Couple of AK upgrades

[AndyC1911]

New US-made barrel:



It mics out at .311" - nice:



Attero red-dot mount:



The old Yugo barrel has to be replaced as it's severely worn; the install is going to be a bit of a pain as the gas-port needs to be drilled as well as the slot for the barrel-pin, but it has to be done. The Attero mount is an interesting concept that replaces the rear-sight, so I decided to try it.

After the rebarreling is done I'm going to take the rifle to a friend down in Ft Worth who will park/paint it.

[AndyC1911]

Actually, I found a more versatile sighting solution - the Saberwerks KOP optics mounting system.

It's a complete replacement of the rear-sight block and uses a dovetail to slide on various mounts/sights:

Sight block:


Sliding a base onto the dovetail:


Iron sights:


Short rail with red-dot:


Long rail with scope:

[K.Mooneyham]

Of course I'm interested to see the final product.

[The Annoyed Man]

I’ve been using an RS Regulate 2-piece side mount topped with an ACSS LVPO, but it seems to add a lot of bulk and weight to the rifle. I moved the LVPO to a .300 Blk AR upper I have, and removed the optic mount. My problem is that my eyesight just won’t let me pickup the standard AK rear sight. The notch is just too small for me to see clearly. I’ve purchased a Krebs Custom AK Aperture Site (800M), but haven’t installed it yet. But if I could figure out how to affordable install an AR-type rear sight on the back of the dust cover, I’d probably even prefer that.

[Iunnrais]

That's an interesting setup. I'm guessing that the lever for the top cover is the locking piece for the two mount halves? Looks like it would be nice and solid. I'll be interested in how it works out for you.

I've used the TWS Dogleg dust cover with their aperture sight before on mine but currently have a AK Master side rail (I forget which rail is latched to it) installed to mount a 3x PA Prism scope. I tended to prefer using just the aperture sight on the TWS vs mounting a full size optic on it as I felt it moved around a bit with the extra weight under recoil - at least my groups were significantly larger in that config.

[AndyC1911]

There's a pin which goes through the hole and holds the sighting-system to the sight-block (and holds the gas-tube in place, too)

Of course I'm interested to see the final product.

It'll take a while, I'm afraid - populating the barrel with all the components isn't going to be a quick or simple job, but I figured while I have it all in pieces I may as well set it up for future versatility re sight-options.

My problem is that my eyesight just won’t let me pickup the standard AK rear sight. The notch is just too small for me to see clearly.

The notch has always been annoyingly teeny, even back to when I had young eyesight. The AK could be miles better in that regard and I'm just going to go red-dot (the rail has a built-in - and larger - irons notch, see below) as well as a magnified optic.

[cmgee67]

I highly recommend the ultimak gas tube replacement that has a built in pic rail. It is 100% solid and tough as nails.

[AndyC1911]

Ultimak isn't versatile enough for my needs, but it's good for those who just want a red-dot up front.

[The Annoyed Man]

I do have the M-Lok lower handguard with the cheese grater upper handguard. And I installed a Zhukov folding stock.

[AndyC1911]

My package is finally enroute, expected in 2 days from UT.

For some reason they're out of the short rails for red-dots, so the owner contacted me to ask whether I'd be interested in a slightly longer version that includes a windage-adjustable rear sight. I wanted to see it so he texted me some pics.





When I asked about it appearing to be a non-standard part, he said "It's a non-catalogued item for a manufacturer. He decided not to pay us, so we were stuck with these custom parts." - I figured it was worth a squirt, so I accepted.

Likely putting this together around Thanksgiving - my buddy with all the AK tools is having back surgery soon, so he'll be out of action until then.

[The Annoyed Man]

When I asked about it appearing to be a non-standard part, he said "It's a non-catalogued item for a manufacturer. He decided not to pay us, so we were stuck with these custom parts." - I figured it was worth a squirt, so I accepted.

Likely putting this together around Thanksgiving - my buddy with all the AK tools is having back surgery soon, so he'll be out of action until then.

How much for this nonstandard part, and do they have more of them?

[AndyC1911]

He didn't ask for any more money, so the same as the standard part ($92) and I don't know - you could email sales@sabrewerks.com .

This one has 2 addition Picatinny slots over the short.

[AndyC1911]

I finally got the opportunity to install the new barrel and the KOP rear-sight block, thanks to my buddy (and forum-member) bulletslap. Spent Thanksgiving and Friday with his wife and him, during which time I made an ostrich neck potjie (sort of an African-style stew):





The AK rebarreling was a lot of work and provoked a lot of anxiety but actually went quite smoothly, due to bulletslap's experience and tools. Installing the KOP rear-sight block was the easiest part by far:

[AndyC1911]

A successful upgrade.

My Yugo AK's barrel was replaced with a US-made version and shoots very nicely:



Sighting-in using the rear-sight on the KOP rail:



First 2 shots at 25 yards:



Once I had the rear dialed-in, I mounted a Vortex Sparc II and after cranking the dials around, shot this 1/2" 3-shot group at 50 yards. The red dot is 2 MOA, so it covers 1 inch at 50 - getting a 1/2" group using a 1" dot is very gratifying:



Very pleased/impressed with this new barrel and the KOP system was worth the money and effort. I have a 1-6x scope I also want to sight-in; just waiting on the KOP long rail to arrive:

[The Annoyed Man]

Very nice! How did the rear sight work out?