AK advice

[Jefferson2000]

Evening all, looking to pick the brains of the AK crowd.

I've been into airsoft for longer than I care to remember, but mostly used AR platforms for the majority of my time (indeed the last AK I bought came from trapper industries if that gives my age away!). I've not bought a new RIF for many years now and I'm a bit out of touch with the latest manufacturers and models.

My priority list is probably a little different to most, so I'll list them in order if that aids any recommendations.

1. Build quality - I treat my RIF's fairly harshly, steel would be a massive bonus, but from what I've seen the options are limited and pricey.

2. Realism- looking for a solid stocked 7.62x39 model for the vintage opfor feels, ideally based off a real model.

3. Performance - ideally something with reasonable hop up and a mosfet as stock.

4. Price - ideally come in under or around £300-£350 with a handful of magazines. I'm not adverse to buying used, don't really want to import myself though.

If I'm asking for something unachievable then don't be shy of telling me!

Appreciate any suggestions from those of you that dabble with the AK world.

 

[tside]

Evening all, looking to pick the brains of the AK crowd.

I've been into airsoft for longer than I care to remember, but mostly used AR platforms for the majority of my time (indeed the last AK I bought came from trapper industries if that gives my age away!). I've not bought a new RIF for many years now and I'm a bit out of touch with the latest manufacturers and models.

My priority list is probably a little different to most, so I'll list them in order if that aids any recommendations.

1. Build quality - I treat my RIF's fairly harshly, steel would be a massive bonus, but from what I've seen the options are limited and pricey.

2. Realism- looking for a solid stocked 7.62x39 model for the vintage opfor feels, ideally based off a real model.

3. Performance - ideally something with reasonable hop up and a mosfet as stock.

4. Price - ideally come in under or around £300-£350 with a handful of magazines. I'm not adverse to buying used, don't really want to import myself though.

If I'm asking for something unachievable then don't be shy of telling me!

Appreciate any suggestions from those of you that dabble with the AK world.

Click to shrink...

Are you looking for aeg as opposed to gas blowback? If so a cyma ak 47m isnt a bad bet. You could get a decent cm.048m and plenty of mags for your price range but it is lacking the MOSFET as standard. The cyma platinum of the same model will take your price higher than your budget but has a better internals quality and MOSFET as standard.

 

[Austeyr]

LCT or E&L for external build quality (LCT wood is nicer imo). Cyma definitely comes in further down in terms of quality however the price difference may make it more appealing to you.

LCT gets a bad rap for their internals however I’ve owned maybe 15 of them from various generations and I’ve not had any issues with any bar 2 (VSS & a preowned krink). I did however have issues with my E&L including misfeeds, jams and general accuracy/distance issues. Cyma AK’s just seem to chug along without fault.

LCT are coming out with models with gate asters pre-installed now, however I don’t think they’ll be in your budget realistically. E&L did do an AK line with mosfets I believe however they was just basic protection mosfets and nothing fancy like a perun etc

If you wanted something more modern, then ignore all of the above and hunt for an Arcturus AK-12 PE

 

[Jefferson2000]

Thanks both!

Definitely AEG for this one, as much as the TM AKM looks like it would fit my bill on paper.

My budget is potentially flexible, but I doubt that this will see much action so hard to justify a huge outlay. If a modest increase would open up a greater range then it might be worth me waiting an extra month to buy.

I run a ptw or a kc02 as my go to kit, this is mainly to scratch an itch for opfor kit for themed events, although I wouldn't be surprised if newer kit would match the performance of my aging fleet so to speak (although it's all well serviced and still does the job)

 

[Austeyr]

Thanks both!

Definitely AEG for this one, as much as the TM AKM looks like it would fit my bill on paper.

My budget is potentially flexible, but I doubt that this will see much action so hard to justify a huge outlay. If a modest increase would open up a greater range then it might be worth me waiting an extra month to buy.

I run a ptw or a kc02 as my go to kit, this is mainly to scratch an itch for opfor kit for themed events, although I wouldn't be surprised if newer kit would match the performance of my aging fleet so to speak (although it's all well serviced and still does the job)

Click to shrink...

As shoddy as they are… BBGUNS4LESS had a big clearance sale on LCT AK’s a while back when I was looking at an LCKM (LCT’s AKM), it’s sold out now but it was €350 instead of €580 (so about £320?)

