Wish I had one of these in what some might call my "weapons cache." In Virginia, it is called "Pat’s guns" or "Marguerite’s guns" depending on which ones we are talking about.
Some woman once asked me if I was not afraid that Marguerite might shoot me sometime when she is irritated with me. "No," was the answer but if she did I would probably deserve it.
These things were made in every country in the Warsaw pact as well as China and North Korea.
We dropped hundreds of thousands of them into the South China Sea from sling loads under helicopters. Someone will tell me how many millions have been made, I am sure.
Pat Lang
PS That’s a hell of a price. Sign me up for two.
The AK 47 is not too accurate and it has a rainbow trajectory.
For my money I’d go with the AK 74. Flatter trajectory and easier to control in full auto. Those pieces just stay right on target when you hold the trigger back.
I don’t know if you can find any ammo for the 74, though. I think the ball ammo is armor piercing and therefore prohibited in the US. Perhaps the Colonel has channels by which he could get past that problem?
Poor Grandpa’s Deaf Now , but when we get some of This in him, we can manage him.
I remember seeing a repoert about an Pakistani town where craftsmen make AK-47 (and lots of other weapons) with primitive tools and then ship them to the best bidder.
That’s what I find impressive: The design is so robust, that it even works reliably with the rough manufaturing tolerances of primitive manufacturing.
Is the AK-47 perfect? I don’t think so, but it certainly is good enough for it’s purpose.
Norbert
That is up in tribal territory where bin Laden is hiding. pl
A former boss of mine, he was from India, and a historian, once explained to me how the British had dealt with the tribals during the Raj.
Perferrably not at all.
The informal agreement the British had with the tribals was iirc along the lines: We own the streets (and iirc the major cities) and want to use them unhindered, and when you attack us, we retaliate swiftly – and then get the hell out of there (before the locals can retaliate).
The British accepted that whoever left the streets and ventured into the countryside, did so at his own peril.
In return the British offered trade and left them alone otherwise. That iirc worked reasonably well as a modus vivendi.
Today, this receipe probably cannot work anymore. IIRC the Al Quaeda folks have married in the local societies, and so became part of them, and tradition demands them to be defended as kin. Extradition is unthinkable, and that is simply unacceptable for the U.S.
Considering the remarkable reputation of the locals as fighters, I pity the Pakistani soldiers actually tasked (as a result of U.S. pressure) with trying to enforce gvt control in the tribal area (just like U.S troops tasked with operating there, quite a high risk job).
That was his ‘lesson’ (and lessons our conversations were) about the war on terror in Afghanistan. Gee, high time I show up at his place for a chat.
All
I will look into this business of AK-74 ammunition.
I always liked the Czech made AKs the best.
The guns made on the NW Frontier in Pakistan look good but are made of inferior materials. Don’t fire one… pl
PL, check the Yorkshire Ranter on the AK47.
http://yorkshire-ranter.blogspot.com/2007/08/review-ak47-story-of-peoples-gun.html