I know we all have a soft spot in our hearts for the AK. The AK is great, but it’s certainly showing its age. The AK has the design of a 1940 submachine gun. It’s dated, the ergonomics are old, and the specialized requirements to mount optics and accessories are lame. Heck, good AKs aren’t even cheap anymore.
However, the 7.62×39 and AK magazines remain affordable and widely available.
We don’t want to throw the baby out with the bath water, so what are our options? Well, it turns out you have plenty of options, and we’ve gathered the best here.
The AKs We Have At Home
CMMG Mk47
CMMG released a rifle known as the Mutant years ago but has since adapted that gun into the Mk47. Maybe Mk47 sells the rifle better, but I’m not entirely sure. Either way, the Mk47 series blended an AR with an AK in a rather crazy way. The rifle uses AK magazines in a specialized AR lower receiver. The upper receiver isn’t quite an AR-15 and it isn’t quite an AR-10, either.
It’s its own thing, and that’s why it can accommodate AK mags and rounds without some funky AR magazine design. The Mk47 uses an AK magazine release, and as you’d expect, the rifle lacks any kind of last-round bolt-hold-open device. While the AR lower is proprietary, the rest is basically all AR, including the charging handle.
This gives you an adjustable stock, a flat-top upper receiver, AR-type controls, and a long M-LOK rail system. The CMMG Mk47 series gives you all the AR modularity you could ever want, and comes in various sizes with rifle, pistol, and SBR options readily available.
TEC 47
If you like the Mutant but would prefer some kind of standardized receiver set, then you should check out the TEC 47. This is a brand-new AK alternative that uses AR-10 pattern uppers with a specialized lower receiver. This results in a bigger and heavier rifle that’s arguably more suited for the AK mag and 7.62x39mm round than the Mutant. Like the Mutant, the TEC 47 uses an AK-style magazine release. This particular one is huge and very easy to press with your trigger finger.
The TEC 47 sticks to the traditional direct impingement design for the AR design, as well as the modularity. The TEC 47 comes with a 15-inch M-LOK rail, allowing you to mount your lights, lasers, cup holders, and more. The rifle can take standard AR stocks and pistol grips. TEC packed a nice two-stage trigger in the gun as well. A big reason to go AR in 7.62×39 is accuracy, so why not use a two-stage trigger?
The TEC 47 features a pair of billet receivers that look fantastic. It’s modern and sleek, which is tough to hate compared to a rifle designed in 1947. An adjustable gas block even makes it a little comfier for suppressor use. This rifle is a bit beefy at 8.5 pounds, but it does decrease the recoil significantly.
Galil ACE
The Galil started life as a bit of a mixed bag of firearms. Israel needed a domestically produced rifle and looked to the AK, the FAL, and even the M16 to develop the Galil. IWI took the Galil to the next level with the ACE rifle. The ACE rifle comes in numerous calibers, including the classic 7.62×39, and yes, it takes AK magazines.
The Galil ACE is a modernized take on the original Galil rifle. The weapon features some enhanced controls but has an AK-like nature. The Galil features a left-side charging handle and a dual safety setup with a safety that’s easy to reach and activate near the trigger. We keep the AK series magazine release, and with AK mags, we are pretty much forced to.
The Galil ACE also comes optics-ready and has an M-LOK handguard. The side is both collapsing and folding. The Galil is a great option if you want an AK-like weapon that’s not an AK. It’s the AK if it ever advanced from 1947.
M+M Industries M10
Much like the Galil, the M+M Industries M10 is a mixture of inspiration from the AK, FAL, and AR-15 series. They went in a different direction but arrived at a similar result. That result is a modernized rifle that moves past the ergonomics and features of a 1940s SMG. The M10 keeps the AK’s long-stroke gas piston system, but it has some Swiss inspiration from the 550 rifle series.
The M10 has an adjustable gas piston design, and the rifle has custom suppressor settings for a smooth ride. The M10 takes cues from western-designed rifles in the ergonomics department. This includes an ambidextrous safety. We get a reciprocating charging handle that can be swapped for right or left-handed up.
Across the top, we get an optics rail, and upfront, we get a modern monolithic handguard that comes in short and long varieties. The handguard is M-LOK compatible. The M10 comes in a few barrel length variations ranging from 12.5 to 16.5 to 18.61 inches.
PTR 32
The PTR 32 is what happens when you take a G3-style rifle and chamber it for 7.62×39 instead of 7.62×51. Of course, we keep the AK magazine and the massive nature of the rifle, but it becomes much cheaper to shoot while still feeling like the Teutonic war-fighting machine it is. This makes it the heaviest rifle on the list at 9.5 pounds. The good news is that the recoil is discernably reduced.
This system does give you a 7.62x39mm roller delayed design that’s mechanically interesting and admittedly fun to shoot. The little Russian 7.62 round isn’t going to beat you up in any rifle, but especially so in a roller delayed near 10-pound rifle. Unlike the original G3 design, the PTR 32 does feature an optic rail and slim polymer handguard.
The G3 experience is always interesting. This platform isn’t much more modern than the AK 47, and arguably, this massive rifle makes less sense, but it’s fun to shoot. The ergonomics are superior to the AKs, but it’s not necessarily up to par with the modern AR-type rifle.
SIG 556R
The Sig Sauer 556R is sadly no longer in production, but it’s fairly easy to find on the used market. The Sig 556R took the famed Sig Sauer 550 series and chambered it for 7.62×39. Interestingly enough, the original 550 took some inspiration from the AK in the first place. The 556R takes the concept full circle.
These rifles keep the SIG’s long-stroke gas piston system and utilize AK mags. They came in numerous generations and various feature sets and all provide enhanced ergonomics and accuracy over the classic AK series. This includes a better safety, and several models have reversible charging handles. They are optics-ready, and standard variants can accept rails, and the SWAT model came with a rail.
The 556R series are uber-sweet shooting guns with minimal recoil. They tend to handle quite well and are good fun to shoot. Sadly, Sig Sauer killed the platform after only a few years in production. They were ahead of their time, but now a relic on Guns Broker and Guns America.
The End of the AK
The AK is a great rifle. It’s revolutionary, both literally and figuratively. However, as imports have dried up, prices have risen. It’s tough to justify buying an AK over a more modern example when their prices are that much different. What do you think? Are you a hardcore AK nerd, or is there room for a more modern option?
