USA Made Issues

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Jokes aside, the Wall Of Shame is here to let the consumer know that some of these rifles are outright dangerous to shoot. I want nothing more then for imported and US made rifles to be one in the same, because there will be a time when imports are no more. Sadly US companies such as IO, or Century Arms do not care about your safety and continue to sell you rifles that can cause you bodily harm. If you look at this guide before buying a new AK, please avoid rifles made by IO or Century Arms. They do not have your best interest in mind. If you are reading this now after buying one, please understand that brand loyalty only goes one way, and these companies do not care about you. If they did they would not be selling these sorts of firearms in the first place.

I love the AK platform and I want shooters from all around to enjoy it as well and that means buying a rifle that will last as long as possible and will be as safe as possible to take to the range.
As for PSA... Well I personally would avoid them and stick to imports, but at least they won't explode

US Made

Century Arms

RAS 47

VSKA

C39/C39V2

Shares the BCG, trigger, and many other parts to the RAS47 so expect whatever issues that rifle had for the C39 to have as well.

BFT47

  • Comparison of the BFT-47 and the WASR-10/63
    • Side Profile
    • BFT-47 Front Trunnion
    • BFT-47 Disassembled
    • WASR-10/63 and BFT-47 BCG Comparison - Now the WASR-10 is on top and the BFT-47 is on the bottom. While the machining of the WASR looks worse it is still a forged part while the BFT-47 is cast. You can see the round mark that was put in by the ejection pins as part of the mold casting process. Also note the lightening cuts in the BCG Stem. These are common failure parts on these and other Century Arms rifles.
    • BFT-47 "Bulged Front Trunnion" - If you look at the front trunnion of the BFT-47, you can see that it really isn't a true bulged trunnion like you would find on a RPK or Zastava rifle. Also note the rifle still features a 1mm thick receiver while typically bulged trunnion rifles such as the RPK and Zastava rifles have a 1.5mm thick receiver.
    • WASR-10/63 and BFT-47 Top View Comparison
    • WASR-10/63 and BFT-47 Bolt Face Comparison - The WASR-10 is on top and features a "gutter" around the recess in the bolt face. This is to accomodate for debris and gunk that comes off the laqure coated rounds. Without that channel there is a possibility for there to be built up and no place for it to go causing reliability issues with the rifle. The BFT-47 lacks this gutter.

Century Arms Kit Builds

IO


PSA AK

GF1

GF2

GF3

Arizona Response Systems, LLC - "Palmetto State Armory is the manufacturer. It is a tough call on whether they are better, or worse than Century Arms manufactured. I would say they are cosmetically better but since they are using new US made parts, instead of original military Parts, such as on the old WASR-10, the quality is lower. As to the new century manufactured aks, despite the fawning over them by certain gun writer whores, I have a hard time believing that after 30 years century suddenly decided to go with quality. Their Market has always been cheapskates who just want cheap and don't give a shit how bad it is"
  • Strange wear on the recoil assembly (2019 Model)
    • The dust cover shipped with the gun didn't fit quite right, leaving a very noticeable gap where the safety meets it, and even after filing and adjustment it's not as flush as most other AKMs I own. They sent a replacement under warranty but that one didn't even fit the gun, so I had to fit that one as well, and it still didn't fit quite right.
    • The gas tube locking lever is easy to push open by hand, which certainly isn't how it's supposed to be.
    • There's also some very slight peening on the carrier tail.
    • Overall the gun has all sorts of funky fit and finish issues, it also had some other ones but I'd consider those to be less concerning and more normal for AKMs (sight was canted a good bit when zeroed, safety loose, etc)

GF5

There's a lot of dissent for PSA around these parts, and for the most part its not completely out of place. But I see a lot of people saying that they're shit but have no experience with one. So here's my very early ~340 round take on my experience.
For Starters, the barrel might be a gimmick and just a sales point, but having shot m249s for a while, those barrels can take a beating, and if FN put their name on it, ill buy into it. The fit and finish is pretty decent, the rivets are all gtg. 
Also the ALG trigger is pretty sweet and having a side rail is also a plus. And of course they found their missing cleaning rods lol.
The gun shipped without a plate pin retainer, which was sent overnight to me after I called one of the production managers, but for a $1000 AK, I was pissed. I shoot what is the cheapest, so for a while that was Wolf poly, which the gun shot fine without a single malfunction for ~250 rnds. Then I switched over to Red Army Standard, and within 5 shots, the gun busted one of the primers and bits of primer got into the firing pin channel rendering the gun inoperable until I got home to take the firing pin out. 
I went to the range again yesterday with my Dead Air wolverine, and shot the wolf poly again without a single issue, then before I left I loaded some red army standard and it happen again, but this time the gun continued to fire. I went home and took the bolt apart and there were three pieces of primer in the firing pin channel. 
I haven't deduced why that is happening, I hope some of you can help me out. All that being said, this isn't my bed side gun, I bought it for the full intent of it being a range toy, so for people like me, I would recommend getting a PSAK when (if) the prices get down again. But if its  your first firearm or you have a different need for the gun, I'd try to get an import or a premium AK and avoid this.

