Ak 47 Bayonet Serial Numbers
The below article was written with great attention for detail by 'Mousegunner' who, until the Summer 2011, when he got too ill to continue, ran mousguns.com. The article was edited to match the WASR-10.com house style, but while we at WASR-10.com might not agree with every part of the content of this writing, we have left all text in it's original state.
Don't get us wrong; we think overall this is a great review and we can certainly appreciate the amount of work that went into writing it. As a tribute to the author we have included Mousegunners last blog entries, at the bottom of this review.Romanian GP WASR 10/63 AKM Semi-Auto Clone ReviewFigure 1: Mousegunners WASR-10/63Mousegunner's Disclaimer: I am NOT an expert on the Romanian AK-47. I have done a lot of searching for information on the internet, and tried to pull the information together here.
I have tried to give references. But, if I have gotten something here from YOUR website, and overlooked giving credit where credit is due, please email me, and I will be more than happy to give your name as originator of the information.What Is a WASR?In a nutshell, a WASR is a Romanian semi-auto version of Mikhail Kalashnikov's world-famous AK-47 rifle. Genuine original AK-47s (from whatever country) are all fully automatic.
You pull the trigger, and you can fire all 30 rounds in the magazine in a single burst. The WASR, as with 99.9% of all AK-47 clones sold in the United States, is not like that. The WASR is a semi-auto rifle.
That means, that you can fire ONE round only, each time you pull the trigger. To fire twice, you must pull the trigger twice, and so on. The WASR (and 99.9% of the AK clones in the USA) LOOKS like an 'assault rifle.' But it is NOT really an assault rifle.
It is merely a variety of semi-auto rifle that happens to accept a magazine that can hold many rounds. There are MANY brands and varieties of semi-auto rifles sold to the public in the USA.What is the meaning of the '10/63' designation with regard to these Romanian rifles? Answer: Originally, Russia made AKs with milled receivers (no dimples, as you see now on our stamped receivers.) Romania was making very good copies of the Russian milled AK.
When Russia switched to the stamped receiver, creating the AKM, Romania followed, creating what they called the 'model-1963' rifle, the year it happened. When Romania began stamping receivers for 10-round single-stack magazines, to sell to USA importers, we got the '10/63.' WASR Specifications: NOTE: There are MANY variations of the Romanian WASR being sold in the USA now (2010), maybe more than all the other brands put together.
They are very similar, but may have folding stocks, collapsible stocks, synthetic furniture or wood furniture. The GP75 has a USA made receiver and a USA made barrel (doesn't sound very Romanian, does it!) Prices vary from $380 to $450 (July 2010). I suggest a quick browse through a recent copy of 'Shotgun News.' Read the ads, and you will see the great variety of WASRs, and the price ranges.
Here's a link to J & G, and to Classic Arms, both of which sell a good many lower priced varieties of the WASR. You might also leaf through an issue of 'Shotgun News' magazine, which you can find around here (Tennessee) in Walmart and book stores. Description and SpecificationsAction type: Gas piston-operated, rotating-bolt semi-automatic rifle (some might say 'carbine' instead of rifle).Figure 2: WASR-10 Bolt and Bolt CarrierCaliber: 7.62X39 (both new and military surplus ammo is available, hollow point or full metal jacket, various nationalities)Figure 3: AK 7.62X39 AmmoCapacity: 5, 20 or 30-round detachable double-stack magazines. Military surplus mags are readily available from Eastern European countries, as well as newer synthetic mags made in the USA by Tapco and Palm. (There is a WASR 10 during the 'assault weapons ban' period of time, and still sold in California, that only accepts 10-round single-stack magazines.) My WASR came with two nylon Tapco 30-round magazines. I bought some 5-round Chinese mags, and 30-round European mags. The Tapco mags seem fine for NOW, but I'm sure they will wear out much sooner than good, solid Cold-War-Era Commie metal magazines.
I guess the Tapco mag is chiefly useful for 922r compliance. Here's a photo of the Tapco mag showing the plastic follower and feed lips, and a 5-round Chinese mag, and a 30-round Commie mag.Figure 4A: Tapco magazineFigure 4B:Chinese 5 round magazineFigure 5: East European 30 round magazineBarrel length: 16 inches and a fraction - chrome-lined with sharp rifling - the end of the barrel is threaded, and has a screwed on slant compensator (the 'C' on the compensator means that it is a 'made in USA' part) (incidentally, the screw threads run the opposite direction of what Americans are normally used to).
Twist 1:9 LH. Overall length (with my short wood stock): 35 inchesNote about thread direction: 'Chris' sent me some email about this.' This is the case with everything that threads onto any muzzle of any gun. The threads are left hand threads because the rifling in the barrel causes the gun to twist slightly. If the threads were right hand threads 'normal righty-tighty' threads, the compensator/supressor/silencer/flash hider/muzzle brake would eventually loosen and fall off.' Thanks, Chris!
(Also note: There is a little spring-loaded plunger that pops out and fits in an indentation in the compensator, to stop it from either screwing or unscrewing past a certain point. You can see both the indentation and the little plunger in the photo below, lower right quadrant.)Figure 6: Slanted muzzle break.