 

[-davo-]

any particular look you're going for with the AK?

solid stocks, folding stocks, stockless, M4 stocks, etc
real/faux wood furniture, keymod, railed, etc

plenty of varieties out there
might help narrow down which models to keep an eye for

As an additional,
I've currently a few AKs I'm readying for sale if you'd like me to pop you some pics, see if they're to your liking?
from a variety of brands, including those mentioned above (LCT, E&L, Cyma)

 

[Jefferson2000]

any particular look you're going for with the AK?

solid stocks, folding stocks, stockless, M4 stocks, etc
real/faux wood furniture, keymod, railed, etc

plenty of varieties out there
might help narrow down which models to keep an eye for

As an additional,
I've currently a few AKs I'm readying for sale if you'd like me to pop you some pics, see if they're to your liking?
from a variety of brands, including those mentioned above (LCT, E&L, Cyma)

Click to shrink...

Solid wooden stock, no bells and whistles would be my preference.

Feel free to drop me a pm but likely be next month before I make a purchase.

 

[EvilMonkee]

AEG - LCT or E&L, not much between them. GBBR, out of the box - TM. VFC are excellent as well. I have owned pretty much every brand of AK out there so this is hard won experience. EDIT- Cyma for budgets.

 

[EvilMonkee]

LCT or E&L for external build quality (LCT wood is nicer imo). Cyma definitely comes in further down in terms of quality however the price difference may make it more appealing to you.

LCT gets a bad rap for their internals however I’ve owned maybe 15 of them from various generations and I’ve not had any issues with any bar 2 (VSS & a preowned krink). I did however have issues with my E&L including misfeeds, jams and general accuracy/distance issues. Cyma AK’s just seem to chug along without fault.

LCT are coming out with models with gate asters pre-installed now, however I don’t think they’ll be in your budget realistically. E&L did do an AK line with mosfets I believe however they was just basic protection mosfets and nothing fancy like a perun etc

If you wanted something more modern, then ignore all of the above and hunt for an Arcturus AK-12 PE

Click to shrink...

Arcturus are E&L

 

[Tactical Pith Helmet]

I'd say CYMA 048 tbh. The lad has one and its performed solidly for years. I like the LCT too, but the mags are not generic. The Lad loses a mag and I lend him one. My pal Keith loses a mag and he had to ask the whole damn site for an LCT one. He played with a single lent mid-cap all day.

I have a couple (actually an embarrassing amount) of AKs from the CYMA 4 range (or at least in that price range). (I can't be arsed looking up all the specs). Each has performed faultlessly.

I've no experience with E&L, but serious players rate them to my knowledge (see above!).

 

[Adolf Hamster]

Just dropping in to shill for e&l.

Their bluing is nicer than lct's imo and i'm not sure there's that much difference in the wood quality. I wasnt a fan of some of the design choices in the lct i had like being unable to pull the gearbox without first pulling the outer barrel, e&l you can slide the hop forward and the box comes right out.

The e&l platinum guns are good internals ootb, hell some parts like their one-peice cylinder i'd consider to be upgrade parts for any other gun. Only thing needs done really is the hop bucking isnt tuned for uk weather/power limits. A maple leaf macaron/omega combo and your choice of basic/advanced/premium mosfet will make for a nice gat even if you leave the box alone.

As for mags, cyma plastic mags are cheap, effective and fit in jg/cyma/lct and e&l. If you want nice steelies then e&l are beautiful externals but the springs/followers are shit. that can be fixed by transplanting cyma guts into them.

If the budget isnt stretching to e&l i'd be going with cyma, externals wont be as nice but it should shoot decent enough.

 

[Colin Allen]

At your price range, I would agree that a CYMA VFC clone is the best option. The build quality is not quite as good as E&L or LCT, but it is still very good.

 

[Baser]

Currently have 4 AK platforms in the collection 3x LCT and 1x TM NGRS.

The 3x LCT’s are very different. While there’s a lot of bad reviews on the quail it’s of LCT AK internals I haven’t had any issues, granted I have other guns in the collection with higher rates of fire or better accuracy but they aren’t rock solid AK’s. The externals are so strong you feel like you could use the gun as a hammer if needed.