Oversized firing pin hole in the bolt
Debris in the firing pin channel from the firing pin over penetrating the primers
Excess wear on the trunnion from improper timing of the bolt
Excess wear on the bolt from improper timing. The bolt is releasing too early
------ MIRROR of pictures from the post ------
 Brass with deep primer strikes
 Trunnion Wear - 1
 Trunnion Wear - 2
 Bolt Wear - 1
 Bolt Wear - 2
 Bolt Wear - 3
 Bolt Wear - 4
 Bolt Wear - 5
 Bolt Wear - 6
 Bolt Wear - 7

AKP

AKV

The AKV does NOT have an OOB safety in any way. Standard AKs have a tail in the back preventing the hammer from striking the firing pin. The KP9 has a system similar to a pistol, where a detend prevents the firing pin from being struck if not in battery.   

Just got my repaired AKV back from PSA. I take it to the range today and about 200 rounds in, the muzzle break flies off mid volley and I am now dead inside. But seriously, this gun has been sent back twice now in the last 3 months for repairs. Looks like it’s gonna be sent back a 3rd time. Nice.

AK-103

It should be noted the PSA AK-103 is not a true 103 clone, but a SLR107FR 

I have over 30 Magazines From Russian Bakes to one cheap Korean magazine and i can only get maybe 4 to fit in the rifle but even then i have to hit the
Mag Release with a Block of wood to get the mags out on the 4 that will lock in.
I have found when I stripped this rifle down that QC on this rifle is questionable.
1. The Front Trunnion is Recessed behind the front of the Receiver (Part of Problem with fitment)
2. 70% of the mags are hitting the Center Support and not letting the Mags go in. (Part of Fitment Problems here)
3. The rest will somewhat go in but will not seat with the Mag Catch at all and will fall out of rifle.
I have tried these magazines in my Galil Ace and all fit without any issues and all fit in my WASR 10/63 and My WBP Fox AK
So looks like one slipped through QC at Palmetto State and hopefully I am the only one with this issue.
Waiting to here from them and see what they will do about this.
I have not even Fired One Round out of this one as I am not sure if I really should.
On a Good Note the Rivets Look Awesome.

AK-104

AK-74

  • PSA's 5.45x39 AK-74 Rifle Review (We Broke It) - Mishaco YouTube
    • Failure to eject.
    • Spent casing was inside rear trunnion.
    • Stock is loose and rattles.
    • Fully cratered primer, round did not go off.
    • On disassemble the bolt carrier 'jumped out' of the receiver.
    • On inspection of the bolt the firing pin was in the forward position.
    • Pushing the back of the firing pin forward unable to get the firing pin to extrude from the front, meaning the firing pin either broke or the tip mushroomed. Rifle has less then 1000 rounds through it.
    • Rear of the bolt has 'flaring' or mushrooming from the hammer hitting it. Not a standard thing to happen on an AK pattern rifle.
    • Wear on the lugs of the bolt.
    • Top cover loose.
    • Rear folding latch flush with the receiver causing the stock to be loose.
    • Rifle doesn't 'feel as tight' as a Bulgarian or Russian import.
  • Return Of the PSA-74 5.45x39 Rifle (First Look After Factory Repairs) - Mishaco YouTube (Update #2)
    • PSA Replaced several major parts:
      • New Barrel
      • New Bolt
      • Replaced Barrel Components - Doesn't go on to say which ones
    • Issues Misha noticed on the bench:
      • Dust cover was very loose. Lost of front up and down rattle, and could push the cover front to back.
      • The bolt was difficult to remove from the bolt carrier. Misha stating that the bolt could be pushed back too far in the carrier, going past the cam position. The bolt needs to be push forward just a hair to get it to align with the slot in the bolt to be removed.
      • Gas tube had a lot of front to back travel as well.
    • Issues PSA fixed:
      • Take down level is extremely tight (which is what you want)
      • Stock is tighter then previously, but still looser when comparing to a combloc rifle.
  • Before & After With The PSA-74 5.45x39 Rifle (Return To The Range After Repairs) - Mishaco YouTube (Update #3)
    • Gas piston is rigid. Could cause cycling issues as the piston was designed from the factory to be able to flex as the aid in reliability. Very common for US made AKs to have a rigid piston.
    • 210 rounds were fired without firing/cycling issue. 210 rounds is nothing in the life of a rifle like this.
    • Unusual wear on the bolt, possibly from the hammer
    • One of the lugs has started to flare, which is an indication the metal is not the correct metallurgy or was not hardened correctly. (Bolt was replaced when the rifle was sent back to PSA, so bolt is brand new)

RPK (Romanian Kits)

Only 150rnds through the gun, can push the barrel pin back and forth with your finger.... Absolute insanity.

Riley Defense

Kalashnikov USA

KP9

KR-103

KR/KP-104

Imported

Arsenal

(Note: This is not to be confused with the SA M5 which is an earlier milled 5.56 AK rifle import from Arsenal Bulgaria and does not have this problem).

Pioneer Arms

Slovakian

Zastava (Century Arms Imported)

M92PV NPAP

Other

See Also

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