Note the indentation and 'plunger'.Overall length: about 35 inches, depending on the stockFigure 7: WASR-10 Overall Length: about 35'.Weight: approx 7 lbs. (unloaded)Furniture: This varies by model. My personal WASR pictured above has ATI synthetic furniture, except for the stock, which is laminated wood painted black to match the black synthetic pistol grip and fore-grip.Sights: Hooded post front; tangent leaf rear, graduated from 100 to 1000 meters.
There is a side-mounted scope rail, and scopes are available. (Personally, I don't know why you would want a scope on an AK.)Fire Control Group (FCG): Tapco G2. This is a USA replacement and it is not bad at all. It's a 'single-hook' variety. This FCG is also handy for 922r compliance, mentioned above.Figure 8A: Tapco G2Trigger GroupFigure 8B: Tapco G2 Single Hook Trigger GroupFinish: 'Phosphate' receiver, barrel, gas tube and magazine (They say 'phosphate' or 'parkerized,' but mine appears to be more of a thin, flat black spray paint.
Not very durable at all. It is advisable to keep metal parts clean and oiled, to avoid rust. I have seen rusty bolts.
It will probably fire even when it is rusty, but that's no excuse to neglect your firearm.)Figure 9A: Bayonet LugFigure 9B: Bayonet Lug DetailIncluded:There is a bayonet lug on the barrel, and a bayonet comes with the package (and an oil bottle, compact cleaning kit to fit in the stock, old sling, and mag bag). There's supposed to be a cleaning rod with the WASR, too, but I don't know what happened to mine.
I probably wouldn't use it anyway, because I already have some good cleaning rods that will work better. Here's a photo showing a typical WASR 10/63 package deal from Classic Arms, with the ordinary wood stock and furniture.Figure 10: Typical WASR 10/63 PackageCurrent Value (July 2010): $380-$600 depending on furniture, accessories, and how much the seller can screw out of you! Prices also rise and fall with the various gun-ban scares that arise from time to time.Accuracy: I am not the original owner of this firearm, and I am not a very good shot, personally. However, I have seen the original owner, who is a very good shot, hit a 16 inch steel plate at 230 yards, over and over. I rate that as 'minute of man' and very good for an AK or an AK clone.
Why Call it a W.A.S.R.?????The initials W.A.S.R. Could stand for a lot of things. Some people who love their rifles say that it means What A Super Rifle!
Those who for some reason don't like this rifle say it means What A (Expletive Deleted) Rifle. I confess that I fall into the former camp of admirers, and that I like my WASR quite a lot. But what does W.A.S.R. Really stand for?
Kalashnikov Bayonet
To the best of my knowledge, which I fully admit is imperfect, it seems to have something to do with a treaty called the 'Wassenaar Arrangement.' Wassenaar is the name of a beautiful little upscale suburb of The Hague in the Netherlands. (Read the Wikipedia article.) It is home to about 25,000 to 30,000 people.Figure 11A: WassenaarFigure 11B: WassenaarThe Hague is the third largest city in the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam, with a population of 485,818 (as of May 31, 2009) (population of agglomeration: 1,011,459) and an area of approximately 100 km². It is located in the west of the country, in the province of South Holland, of which it is also the provincial capital.
The Hague is, like Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Utrecht and Almere, part of the Randstad metropolitan area, with 6,659,300 inhabitants. The Hague is the seat of government, but not the capital of the Netherlands, a role set aside by the Dutch constitution for Amsterdam. The Hague is the home of the States-General of the Netherlands. Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands lives and works in The Hague. All foreign embassies and government ministries are located in the city, as well as the Hoge Raad der Nederlanden (Supreme Court), the Raad van State (Council of State) and many lobbying organisations. The Hague is also the de facto judicial capital of the United Nations, being the location of its primary judicial institutions. (Read more about The Hague here.)What does all that have to do with my WASR rifle?
The Romanian government signed a treaty called the 'Wassenaar Arrangement' which restricts the export of military rifles (40 countries have signed on). Someone reported on the internet (so it must be true!) that 'the receiver of the WASR (Wassenaar Arrangement Semiautomatic Rifle) was re-designed so it did not qualify as a military rifle as defined in the treaty. The redesign involved replacing the dimples with L shaped brackets that were copied from late production RPKs and narrowing the magazine well so it would only accept a single stack 10 shot magazine. The requirements of the Wassenaar Arrangement dovetailed nicely (and not by coincidence) with the US import restrictions.'
(That's what I read somewhere on the internet-I forget who wrote it. But it rings true.)More About the WASR Rifle ItselfWASR 10s were originally manufactured in Romania to accept a single stack low capacity magazine during the 'Assault Weapons Ban' which expired September 13, 2004. After the expiration of the ban, many importers (especially and foremost CAI or Century International Arms of Georgia, Vermont; and now in Florida) opened up the mag well to accept standard double stack mags. Early mag well router craftsmanship by CAI (I know, it should be CIA!) is considered pretty bad by AK47 enthusiasts, but is said to have improved greatly the past few years. Internet legend has it that the earlier work was actually done by monkeys working for CAI. After 2007 the GP WASR-10/63 featured an updated front trunnion with added contact support for the bolt carrier.The GP WASR 10/63s made in 2008 and later are not made from 'rejected' parts but are instead made from military issue weapons and 'G' rifles. (or so I have read in the internet, so it must be true.)DStorm1911 at akfiles.com wrote the following.'
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