, but they all were due to gross negligence on the owners behalf. Remember, barrel must be clean and smooth, ammo must not be be too hot, and dont fnck with critical parts; and if you clean it and apply oil once in a while this gun will last longer than you live.

 

 

5.45 Saiga bolt is unique to the rifle, meaning the AK74 bolt will not fit.

On of the requirements BATFE had for Siaga to be imported was to have bolt/bold carrier not interchangeable with military production guns.

The conclusion, no other bolt will fit your 223 Saiga besides the one taken from another Saiga 223.

 

Any way, why would you need an extra bolt? The only situation I can imagine that will require new bolt is if you lose the original one. They dont fail, there is nothing to break and they last as long as the rifle itself.

 

 

The East German ak-74 bolt carriers will work as a replacement. I do not think the bolt will.

 

I forget when it was posted, but there is a thread about a broken bolt from within the last year. Unfortunately, they are not indestructable, just very tolerant to wear and tear.

 

Has anyone got one of the newly imported Russian AK 74 kits coming in and compared the bolt yet?

 

No need to wait for some shipments from Russia, Bulgarian AKM/AK74 are exact copies of Russian military production guns, one to one.

 

The AK74 bolts are different in a few ways. One is the diameter of the base of the shell. Second the Saiga bolt is smaller diameter of the neck, and lastly, slightly different locks.

The carrier from AK74 might fit in, but you cant really call it replacement part.

Edited August 11, 2010 by BKLYN_C

[csspecs 1,987]

They are not made to be replaced (at least not by end users), that is why the bolts have a portion of the serial number stamped on them. I'd almost bet that they would not head space correctly if you swapped parts from two saigas.

 

 

On the bright side, for the cost of a high end AR you can have three saiga rifles. I joke that I have a spare parts kit for my saiga.. Its the saiga sitting next to it.

[BKLYN_C 14]

They are not made to be replaced (at least not by end users), that is why the bolts have a portion of the serial number stamped on them. I'd almost bet that they would not head space correctly if you swapped parts from two saigas.

 

 

On the bright side, for the cost of a high end AR you can have three saiga rifles. I joke that I have a spare parts kit for my saiga.. Its the saiga sitting next to it.

 

The same caliber rifles have all parts interchangeable. That was the initial requirement from Soviet government and it is still maintained. Stamped numbers on all parts are for the tracking. In Russian army loss of weapon or any critical part of it equals court marshal. No exceptions. With the shield or on the shield, well sort of.

Edited August 11, 2010 by BKLYN_C

[essohbe 47]

No need to wait for some shipments from Russia, Bulgarian AKM/AK74 are exact copies of Russian military production guns, one to one.

 

Aren't some of the AK74s barreled 5.56 barrels they goofed on? Or is that just the century arms ones? They aren't chromed either. I was just going to fork out ~$400 for the AKM but then I found out through reviews they basically suck when held against the Saigas.

Edited August 12, 2010 by essohbe

[555JM 10]

On the bright side, for the cost of a high end AR you can have three saiga rifles. I joke that I have a spare parts kit for my saiga.. Its the saiga sitting next to it.

 

+1 to that. Nothing like a spare parts kit that you can shoot. Two is one...one is none.

 

Agree on the headspace issue as well. If you did replace the bolt, you'd need some way of checking and adjusting headspace. Just dropping a new bolt in might work, or it might not. If it didn't, the gun would be either unreliable or dangerous.

Bob