i am fairly new to guns, i been collecting for a couple years now.  im not much into the collector guns because i enjoy going out and shooting them so they atleast have to be in good shape.

a AK 47 is gun it seems everyone has, for a good reason though, they are very strong guns.  i been in the market to buy one here for a while but here lately i have been thinking of just getting a RPK.  i know its basically a AK 47 but a little different, the main things that are different for me is it is bigger and heavier.  thats not too much of a issue for me though (atleast i dont think it will be)

im mainly wanting the gun to shoot at the range, nothing really much more, just a gun to have some fun with.  how are the modification options for the RPK?  im not usually one to modify guns like these but would it be possible to interchange AK parts with a RPK?  such as the stock, clips, shorter AK barrels?  i thought this might be a cool thing to do, if i want my RPK ill leave it as is but if i want a more of a AK feel or just a shorter gun i can just swap the barrel and stock and have a "AK 47"  is it that easy?

how about aftermarket parts? rails, scopes, synthetic stocks, etc? do they make them?  can you even buy a "new" out of the box modern RPK?

i have never handled a RPK, is it really that BIG of a gun?  i know it is bigger than a AK but is really that bulky?  i also have a SKS, i dont really consider it to be a big bulky gun but i know a RPK is bigger.  thus is why i ask if it could interchange with shorter AK barrels or stocks.

this is probably the deal breaker for me, but does the longer barrel make it shoot farther?  the wiki page for a RPK says it can shoot 100–1,000 meters.  that is a huge difference in range while the ak shoots 400 meters.    my thought process is, if i can get a gun that can shoot such a farther distance i will just get it.  i know you cant trust wiki pages anyway but what's the deal with the 100-1000 meters?  the difference in the range just seems odd.  i would predict it to shoot way farther than 100 meters and less than 1000 meters.  maybe 500 meters?  im not sure, whats the range of this gun?

i appreciate any help with my questions!

I just got an AES-10B..  My first RPK.  I also own a 16" Vepr, an Arsenal SGL, and I used to own a Yugo M70-AB2.  The Vepr is VERY nice for an AK.  Fit and finish is really good.  Now keep in mind, "really good" on an AK is pretty crappy by AR standards.  But an AK is an AK, not an AR.  Anyway..  The Vepr is real nice.  The SGL has some crappy paint on it, but everything fits real nice.  The Yugo has a pretty nice grey finish on it, but some parts didn't fit as great as the other two.  The AES-10B is really pretty crappy.  It's similar to a WASR-10 but has a better receiver and a longer barrel.  I'm not too terribly upset about it, but it's going to take some cleaning and a refinish on the wood to get it to look decent.  I think it should cost about $500 rather than the $700 I paid, but I know it will go up once they become unavailable again.

The point of all this is, I'd get a Vepr for my first AK so as not to be too disappointed in the thing.  I love my Vepr, even with several ARs and a bunch of other guns the Vepr is the one that comes to the field every time.  It's only a 16" barrel but it is a heavy barrel and it has an RPK heavy duty receiver.  Of course if you're after the long barrel and tri-pod look, then an authentic RPK is the way to go.

Good luck in your search.

-J

i dont know any dealers around me that would have a gun like this but when getting one online, is it more less a crap shoot hoping that you will get a good gun?  these would be surplus guns right?  i know some surplus guns are in really bad shape sometimes, is that a big issue with RPKs?  i have a lot more research on what kinds are best to get, like i said before i dont know much about these but i think i would be happy with just one that shoots 6.62x39.  is there some countries that are better than others?  im not too loyal on who makes them, i mainly just want a nice solid gun.

i have alot of researching to do so im sorry if im asking stupid questions, i have been wanting to add a AK 47 to my collection for a long time but i recently i seen where J&G Sales just got a shipment in, i wasnt aware of it before i seen it but it looks to be a amazing gun.

the receivers and barrels are new from the factory, and these are considered some of Century's better rifles, I jumped on one that had a bipod installed, I would recommend you do the same