Here Are 5 Things You Probably Didn’t Know About AK-47’s

As much as I hate to admit it, the Kalashnikov is the most popular rifle of it’s kind in the world and if you don’t believe me, do the research and see for yourself.

My “:AK” (like the one used by the host of the video), was made in China by a company called Norinco. Production started in 1956 at State Factory 66 but was eventually handed over to Norinco and (for a while at least) PolyTech, who continue to manufacture the rifle primarily for export.

Norinco, is a Chinese defense corporation that manufactures a diverse range of civil and military products. It is also involved in domestic civil construction and military defence projects. Norinco is one of the world’s largest defense companies and contractors.

I bought it in 1987 for $300.00 and after all the years I’ve had it, it has never failed me, that’s how well-made and reliable this rifle is. But, truth be told, the AK was made so that an near-idiot could use it and no matter what they did to it, they couldn’t destroy it.

Here’s what Wikipedia has to say about it:

“The AK-47, officially known as the Avtomat Kalashnikova (Russian: Автома́т Кала́шникова, tr. Avtomát Kaláshnikova, lit. ‘Kalashnikov’s automatic device’; also known as the Kalashnikov and AK), is a gas-operated, 7.62×39mm assault rifle, developed in the Soviet Union by Mikhail Kalashnikov. It is the originating firearm of the Kalashnikov rifle (or “AK”) family. Design work on the AK-47 began in 1945. In 1946, the AK-47 was presented for official military trials, and in 1948, the fixed-stock version was introduced into active service with selected units of the Soviet Army. An early development of the design was the AKS (S—Skladnoy or “folding”), which was equipped with an underfolding metal shoulder stock. In early 1949, the AK-47 was officially accepted by the Soviet Armed Forces[9] and used by the majority of the member states of the Warsaw Pact.

Even after seven decades, the model and its variants remain the most popular and widely used assault rifles in the world because of its reliability under harsh conditions, low production costs compared to contemporary Western weapons, availability in virtually every geographic region, and ease of use. The AK-47 has been manufactured in many countries and has seen service with armed forces as well as irregular forces and insurgencies worldwide, and was the basis for developing many other types of individual, crew-served and specialised firearms. As of 2004, “Of the estimated 500 million firearms worldwide, approximately 100 million belong to the Kalashnikov family, three-quarters of which are AK-47s”

So take a few minutes and watch the video, who knows, you might learn something you didn’t know.

H/T – Wikipedia