AK magazine release

[natedog]

Is it possible to reach the magazine release on an AK type rifle with the trigger finger, hand still on the pistol grip in a regular firing position?

 

[Triad]

It depends on the size of your hands and the length of your fingers.

 

[eatatjoes]

it is if you have one of these.



i think i have average size hands and can just barely hit the mag release with my trigger finger with enough pressure to knock out the magazine but it's very uncomfortable for me to do after the first few times(it's those darn stiff commie springs). i tend to follow the school of "bang the release with the new mag and be done with it." i think my AMD appreciates the abuse.

my shooting buddy has very large hands (6'5" 270+ lbs.) and has no problem doing one handed mag changes.

 

[Feanaro]

I'd say not, unless you were a gorilla.

 

[WonderNine]

I'm 5'11" 200lbs., definately not a gorilla, but just a big bigger than average 24 YO Whiteguy (what is it 165lbs. or so?) and it works pretty easy for me.

 

[Feanaro]

They must be breeding in longer fingers, this average white guy appears to have been left out.

 

[WonderNine]

They must be breeding in longer fingers, this average white guy appears to have been left out.

I really don't have long fingers, just average. Remember these commie guns were made for the lowest common denominator. So that short fingered guys could do it to.

Just use your middle finger.

 

[DMK]

Is it possible to reach the magazine release on an AK type rifle with the trigger finger, hand still on the pistol grip in a regular firing position?

Why would you want to? They hook on the front so they won't drop free. Trip the mag release with your thumb.

To keep from having to switch the rifle from one hand to another, I reload AKs like a mirror image of a FAL (because the AK charging handle is on the wrong side ):

Keep your support hand on foreward handgrip and grab a fresh mag from a right side pouch with your firing hand. Hold the new mag with your ring through pinky fingers. Grab the spent mag with the meat of your palm and index finger. Trip the release with your thumb and rotate it out. Drop the spent mag or hold it with your index finger and insert the new one. Safety off, rack the slide and if you have time to do so, pull the slide back just a little to touch or visually verify a loaded chamber. Now re-aquire a firing grip.

 

[AK103K]

The AK mags will drop free, at least on my guns they will. If you depress the muzzle a little when you hit the release, they will fall out. If you get one that is a little tight, a quick jerk will dump it. I use the middle finger on my right hand while my hand is on the grip to release the mags. I dont have big hands and its really no problem. I use the same finger to sweep the safety off, also with my hand on the grip. With just a little practice, and the right techniques, the AKs are just as quick to work as the AR's and any of the others.

 

[DMK]

The AK mags will drop free, at least on my guns they will.

Well, I have a SAR1 so... well, it's made by Century Arms, so ... well you know.

 

[AK103K]

I have a SAR1 and a WASR10, and they will both drop the mag when the release is hit. Some of the guns need to have the edges on the mag release "broken" with a jewelers file when you first get them. The part is a stamping and the edges can be sharp and they tend to grab and hold the mag where it locks into the release. This makes the mag hard to remove, sometimes to the point of having to use two hands or having to hit the release with something. I've broke the edges on the release on all my guns and they are much smoother and easier to work. You dont need to do much, just break the sharp edge.