So I've been bit by the AK bug. I shot a buddy's Norinco the other day and I'd like to expand my horizons with a new caliber and platform.

I've been seeing the PSAK from Palmetto State for awhile and the prices align with my interest level at this point.



So two questions. I've seen the 5k torture test video and he seems to think it's acceptable.

Do the pros here have the same assessment?

Secondly, they offer a Hammer forged bolt carrier in one rifle and no mention of it in another. The one with wood furniture is more pricy by a little but I'd rather have robust internals forst and upgrade the outside later.

Are they the same and if not is the hammer forged carrier preferable?



I've never heard of a Hammer forged carrier before. Color me stupid. Or a

in cause I just bought one and wondered the same things

bought one of these Barreled receiver

and finished like this

I have a PSAK47. It originally came with a cast carrier and after complaining to PSA, they replaced it with a forged carrier. I have shot over 500 round through it so far with zero issues. For the money I am happy with the rifle now. I would not buy one of their rifles with a cast carrier.

So I'm guessing they all have the hammer forged carrier now then. Thank you Jfor!

No. They have tiered models, some of which (the cheaper ones) come with cast everything. The more expensive ones use forged parts. At least that was the case a few months ago.

I believe it is their freedom series that has the cast carrier. Unfortunately, the only ones that seem to tell you what carrier comes with it are the barreled receivers. They don't seem to be doing a tiered series on the complete rifles. TBH, if you find a deal on a WASR I would just buy that.

Similar follow-up to the OP's question, how can you tell from the descriptions of the guns on their website have the better parts?  They have some good memorial day sales going on right now, but I can't tell which ones have the desirable bolt or carrier.

Here are some examples of what they have listed:
- "forged carrier"
- "cast carrier"
- "cast steel"
- "hammer forged steel carrier"

I"m guessing the simple "cast carrier" is the worst one, and "forged" the best.... but wtf is a "cast steel" one?

I had some discussion with someone via email and he told me unless otherwise noted in the product description it is a cast carrier.

ETA: The Forged carrier is the preferred tougher carrier. They do sell it separately also for $80-$100 depending on sales.

Cast carrier and cast steel are the same thing, their descriptions are all over the place.

The Difference Between Casting & Forging

Casting is the process where metal is heated until molten. While in the molten or liquid state it is poured into a mold or vessel to create a desired shape.

Forging is the application of thermal and mechanical energy to steel billets or ingots to cause the material to change shape while in a solid state.

Why use castings?

We use castings for a wide range of wearparts and components that are too large, complicated, intricate or otherwise unsuitable for the forging process. We can forge parts up to 50kgs but the sheer energy required to forge larger items make casting a much more viable alternative.

We currently cast mining and earthmoving components to 580 kg. We can cast up to 3000 kg if required. Manganese work hardening screens are one of our specialities. We have found that by carefully choosing alloys and applying proven methods of heat treatment, we can produce castings of high quality, strength and wearability. The casting process better lends itself to making parts where internal cavities are required.

The advantages of casting include:

-No real upper size limit in casting weight
-Large range of alloy choices
-As forgings remain solid, custom alloys are far more difficult to get into production whereas with casting, alloys including Chrome, Nickel and Moly can be added at the molten stage.
-Tooling is often less expensive than forge dies
-Smaller production “runs” required
-Complicated/complex parts are no problem
-For general GET as well as large and complex components - casting is a fantastic method of manufacture.


Why use forgings?

Forging offers uniformity of composition and structure. Forging results in metallurgical recrystalisation and grain
refinement as a result of the thermal cycle and deformation process. This strengthens the resulting steel product particularly in terms of impact and shear strength.

Forged steel is generally stronger and more reliable than castings and plate steel due to the fact that the grain flows of the steel are altered, conforming to the shape of the part.

The advantages of forging include:

-Generally tougher than alternatives
-Will handle impact better than castings
-The nature of forging excludes the occurence of porosity, shrinkage, cavities and cold pour issues.
-The tight grain structure of forgings making it mechanically strong. There is less need for expensive alloys to attain high strength components.
-The tight grain structure offers great wear resistance without the need to make products “superhard” We have found that, on a blank HRC 38-42 forged grinder insert wear/wash is about the same as a high alloy HRC 46-50 cast grinder insert. The difference being a HRC 46-50 casting does not have the ductility to handle high impact grinding.

The above was taken from a website which helped me understand the differences. Thought it might be relevant and useful to someone

Fit to the range yesterday morning. 

Ran 200 rounds with no problems

Good time for  $40 worth of ammo 

you're using $2 a round ammo? damn lol