Reasons such as ammo availability and ammo consistency for those moving over from the AR platform to the AK has shooters eyeballing the Arsenal SLR106 series rifles like never before. According to recent discussions with K-Var, 5.56 AK’s are selling at nearly 40 times the rate that they were selling at this same time last year. After going to events like Red Oktober and seeing so many shooters walking around with 5.56 AK’s, that is very easy to believe.
But seeing it in the hands of others is not what made me a believer. Rather, the Arsenal SLR106 rifle has been a go-to rifle for me over the last few years. After years of training with 5.56 rifles and stocking up on 5.56 ammo it was an easy decision to grab an AK with that chambering when heading out of the house.
Many traditional AK purists would balk at those who choose to shoot the AK platform and then choose to buy one chambered in 5.56. However, what they cannot deny is the fact that the AK platform is simply the most reliable and battle tested firearm platform on the planet and the 5.56 round is not only popular it has proven to be as effective and reliable as the firearm and shooter sending it downrange. Consequently, when these two great performers came together the resulting synergy seems to have created nothing short of a new uprising of support for the AK and new breed of AK disciples.
Since Red Oktober, Rifle Dynamics has been consistently mentioning the “RD NATO AK” on social media and just this week in one of Rifle Dynamics’ From The Workbench posts, Jim Fuller announced that they will be offering the “RD NATO AK’ built on an Arsenal SLR106F. The rifles feature their custom frontend conversion with a tuneable gas block, Tango Down AK Battle pistol grip, folding stock complete with a trapdoor for storing your AK cleaning kit, Fuller Rear sight, UltiMAK picatinny gas tube for mounting your red optic of choice and sports a clean molyresin finish. The rifle ships with a 20 round Circle 10 magazine. They will also ship the rifle with the shooters muzzle brake of choice.
This is extremely exciting to us at the Kalashnikov Society as we’ve seen that more and more shooters are coming over to the dark side and picking up a Kalashnikov pattern rifle to experience for themselves why those that shoot AK’s love them so much. 
Have you shot a 5.56 AK yet? Are you a purist or are you part of the new breed seeking the evolution of the AK? Let me know in the comments what you think.
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Yeah the only problem is mags. Tell Bulgaria to send some mags and we will buy more rifles. Black circle 10 mags
Polish Beryl mags.
Enjoy.
Polish Beryl mags. Buy them, use them, enjoy them.
I love them ,I have 2 that I built from Bulgarian Kits, like mentioned above need more mags,
I did pick up a CAI marked Bakelite mag ( marked on base plate .223 CAI )from a gun show, $30.00, couldn’t get money out of my pocket fast enough LOL,only one I have ever seen ,it works great, maybe just a 5.45×39 mag with different follower?
It is an East German Baklite magazine. They made the best .223 magazines, The other EG magazine variant you will run into is the all steel WEIGER magazine.
It is an East German magazine in .223
I have a couple of sealed 4 packs of these and have found them to be excellent. The examples I have are painted black for about a quarter of the way down the magazine and marked as you said.
The East Germans also made an outstanding all metal .223 magazine which is called a Weiger mag. made to be used in their rifle of the same name. It can also be used in the Romanian WASR 3 and SAR 3 rifles in .223. This magazine is readily identifiable by its 2 button release for the magazine floor plate.
i won’t buy a gun that I can not get mags readily and reasonably priced.
Need MAGS!! Need MAGS!!
Circle 10! Circle 10!
I bought a Polish AK 7.62×39 and it is a piece of junk…jams , bcg locks up and mags are cheap asian mags…I do have a large paper weight now though…..
How long before we see one in .300blk? Oh right, have to get the mags first!
Fun article and lots of fodder for comments. First off, lets start with “the AK platform is simply the most reliable and battle tested firearm platform on the planet.” Not so much. I used both AKs and M4s on contracts in Iraq and found the AK to be no more or less reliable than the AR/M4 platform. Lots of indigenous militia/terrorists/insurgents/armies use it mainly because it’s cheap and easily available not because it’s the best in the world. And let’s not forget that the August 21, 2015 terrorist attack on the Thalys train traveling from Amsterdam to Paris largely failed because the terrorist’s AK jammed giving the Americans who finally took him down and opportunity to close with him. Yes, it does happen and I’ve seen and experienced it happen myself on several occasions in Iraq. By the same token, I was issued a Bushmaster AR SBR that I finally took back to the armorer and threatened to shove it somewhere the sun didn’t shine if he couldn’t get it to function.
As for the 5.56 vs the 7.62X39 debate, I’ve seen people shot by both and some went down and some kept fighting. In one case a Gurka on one of our teams was shot through and through by an AK round just above his body armor and kept fighting to the point that no one even knew he was wounded until he took his kit off after returning to base and everyone saw the blood. The 5.56 is a good round, although it definitely doesn’t have the penetration of the heavier 7.62 round. Personally, I prefer the 5.56 because of its accuracy and the way it interacts with the human body when it hits it.
So, I own both AK and AR rifles and like both rounds. They are both effective with well placed hits, although I haven’t gotten to the point of buying a 5.56 AK. Sounds like fun though, so maybe this coming year I will pick one up. Either way, to me all guns are cool and worth at least a try.
Failure rates on AK’s can be attributed more to them being poorly maintained by people with little to no training, using weapons built 50+ years ago.
Pound for pound they are more reliable then the M platform even though both can (and do) fail.
The thing to do is to buy a 7.6 2X 39 caliber AR
I bought a Polish AK 7.62 x39 and it is a piece of junk…tried several different mags and had better luck with a Magpul but still had every 4th or 5th round lock up the bolt…
So I have an expensive paper weight until I can get a gunsmith to see what’s ailing it…
Your Polish gun is a kit some home builder more than likely built,not a factory Gun, unless it is a I.O.Inc polish parts crap,what is receiver markings?
It has original polish parts , barrel , bolt , etc. , made in Poland and just enough American parts to make it legal to sell her…this is not a kit…
“It has original polish parts , barrel , bolt , etc. , made in Poland and just enough American parts to make it legal to sell her…this is not a kit…”
Who manufactured it? send it back to them
Hey Kvar we need mags. Get us mags and you will sell a lot more rifles.
I have never shot a bulgi 5.56 , but I have a m90a and an m85 that use steel magazines which are plentiful and still relatively cheap. I’ve never tried these in other platforms, but I have tried izzi galil magazines in the yugo’s and they don’t fit without modifications.
For some reason all factory made 5.56 AKs, use their own mag and will not interchange with each other, Bulgarian AK-74s can be made to use 5.56 with a barrel and the right Bulgarian mag
and from what I just learned here East German mags will work also,
I have had an AK in 5.56 mm for over ten years. No problems, except for the larger capacity magazines. Brian and the Gnome are correct about this. This round is more accurate and has more “reach”. Also, it matches the gov’t round in case we ever have to fight for our country. I certainly don’t want to use the AR-15 when my life is at stake!
There’s ton’s of 7.62 ammo in this country, so wouldn’t really be worried about an invasion scenario…