AK-47
Last Updated on Tuesday, 21 July 2009 16:18 Written by Administrator Thursday, 02 July 2009 16:19
When it comes to durability, cost of production, and simplicity of use, the AK-47 is undoubtedly the king of assault rifles. Ever since its design and inception into the Soviet Army, it has seen action in several wars in countries across continents. Even today, it remains the most widely used rifle in the world. In fact, more AK-47 rifles have been manufactures than all other rifles in the category combined together. In addition, the AK-47 has also inspired the designs of many other assault rifles in use in different countries and has many variants.
The AK-47 was designed by a design team led by Mikhail Kalashnikov and stands for “Avtomat Kalashnikov”. “Avtomat” in Russian means “automatic”. The design of the rifle borrows heavily from the German StG 44, but features several improvements. The rifle is primarily designed with reliability as the main criterion. When it comes to accuracy, the AK-47 lacks, but this it compensates with its other advantages which make it the king of assault rifles.
The main advantage of the AK-47 is its simple and straight forward design, small form factor, and ease of mass production. It is very cheap to manufacture and easy to maintain. The AK-47 was designed to be used in the cold Russian weather and the designers ensured that it would be reliable and fully functional even after taking-in large amounts of dust and fouling. However, on the minus side the AK-47 is much less accurate. The AK-47 was designed to have a functional life-span of over 40 years depending on the conditions of use and maintenance.
The standard AK-47 uses the 7.62x39mm cartridge. It has a muzzle velocity of about 2300 feet per second (i.e. 710 meters per second). Its effective range is about 1300 feet (i.e. 400 meters).
Some quick facts about the AK-47
--> Name of the Inventor: Mikhail Kalashnikov (Russia).
--> Year of design: 1944-46
--> Year of induction into the Army: 1947
--> Cartridge type: 7.62x39mm
--> Muzzle velocity: 2300 feet per second
--> Effective range: 1300 feet
--> Dimensions: 870 (but variable depending on the variant)
--> Weight: 4.3 Kg without the magazine
--> Firing rate: 600 rounds per minute
Variants of the AK-47
--> AK-47 1948 Model (Very rare to find now)
--> AK-47 1952 Model
--> AKS-47
--> RPK
--> AKM
--> AKMS
--> AK-74
--> AK-101
--> AK-103
--> AK-104
--> AK-107
--> AK-108
“I'm proud of my invention, but I'm sad that it is used by terrorists.”
Mikhail Kalashnikov
“I tried a dozen different modifications that were rejected. But they all served as a path to the final design.”
Mikhail Kalashnikov
“I would prefer to have invented a machine that people could use and that would help farmers with their work - for example a lawnmower.”
Mikhail Kalashnikov
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