Speaking of Guns...

[Sternjaeger II]

Originally Posted by CWMV

I politely disagree!
If anything I think the AK's reputation for reliability and ease of use/maintenance can not be overrated. Ive pulled these things out of Iraqi irrigation ditches, kicked open the bolt, locked, loaded and fired without issue. And these things had been in the mud so long that the stock had rotted away, and that's saying a lot for laminated wood!
The accuracy does leave a bit to be desired by western standards, but overall its acceptable for an assault rifle. Add to that the sheer power advantage of the x39 and ability to penetrate light cover and I would much rather have it than the 5.56.

you're missing my point. I know they will shoot even in the worst conditions, but no maintenance will still do them no good. And yes, the AK ammo is the best in its range, big fat bullets that can knock through a lot more than the flimsy 5.56..

Perhaps you can explain the garand thing to me. I loath the platform. Seriously it feels like I'm shouldering a 4x4 fence post. Nothing like a nice sleek 98K or even a Mosin-Nagant. Overall I'm not a fan.

IMHO as a semiauto rifle it's probably one of the best designs ever. It can be a bit heavy, but composite stocks and special straps make it still very portable and above all dead accurate. It's only 10cm longer than a SCAR-H, but this means it burns the 30-06 powder all the way and gives it an effective range of 450yds (I've seen folks with M-1D sniper hitting gong targets at 1000yds).
The sleek design means that you have no annoying magazine under, and the 30-06 is far superior to the .308.
Don't know why you're comparing it to bolt action rifles though, they are designed and meant to be used in a different way.
I have a K98 with ZF-41 and that is by far one of the best bolt action rifles ever. Forget about the Russian Mosin-Nagant crap, the Mauser bolt action is one of the smoothest, safest and most perfect things ever.
I have an Enfield No.4 T as well, and despite being considered the best sniper rifle of WW2, I can't come to terms with the action, but it surely is a dead accurate gun.

As to the Romanian stuff it has gotten much better in recent years. The Romanian G kit is the kit by which all others are judged for your own home built gun, and the WASR series of rifles are much, MUCH better than they used to be. Canted sights and terrible mag wobble are a thing of the past. Add to that a whopping $400 price out the door (in a free state anyway, not here in the peoples republic of kalifornistan). Even the little Draco's are a nifty little gun. Surprisingly accurate at 100 meters for such a short AKM. Nearly my favorite pistol-nearly.

The PSL that you mention actually has nothing to do with the Dragunov. Its a DM weapon yes, but the construction is unrelated. Its based off of the RPK receiver with the heavier trunnions. The biggest thing going against it is the barrel-long and skinny. Mine has a tendency to climb due to barrel whip during quick bursts, but nothing dramatic. Again perfectly acceptable for a 400 meter rifle. If you actually take slow, deliberate shots with it it is surprisingly accurate even with the surplus ammo flooding the market right now. With handloads and slow fire Ive actually watched someone pull off a 1.5 MOA group pretty easily with the platform.

If I lived in a free state Id probably buy two WASR's and a boat load of ammo for the price of an Arsenal. not to mention Arsenal has, in the past, taken strong stances against the 2nd amendment and heavily discriminated against certain states, to the point of taking retailers to court for selling their product to California regardless of the legal nature of the transactions.

well yeah, it's still Rumanian junk IMHO. If you want a good modern sniper rifle you need to look at Tikka or Remington (the 700 Police is just a perfect platform), they're not cheap, but man what fantastic, simple, precise guns they are!