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Posted: 2/9/2019 12:40:06 PM EDT
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Everyone was always saying the bolts would break and getting them running smoothly was an issue.
Has anything actually changed ... or have manufacturers and gun-tubers just run out of stuff to come out with so they are pushing this? |
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After you’ve read through the dozen or so threads here in AR variants come back and discuss.
I have a couple 7.62x39 AR’s with 1500-2500 rounds on them and no broken bolts. Built both a couple years ago. The are fun, reliable guns and surprisingly accurate with steelcase ammo. Also, the current crop of 7.62x39 AR’s have been running good for almost 4 or 5 years. Use CPD GEN3 mags and REDX ARMS extended firing pins, and usually a heavier buffer. |
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I don't know my round count. AIM NIB bolt. No problems. I did a poll at one point, but I think it got pushed to the archives. The poll disappeared, but here's the synopsis: 1) The poll states for the person to explain below, and only one person who had a 7.62x39 failure did that. Without an explanation, there's no way of knowing if it was a bolt failure or an extractor failure, the first of which is catastrophic and necessitates a new bolt, the second can be fixed in five minutes if you have the parts on hand. 2) If one person has multiple working AIM bolts in 7.62x39, it's possible that more do, and didn't specify in the poll. It's also possible they don't, so take that with grain of salt. 3) The one DOCUMENTED failure on this thread wasn't technically a bolt...it was an extractor. While attached to the bolt, it is a separate part, in that it can be replaced and the bolt continues to work. 4) The one thing I was looking for and most worried about, evidence of LUG FAILURE, hasn't been documented in this thread in a 7.62x39 AIM bolt. That's the biggest thing, because unless you carry a spare bolt, you're not fixing that one at the range. And I think that's what most people think of when they think of 7.62x39 bolt failure. 5) This poll is anything but scientific. But, I still should have been more specific in my wording in the poll. But, the whole "broken lug" thing was what I was interested in find out anyway. So, in reality, we have 0 documented instances of lug failure at this point. |
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Quoted:
Buy a quality AK and you will never have any problems. |
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Quoted: AK's are fine if you aren't concerned with accuracy. I hunt coyotes and deer with my 7.62x39...a coyote has a 3-5" kill area, I have never seen an AK that could do that at 200 yards. Granted mine sports a premium barrel...but with hand-loads using 125 Nosler BT's it is always under an inch at 100 off the bench and runs a consistent 1.5" @ 200. I Coyote hunt with calls and over a bait pile 210 yards away. My WASR10 and WASR2 have both killed more coyotes over that bait pile using Hornady steel case ammo than most guy kill with there "custom" coyote rifles in there lifetime. Both will shoot 2-2.5 moa with relative ease. I hunt the fields of northern maine. Been -5 to -20 every night for almost 2 months now. I used an AR long ago when I was young. First time I went for a follow up shot and had a malfunction, followed by a frozen mag release button, followed by a frozen charging handle, I swapped to a semi-auto made for the cold. Love my ARs, but hate the "inaccurate" AK myths out there. No, they dont possess the accuracy potential of an AR, but PLENTY accurate to get the job done. |
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Honestly I think 7.62x39 AR parts & builds are WAY better now than they were 10 years ago.
While there were some really good reliable bolts back then (Colt & LMT come to mind) there were a lot of broken bolts too. Not so much these days. And this forum had a lot to do with pooling a lot of good info in one place. My first build wasn't great. Started with crappy mags that I worked & re-worked and ground down the M4 ramps to try to mimic what a Bushmaster feed ramp looked like. First & only time I ever had to use a FA and it got used a lot. Then I found out bolts were more likely to break and I probably made that worse by grinding off most of the bottom lug. At least I was running an LMT bolt which I still do in another build and it's still going strong. |
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