At least that’s what Larry Vickers believes.
In the video below (minute 4:30) he discusses his AK47 book and commented that he believed the AK would suit the “Joe Average” military personnel better while AR variant rifles would be better suited for special forces and other specific tactical units.
As you can imagine, he got a lot of hate from a lot of people for this comment.
I must say though. I do agree with the man.
Hold your horses! I didn’t insult your mother just had a different opinion there, that’s all. The thing is, the AR is a great rifle… but its not as great as many would want it to be. Accurate and with great ergonomics yes, but it requires a minimum maintenance, knowledge and dedication that is higher than the one required by AK type rifles.
Most gun people simply don’t understand how little the average non-gun person cares about firearms.
And believe it or not many of them serve in the military. The AK is a gun that can take that kind of neglect. Just getting some oil prayed somewhere in the vicinity of the gun and little else is enough to keep it running.
The AR though, it needs a knowledgeable user, someone that at least has some interest in having a working rifle. It may be super simple and easy for you, but for the person that doesn’t car at all about guns, trust me, it is not. And Vickers is not talking about your typical pile of crap imported AK. He talks about a Valmet rifle with a few tweaks and upgrades.
I completely agree that something like that would be ideal as well. Especially for survivalists, the AK holds that category of beaten and abused gun that somehow keeps on working. The AR is a more refined gun that while reliable requires more attention. The AK with its piston gas operation, larger components with looser tolerances tends to be more forgiving.
Different opinion? Some other thoughts? Leave your comment below.
FerFAL
Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”