Blonde Wood AK Furniture

I have some Bulgy AK 74 wood furniture that I stripped the lacquer from and refinished in order to give it the blonde look.

This is what is started out as:



This is the look I wanted:







I used Formby's Paint & Poly Remover, some brushes, sandpaper, a plastic scrapper, Oxyclean and Minwax "Natural" stain to do this project.


I first applied Formby's Paint & Poly Remover (a gelatinous substance) with a brush to the wood and let it set in for about 30+ minutes. I then used a plastic scrapper to remove the old stain that bubbled up to the surface (kind of weird/cool).




Once it dried, I sanded off the excess gunk (stain) with some light grit sandpaper. I cleaned off the wood and then I used a strong mix of OxyClean and water (in a small tub) to bleach the wood after stripping it.




Here is how the Oxyclean bleached it.







I let the wood dry for about a week and then I sanded it and applied the first coat of Minwax "Natural" stain. Well, it did not turn out to be blond, but it looks nice. I should have just used Shellac or maybe a Golden Pecan stain.











I got a ton of help from the nice guys at Gunco.net and ak47.net. Let me know if you need any help attempting this. I plan on doing more refinishing in the future and I'll be glad to share any tips with you. I'd love to hear your tips as well.

Fakelite "faux bakelite" 7.62x39 Magazine for AK-47

My brother Nate and I testing my Fakelite "faux bakelite" 7.62x39 Magazine for the AK-47 type rifle. After making (painting) these mags with Krylon Fusion "burgundy" spray paint, Nate and I took them out for some field testing. The paint job held up quite well. It was pretty cold out that day. Well, cold for the South anyhow. These fakelite mags are easily made, look cool and will save you from shelling out $40-$80 for the real 7.62x39 bakelites. I hope this inspires you to try it yourself and post a video and pics of your creations!

Yugo M70AB2 modification project (part II)

Ok folks, here are some pics of my finished Yugo M70AB2 modified rifle. This rifle is no beauty queen, but the paint doesn't look too shabby either. The real test will be when I put a couple hundred rounds through it. We'll see how well the paint stands up to the heat, and if the weld holds. I hope to try it out this Saturday. I'll post some video of the test session. I hope that it doesn't rain.

Yugo M70AB2 modification project (part I)

Let's talk AK mods. There are those out there who are completely against it, and view it as a sin and then there are those of us who appreciate the classic AK look, but don't see anything wrong with updating our rifles with all the bells and whistles that modern society has to offer. I happen to be one of the later. Now, I didn't get crazy here, but decided to change the sights, grips, and add a cushioned recoil pad.

My rifle started out as a standard, no frills factory model Yugo m70ab2 undefolder AK type rifle. I think that factory handguards on the m70ab2 are somewhat boring looking, so I swapped them out with an AK-47 Leapers UTG M70 Yugo Tactical Quad Rail. This allows me to add optics and grips, etc. I put a Bushnell Trophy red dot on it, and zeroed it in at about 25 yards. It works great.




I also added a recoil pad, as the metal underfolding stock against my shoulder wasn't horrible, but didn't feel that great either. I have yet to try this out while firing the file, but it feels really nice when I shoulder it.




Here's what the rifle looked liked after adding these mods.




I was pretty happy until I saw a site online where they were adding H&K front and rear sights to AK's. Now that looks cool. So, I bought some HK G3 front and rear sights and had my local gunsmith put them on. He did a great job, but I should have told him to put the front sight post on as close to the gas block as possible. Well, my father and a friend cut a piece of conduit and welded it to the gas block. I think that it looks pretty darn cool. The weld is a bit rough, but looks cool. I applied a coat of aerosol Hi-Heat Spray Paint (made for use on grills, etc.) to give it a flat look and paint the metal conduit pipe. I have to wait another 48 hours to added another coat.

Here are some pics of the unfinished AK mod. I have the rifle tapped in order to paint it. I can't wait to add the final coats of paint and take this baby out for a test drive. I will post the final pics, along with a video and range report once it's ready. In the meantime, here are some pics of the mod in its current stage.

"Fake-lite" Faux Bakelite 7.62x39 magazine

I've always thought that bakelite magazines looked really cool. I've always thought that they were made solely for the 5.45x39 round. Several years ago I saw a bakelite mag in a SAR-3 rifle (5.56x45 AK). I believe that it was an AK-74 bakelite with a .223 (5.56x45) follower. I've never tried this, but I've heard mixed reports on the performance and reliability. The problem with a standarized 5.56x45 AK magazine is a story in of itself.

Well, I wanted a bakelite 7.62x39 magazine, and until about a month ago, didn't even know that they existed. I found some for sale on Gun Broker. These were made in China and Russia. They both looked great, but the cheapest I could find them for was $70!



Forget that. So, I decided to make my own "fake-lite" or faux bakelite 7.62x39 mags. I used 30 round polymer (Bulgarian and ProMag) magazines and paint them with several layers of Krylon Fusion for Plastic aerosol spray paint. This paint is designed specifically for use on plastic (in this case, poly mags). I still need to work on my painting skills, but I was pretty happy with the way the mags turned out. Now I just need to test them, which I hope to do soon. I will make sure to post a range report on my findings. So, far they are a cheap alternative to the Tula and Norinco real deal.

Century Arms M72 Yugoslavian variant of the RPK

I just sold my Century Arms M72 Yugoslavian variant of the RPK, chambered in 7.62x39 mm. The rifle is made from a combination of original Zastava-produced Yugoslavian RPK rifle parts and U.S.-manufactured compliance parts. The rifle has the following features:
• U.S. "D.C. Industries, Inc." reinforced stamped receiver
• Folding bipod
• Threaded muzzle with either a Krink flash hider
• Heavy barrel with cooling fins
• Hand refinished and stained wood furniture to give it an enhanced, darker hue.
• Tapco G2 trigger

This is by far the most accurate and well built AK type rifle that I've fired and owned. The rifle is top notch in quality and build. It's a real treat see what this weapon can do. My brother and took it to a police range and tested it at 100 yards. The rifle is really accurate. The bi-pod on this rifle makes it a great bench shooter. You could even put a scope on this baby. In fact, I've seen it done. I was able to shoot milk jugs and then hit them again on their way back down, while they were still airborne! The rifle is a bit on the heavy side, but that's due to it's solid frame and heavy barrel. I refinished and stained the wood myself, as I love to re-do wood rifle furniture. I sold it to fund my next purchase (Arsenal SLR-106 "FR"). I'll do a write-up on that and post the range report once I get to take it out. I highly recommend the Yugo M72 if you have the desire to own a great RPK and have a ton of fun. I appologise for the quality here, but it's the only video I have of the rifle. Enjoy!