So, number one son, Iraqi vet, would like to have an AK. However, we wants one that may have been used against him. How best to go about finding an authentic Russian/Chinese AK. Obviously he could buy a newly manufactured one, but that wont do. Suggestions? Since I know ZIPPO about these, help would be appreciated.

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Robert
SWCA #2906, SWHF #760

"One used against him" would be full auto, yes? Now, I've heard stories that bring backs didn't end in 1975 but they're a tad more difficult to come by now.

Chinese Type 56 semi AKs are difficult to come by. I have one, it's fine but over priced as heck now.

Might try looking on Gunbroker for something older. There are older AKs there, might work for him.

Vietnam-era war souvenirs, maybe. WW1 and WW2, sure. Gulf war souvenirs, especially AK rifles, are unlikely in the extreme to have been brought back and, as full auto, they'd be illegal from the get-go and how does one tell the ATF that you brought a submachine back to America? Transferability of these guns terminated in what, 1986?

To be specific, the FOPA of 1986, prohibited civilian ownership or transfer of machine guns (by whatever name - submachine gun, fully automatic, select fire, etc.) made after May 19, 1986. What that means is that only machine guns that were LITERALLY produced before that date can be registered. As a result, ANY machine guns not registered today cannot be registered but machine guns made before the 1986 date can be transferred and re-registered to a new owner (retaxed being better terminology methinks.).

One would presume that an AK recovered in the 21st century would fall under the non-transferable category. One could argue that a provably pre-86 made MG could be registered and transferred and to that I would say good luck.

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Come and take it!!

I found this.

"All Iraqi AKs were named “Tabuk,” after the ancient battle from Islamic history. Early Tabuks are exact copies of the Yugo M70B1, which itself has a lot of interesting features. The easiest thing to notice is the three vent holes on the handguard instead of two that the normal AK would have."


You can get a semi auto Yugo from Atlantic for a good price. If he want's full auto, plan on spending close to $40K.

The Iraqi AK47 7.62x39mm Rifles by James River Armory - AtlanticFirearms.com

A few Zastava M70 Yugo's on GB too.

Clarification, semi auto is all he wants.

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Robert
SWCA #2906, SWHF #760

NO military AKs were semi auto only.

This is not true.

The Romanians issue a semi-auto only AK to their Guardia, think national guard troops.

These rifles were marked with a red “G” and a black striped stock.

Additionally, semi-auto only AKs have been used by contractors overseas in guard roles, though this isn’t technically military.

Right, not technically military. Name any country that has issued semi auto only AKs to their combat military forces to use in wartime. Maybe the OP's number one son might be able to find an SKS used by Iraqi troops against him. I think the widely distributed SKS has been used by about 70 different countries in combat around the world in it's long history.

Watching a film clip recently of captured weapons in Gaza, I was more than a little surprised to see a Krag in the pile. Point is, in the Mid East I think almost anything that shoots or explodes might be encountered.

For this specific request (desire?), provenance is everything. You'll probably have a hard time documenting battlefield use of a legal gun as noted above, so looking for a close replica may be more fruitful. Good luck in your search.

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Alan
SWCA LM 2023, SWHF 220

Polytech Legend will be as close as you can get to an original milled Russian. They are bringing $3500-4500 these days.

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Some Might Say.

AKs that I saw in Iraq came from a number of different sources, all over the world. There are rifles that were produced in country, but really it was a ix of just about everything. By law each Iraqi adult male was allowed to have 1 AK in their house.

If he wants to true experience, he should get one with a wooden front vertical grip, and no buttstock.

While I appreciate the sentiment of the request, for a basic AK I'd look at Romanian ones like the WASR-10, or a Yugo M-70. Palmetto State's latest generations of AKs have a lot of value as well for a US made AK.

Have to ask, what is authentic to him?

Reading through this, a new manufacture gun is not authentic even though it may be mechanically identical to something older, but a semi auto is acceptable, even though it is unlikely it would have been used against him while serving.

Guess I would need some details on exactly what he is looking for on this, where my best guess at this point would be a pre-assault weapon ban example of an AKM or Type-56, which then brings up the question what condition is acceptable.

If this thread had appeared on a collector forum I might take up eating popcorn.

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Release the Kraken

The odds are essentially zero for any conflict after Vietnam. I do know of some older gents with enemy bringbacks from Vietnam, typically of the SKS and German Mauser variety, but if they have any AKs they are very wise to keep them quiet.

There are some very talented guys out there who will build up from imported parts and apply a "battleworn" finish, but of course it's all contrived as originals are not going to be found outside of display cases in museums and military unit HQs. Lee Armory used to make a factory Romanian kit AK like this.

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Psalm 27:2