$800-1000 will get you a good AK no problem. Arsenal or converted VEPR would be my choices new; I personally have an older Arsenal SLR95 as my main AK and it's one of my favorite guns in my entire roster. Lee Armory guns I think are in that range too, know nothing about them. Any preference for 7.62x39 or 5.45? That's kind of the next big question, as there is not a real difference in the price of new production ammo. Heck surplus 7N6 may actually be cheaper than the surplus x39 based on what I've seen for sale.