"The only eastern european country still producing the AK is Bulgaria."
I almost choked! For real?
I then started look frantically all over the internet for more info and discovered that yes indeed...this appears to be true! According to one Romanian Government site, the Romanian defense industry (including the Romak factory at Cugir, Romania) was to lay-off 27,500 factory workers in February of 2001. This would leave only 18,500 workers to produce a wealth of other armaments where there had previously been 45,000 workers.
Maybe I have been living with my head in the sand.....did you all already know this?
Does this mean Romanian SAR-1's are also doomed to become highly sought after and over-priced? Does this really mean that all we have to chose from now are the single-stack, black polymer stocked AK wannabes from Bulgaria?
Oh Please Mommy! Say it ain't so!
Say it ain't so!
WOW!!!! When I would read things like that in the past, my reaction was "Yeah, right. You mean stop EXPORTING to the U.S." I never suspected that actual PRODUCTION would ever slow down much. I guess a market economy is not always a good thing for the military-industrial complex!
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WARNING: CZs MAY BE HABIT-FORMING (Consult a doctor if nursing or pregnant).
I was hoping someone would dispute what I had read.
Now I look at my Romanian AK with a new sense of respect.
Another affordable, reliable & effective firearm bites the dust.
I receive this catalog every month and in it they are advertising new SAR 1 for $279. That is relatively low price for something that is not beeing made anymore. How are they doing this? Do not get me wrong I am not saying that you guys are incorrect, because I have not researched or read anything on this subject myself, and in fact I tend to agree with you. I am just curious if your opinion would be that this seler is not well informed or this price would be ok for this gun I have seen these guns for sale for over $400. I know that $400 is a bit too much but what do you have to say about $279.
I think people were worried about an EVENTUAL shortage. There are still a lot of AKM parts and complete rifles out there. Your point is well taken, though. The importers tend to gouge at the first sign of an excuse.
AK-47s (original milled receiver design) and their clones are actually much rarer than many realize. They are not rare, by any stretch of the imagination, but most people refer to all Kalashnikov rifles as "AK-47s."
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WARNING: CZs MAY BE HABIT-FORMING (Consult a doctor if nursing or pregnant).
Cranky, this info is coming from the same man who said a few years ago that Romania had NEVER made any variation of the SKS.
However, if this guy is correct this time, I don't see a reason to get nervous. There are still TONS of the Romanian AKM's on the market, and at a really reasonable price, as Amadeus stated. I think Centerfire Sytems has them for $279- either in 7.62 or 5.45.
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Thanks guys!
Oh....I'm not worried. I already have a really top-rate Romanian that a collector friend of mine even said was the nicest he had ever seen. I have outfitted it with black polymer furniture, East German night sights AND a side-rail mounted compact 4x30 scope. It's a great gun and yes...I have over the last year accumulated enough very affordable replacement parts to rebuild the thing twice. Ebay is a great source for parts, just dont bid too much! If you are patient you can even get NEW Romanian replacement chromed pistons & trigger parts sets for $3 or $4.
I would tend to agree with FEG that although they are no longer in production, there are probably tons of them sitting in every big gun dealers warehouse. They are still quite available in the $275-$300 range through Shotgun News retailers so I am sure they are not scarce.....yet.
I bought my pristine East German Makarov for $189 in 2000 when most of the big dealers were offering them along side the Bulgarians. Now, two years later there are none to be found through the big dealers and the ones offered by individuals are bringing upwards of $300.
Mint, unissued Mosin-Nagant M44 carbine's are much the same story.....getting harder to find and more pricey as the supply dwindles and demand remains high. What ever happened to those unissued Polish & Russian M44's for $69.00 ???
Is it possible that these are getting supplanted by the new MAK 74's? I have to say that I bought an SAR1 about a year ago and I just absolutely love it, because it's exactly what it's supposed to be.
If this is all true, then my guess is:
1) AK-74 models are being produced in their place.
2) Market factors are replacing the goal of 100% employment. I honestly think some fo these countries cranked out AKMs just to keep the workers busy. No joke.
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WARNING: CZs MAY BE HABIT-FORMING (Consult a doctor if nursing or pregnant).
I think you are both correct. I have noticed recently that the dealers in Shotgun News, while still offering their backstocked Romanian SAR-1's in the $289 range...have been really pushing what they call "Russian AK's" and assorted, kinda wimpy looking Saiga variants.
I guess the beefy old Romak is being replaced by the newer sleek, synthetic, Saiga look alikes and AK74's coming ( I would assume) from both the Russian Izmash plant and Bulgaria.
Well, this is a bit off-topic, but it might help people, so here goes:
You cannot sell the exact same thing to the exact same people in the exact same way, indefinitely.
IMHO, this is why the arms industry and gun rags will always push the "latest and greatest." There is no financial incentive to admit that dad's old Model 19 and/or grandpa's old pump gun will serve most people jes' fine.
I like semi-autos, new guns, and gadgets. I don't really NEED them. I have the RIGHT to own them. 'Nuff said!
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WARNING: CZs MAY BE HABIT-FORMING (Consult a doctor if nursing or pregnant).
