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Posted: 10/15/2005 6:26:10 AM EDT
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I finally got to shoot my two WASR-3 rifles this week. The first rifle I shot was the nicest looking of the two. I had Wolf 55 grain FMJ ammo and new Weiger 30 round mags. This rifle had failed to feed rounds when I had hand cycled it at home. The mag had a little play because the mag catch had been filed too much. Only a little though. Less than a 1/16 inch. I only put about 10 rounds in the mag to start. Then the frustration started. Every third round or so failed to feed bullets into the chamber. The bolt was riding over the bullets..... hitting the bullet about a 1/2 inch up from the base of the bullet......... then it would push the tip of the bullet into the area at the top of the receiver where the barrel meets it. I tried 2 new Weiger 30 rounders, the 10 round Weiger mag and the converted Bakelite that CAI included with the rifle. Same result with all mags. I must have tried to shoot 140 rounds. Of these rounds at least 40 were gouged so bad that I was afraid to try again to use them. I am shipping this terrible rifle back to AIM. They are great and will return my money or send another rifle. Two days later I was able to try out the second WASR-3. This rifle had a receiver cover that was manufactured incorrectly and was rubbing the finish off the bolt carrier, so I used one from a SAR-2. That fit great. This rifle had fed rounds into the chamber by hand at home. I was again using the same ammo. Wolf 55 grain FMJ. The second WASR-3 failed to feed 3 rounds in the first 30 shots I fired. I continued loading and firing rounds until I had put 170 rounds down range. I only had one more failure to feed in the last 140 rounds fired. I was very happy about the accuracy of this rifle. I had a scope and side mount that I put on the rifle for the last 40 shots. I was getting about a 1 1/2 inch grouping at 50 yards. My scope/mount started sliding down the scope rail so I had to quit my accuracy tests (couldn't figure the problem out ). So..... I have had a total of three WASR-3s so far ( my first WASR-3 had already been shipped back). One had a bad receiver cover and the other two would not feed rounds into the chamber. The two that will not feed the bullets will be returned to AIM. I am not sure about the third rifle. I have read that these rifle were originally single stack rifles so the lug on the bolt that feeds rounds into the chamber is too narrow for a double stack magazine rifle. I really wanted two 223 caliber AKs. What do you guys think . Should I ask for a replacement for the rifle that won't feed rounds and should I keep the one that only had 4 misfeeds ??? CAI should be ashamed of their quality control. The Sar rifles never looked that great but they usually functioned. Thanks.......Mike |
| I had the same problem with mine....mags make a big difference....they gotta like em. It got better the more I fired it...total rounds fired around 60-80. They have a much nicer trigger than the SARs and older WASRs. I had a very nice SAR1 that would just beat your finger to death. |
| I put another 120 rounds through my Wasr-3 this weekend. I used Wolf 55 grain fmj with copper jacketed bullets. Absolutely no problems. The rifle purred like a kitten through a bowl of warm milk. Looks like a keeper for sure. I will keep firing this rifle without cleaning it to see how long it will fire without a problem. |
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ARMIKEFMJ - is there any way you could post a picture of the bolt , chamber , and feed ramp of your Wasr 3 ? I have a SAR 3 - the original "bastard" AK  and would like to see the differences.I can understand magwell and catch problems - but am wondering if there is more to the Wasr 3 problems.  |
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