Rifle War: AK-47 vs AK-74

By SOFREP, Guy McCardle

The Avtomat Kalashnikova

If modern warfare takes place in a theater, one actor has continuously dominated the stage, captivating audiences with its relentless performance under the most dire conditions. The Avtomat Kalashnikova, or AK, is an undying symbol of resilience and brute force. The “47” part of the moniker comes from its first production year. You guessed it, 1947.

My personal journey with the AK-47 begins outside the hallowed gates of what used to be known as Fort Bragg, North Carolina. This is where I bought a slightly beat-up specimen from a short round man with a Russian accent. “Never fired, only dropped once!” he quipped, echoing a joke that was making its way around military circles at that time. It only cost a couple of hundred bucks, and that’s a good thing because that’s all the money I had.

Two AKs from my friends at Zastava Arms USA. Photo taken by the author at a recent NRA convention. Photo by the author.

This was in the days before the first Gulf War, and I had only ever handled one in training and orientation prior to that. Mine is in good company. A quick search reveals that some 100 million AK-47s and their variants have been made over the years. In many parts of the world, they are as common as ticks on a hound dog’s ass.  This is with good reason; they are simple and effective tools of war.

Voyage Into the AK-47 Universe

My interest in the AK-47 did not stem merely from its ubiquity in those regions but also from the tales of its legendary reliability and accuracy. In the hands of our adversaries, it appeared to be an ever-reliable comrade, performing beyond expectation even under neglected maintenance and care. The rumor mills buzzed with stories of these weapons, barely cleaned for a decade, firing with deadly precision. The bad guys might not have been aiming, but the AK-47 didn’t seem to need much guidance. My curiosity now piqued, I embarked on a personal journey to explore the true nature of the AK-47. I was determined to assess its reliability and accuracy firsthand and discover why it has earned its formidable, rugged reputation.

A weapons cache uncovered in Iraq. Guess what their weapon of choice was. Photo courtesy of the author.

Questioning Accuracy

A well-known characteristic of the AK-47, as I soon found out, is its relative lack of accuracy, especially when compared to other rifles or carbines like the M4/AR-15. However, my experience revealed a more nuanced picture. I found that the AK-47 was a decent enough weapon straight out of the shady gun store. Truth be told, I haven’t fired it in years. It had its day, though, and back when ammo was affordable, I put thousands of rounds downrange over the decades. Sure, it rattles a bit when you shake it, but that’s part of the charm. I shot about maybe a grapefruit-sized group (a large grapefruit) at 100 meters, and that’s good enough, I guess.