What does WASR stand for?

[Paper]

My new CAI AK/Wasr showed up today. It's my first AK rifle and I'm just wondering what WASR stands for?

From what I gathered, the name was just a change from the AK name to shed a bit of freedom from the AK name..

Just wondering what the lowdow on the name change is??

Also, I bought the Romanian through SOG and had it shipped to my local store where I paid the transfer fee. As I mentioned, it's my first AK type rifle... Fantastic machine!!!

Because it's deer hunting this weekend, I won't get to shoot it until next weekend, but I'm looking forward to it..

I found this on Wiki.. This is what I bought.. Or so it's stamped on the side of the receiver..


GP WASR-10/63 (Pistol Mitradel 63)
These are Romanian military spec AKM clones. They are currently used by Romanian Special Forces. They are currently being made, and because they are mil-spec, they are of higher quality compared to normal WASR rifles. The 2007 GP WASR-10/63 also has an updated front trunnion with added contact support for the bolt carrier.

[rckymtnboy]

Paper, I found this info here: Romanian Kalashnikov Rifles Lots of good info there. It appears that the WA part refers to the type of ban was in place at the time, therefore the rifle was designed to comply to whatever restrictions were in place, whether it be hi-capacity mags, bayonets, etc. The SAR (which was the original Romanian series) part stands for semi-automatic rifle. Hope that some of this info helps.



WASR Series overview/history...
Originally conceived as a AKM that could be owned in states with more restrictive gun laws on magazine capacity, the WASR series was always considered a step sister to the SAR series of rifles. Eventually distributors found it hard to sell the stockpiles of low-cap WASR rifles and started to mill out the receiver to accept hi-capacity magazines along with updating the part count to make them section 992 compliant.
Still even the hi-cap models of the WASR remained the “bastard step child” of the SAR series until very recently when it became the prominent Romanian AK series when the SARs ceased to be imported.
The WASR family of rifles is now the largest Romanian group of AKM rifles sold in the United States and has been imported from 1999 to present date.
The WASR series has three major groups each with its own series of sub models. The ear;y & pre September 2004 models were produced to be complaint with the then in effect “AW Ban”. The post September 2004 models include features that were previously not legal under the “AW Ban”. It is not uncommon to find pre September 2004 models that have been modified post September 2004 to have features that were previously not legal.
One notable feature about the late 2005 - present models of WASRs is that they are being constructed from part-kits de-milled from Real Romanian AKMs (unissued) produced in the late 70s to mid 80s.

[Paper]

Perfect! Exactly what I was looking for!! Thank you!!

I was going to go through my Surplus Rifle CD's, but hadn't gotten that far.

I've cleaned it, lightly lubed it, and now I'm ready to shoot it!!!!

[rckymtnboy]

I'm glad I could help! You'll love it, I'm sure. I have had a lot of fun with mine. Very reliable machine. The only complaint I've ever had, is that the stock was a bit short for my arm length, but that problem can be easily remedied! Believe it or not, I picked mine up for $225 a few years ago...unfortunately I lost it in a house fire last summer along with 45 others...ugh. Hurts to think about it still. It sure has been fun building a new collection though, I'm back up to 20 already!!! If you haven't already, you might want to order a spare parts kit for that. They are very affordable, I think mine was $10 through cheaperthandirt.com if I remember right. You get a spare gas piston, springs, pistol grip, etc. Well worth the little bit of $$ to have them on hand. Good luck, have fun, and most importantly, be safe!

[Paper]

Originally Posted by rckymtnboy

unfortunately I lost it in a house fire last summer along with 45 others...ugh.

Well, at least you're here today.. I guess I'd rather see them go up in smoke than stolen.

Again, thanks for the info and I'll look into a spares kit.

I'm one of those who'd rather have a single shot than a 30 shot, but I figured I'd gather one while the getting was good.

I consider myself lucky that my local shop tossed my name on their SOG account, allowing me to order when I want and pay for it directly, and just pay them a $25 transfer fee. Since I'm a C and R collector, I already have the catalog, and a lot of times I want stuff I can't order myself. With this, they're still making money on the transfer and I'm buying at dealer cost.

This one was $359 from SOG, and it came with a couple mags, cleaning kit, sling, bayonette, etc.. It could be a better price, but I don't think we'll see these go down in price. A year from now, it might be priceless..

[rckymtnboy]

I agree, I'm much happier that they did go up in smoke then into the hands of only god knows who.

Wow, you did really good on that deal. I haven't seen one for under $400 here in quite awhile. Most of my guns are single shot too, but those spray 'n pray guns are a real kick in the pants, and a GREAT way to blow off some steam at the range! Take it out on a vicious, man-eating watermelon! LOL.

It also sounds like you have a great relationship with your local shop like I do. I have become great friends with the owner and he lets me order stuff through him whenever I need to. Comes in real handy, especially when the days of a good deal on a gun are long gone...have you been to a gun show recently? I couldn't believe how high the prices were...it really is more of a gun SHOW now, cause they sure don't sell many anymore at those prices!

[Paper]

I actually got a couple good deals at a gun show last weekend.

I picked up a pre-68 Remington 552 Speedmaster in perfect shape for less than $150, and the best deal was I bought a 900 round case of 8mm Mauser ammo for $80 out the door..

I'm guessing he didn't want to bring it back home. It's less than half of what mil-surp 8mm is going for and I didn't have to pay shipping.