The RPK 16 is bog standard no mosfet, no upgrades at all. It shoots really well and has been rock solid over the year or so I’ve owned it. It has a relatively slow rate of fire but that’s not a big problem as it’s used as a LMG. Must have put close to 100,000 BB’s through it and only clean the barrel after every game and recently changed the hop rubber and nub. Run on a 7.4v battery as it doesn’t have a Mosfet it will literally shoot 3000 rounds an hour in full auto without any issues. Love this ‘big dumb gun’.

The AK12 is the pre upgraded Gate Aster version. It performs better than the RPK but that might be because I run it on a 11.1v. Looks nice and is modern (for a AK). Really solid gun and the only one here I got new as it was on sale at the same price as a used one. Accurate after a hop rubber and nub change but that’s all I have done to it.

The AKMS is very pretty and is my classic AK of choice. Picked it up second hand and most of the internals have been upgraded including a Gate Titan Mosfet, better motor, gears, o rings, barrel etc etc. Shoots very well but stick to running it with a 7.4v battery given its lower power. Wood is nice and bit warn as it should be on classic AK’s.

The TM NGRS AKMS is my classic indoor CQB AK of choice. Again picked up second hand, its shoots very well. It was upgraded in a previous life with a Gate Aster and various other goodies. The EBB is fun and it has a great trigger response and snappy recoil but although accurate and it hops BB’s so well it is underpowered hence the CQB. It is also very pretty and have been aged to perfection despite the plastic wood.

Choose the look / style you want as there are many different AK’s out there in different lengths and different furniture. The nice thing with LCT is they have a large catalogue of parts so you can get exactly the look you are after.

 

[Cannonfodder]

It's been a few years since I used AKs but the cyma hop units were considered top notch. My AKS74U was out ranging builds costing several times more and I was accused of having a hot gun more than once.

My E&L had great external parts but unfortunately the internals were the exact opposite and I had to completely gut it, however this was a sample size of 1 so I couldn't say if they're all bad or if I was just unlucky

TLDR: Cyma if you're on a budget E&L if you can afford a bit more

 

[The_Lord_Poncho]

As a wild card that I don't think anyone has mentioned yet - the Specna AKs are worth a look. Mostly steel bodied, and depending what build you go for, you can get some very nice internals with ECUs, rotary hop units with flat hop from the box, stainless tightbore barrels , quick change springs etc. Bodies are OEM'd by S&T I believe. I've been very happy with mine. I've also been exceptionally happy with the ancient CM028 that i bought battered and second hand for £40. Plastic faux wood furniture, and plastic receiver, but really quite tough, and performs obnoxiously well for a budget gun.

 

[Colin Allen]

My pal Keith loses a mag and he had to ask the whole damn site for an LCT one. He played with a single lent mid-cap all day.

Click to shrink...

That is strange; the Lad and I both have LCT AKs; they feed perfectly happily from CYMA mags, although the Lad uses CYMA mag interiors in genuine shells.

 

[tside]

As a wild card that I don't think anyone has mentioned yet - the Specna AKs are worth a look. Mostly steel bodied, and depending what build you go for, you can get some very nice internals with ECUs, rotary hop units with flat hop from the box, stainless tightbore barrels , quick change springs etc. Bodies are OEM'd by S&T I believe. I've been very happy with mine. I've also been exceptionally happy with the ancient CM028 that i bought battered and second hand for £40. Plastic faux wood furniture, and plastic receiver, but really quite tough, and performs obnoxiously well for a budget gun.

Click to shrink...

Have you seen the gen2s of the cm.028 line patrol base just picked up? All deans wired out of the box with mosfets. Definitely keeping their position as top notch starters. My cm.028 was an absolute workhorse and is currently happy with it's 3rd owner

 

[Baser]

That is strange; the Lad and I both have LCT AKs; they feed perfectly happily from CYMA mags, although the Lad uses CYMA mag interiors in genuine shells.

Click to shrink...

Very odd, I have a mix of LCT (mid and high cap stick and drum), CYMA mid cap and my preferred PTS mid cap mags and all feed flawlessly in my LCT AK’s and RPK.

Only issue I’ve heard of is with some of the limited edition hand polished stainless guns where they just have issues in general given they are hand made.