I know AK's never break. So, it would probably be a waste of money.

But I sleep better known I have spares.

I need advice on how to approach this.

I see that K-VAR has spare Bulgarian .223 (yeah, yeah "5.56x45") bolts. Also bolt carriers in the same caliber.

I've heard some mention of the WASR's having some unusual dimensions that might be incompatible with non-Romanian bolts and carriers.

Can somebody bring me up to speed on this - or refer me to a thread that covers the subject?

I just want be able to have a spare bolt on hand for the WASR-3. I'll buy an extra carrier too if I have to. But frankly, I don't see the carrier as likely to fail in its own right.

Thanks in advance.

AK bolts don't drop in like an AR bolt.

The 'tail' on the Bulgy bootl is not the correct size, and I believe the locking lugs are different.

Probably not what you wanted to hear.  I wanted to do the smae thing for my SAR-3 and ended up at the saem conclusion- no spare parts available for them.

You shouldn't need a spare...... Don't worry ...Be happy......Its an AK !!!!

Finding a replacement bolt will be difficult. I would also get headspace gauges if you plan on swapping bolts.  Perhaps you could just get a spare firing pin. I would think a firing pin, extractor and spring would be all you need for spares.  

I think it was Ekie who wrote that a 5.45 AK-74 bolt can be used, but one of the locking lugs will have to be ground to fit. Sounded like you'd need some machining experience.

I just bought a spare firing pin from K-var and keep it in the buttstock cleaning kit. Replacement springs and an extractor woudn't be a bad idea either.

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Quoted: The 'tail' on the Bulgy bootl is not the correct size, and I believe the locking lugs are different. Probably not what you wanted to hear.  I wanted to do the smae thing for my SAR-3 and ended up at the saem conclusion- no spare parts available for them. hinking.gif

OK.

But what if I get a Bulgy carrier too?

The Bulgy bolt should be compatible with the Bulgy carrier.

Or is this going to still fall flat because of the geometry of the (unique?) WASR fire-control system?

Bulgy bolt and carrier won't work without extensive modification, trust me on this.  Go over to K-Var and into their MIG-ETA forums and I have a thread on this with some extensive testing and research, along with a thread on AKforum involving the same thing.
The shaft of the bolt is a different size on the Bulgy and the Romy bolts, which means the carriers are not interchangeable either.  The Bulgy bolt also has a different locking lug desing, and to top it all off a Bulgy carrier will bind up in a Romy gun.  

If this had been an easy swap I would have done it long ago on my SAR-3.  Unfortunately the Romy's decided to use a half-assed design on the WASR and SAR, and do not supply any sort of spare parts for the U.S. market.  

Quoted: Quoted: The 'tail' on the Bulgy bootl is not the correct size, and I believe the locking lugs are different. Probably not what you wanted to hear.  I wanted to do the smae thing for my SAR-3 and ended up at the saem conclusion- no spare parts available for them. OK. But what if I get a Bulgy carrier too? The Bulgy bolt should be compatible with the Bulgy carrier. Or is this going to still fall flat because of the geometry of the (unique?) WASR fire-control system?

Basically anytime you change the bolt or barrel on an AK, you're potentially going to have headspace issues.  While you may find a bolt that replaces your existing bolt without headspace issues, I wouldn't count on it.  

really, you are probably never going to destroy an AK bolt without a KB which would probably also mess up your reciever. I would get a spare extractor, 2 extr. springs, and firing pin and you should be OK

Are the SAR extractors or firing pins unique too?

Is there a readily-accessible source for those parts?