Help me pick my Saiga!

Help me pick my Saiga

  • 7.62x39, 16" barrel

    Votes: 20 48.8%

  • 7.62x39, 20.5" barrel

    Votes: 8 19.5%

  • .223 16" barrel

    Votes: 13 31.7%
  • Total voters
    41
Status
Not open for further replies.
M

matsaleh

Member
Joined
Apr 20, 2003
Messages
127
Location
Austin, TX
I am getting a Saiga very soon. I'm slightly torn about which caliber and barrel length to get. It needs to be either .223 or 7.62 because I want to be able to afford the ammo. It also needs to be accurate "enough", which means good for plinking at 100+ yards. I'd also like it to be something I can rely on if the SHTF, and for that, I've never decided whether .223 or 7.62 is better.

I'd love your suggestions.
 
Get the .223.

7.62 is common enough but in SHTF .223 is likely to be more available. Also, .223 gives you an edge on accuracy. In fact, the Saiga in .223 is very accurate.
 
For the best response, can you provide more information?

What will you use it for primarily?
What other guns do you currently own or have experience with?
If you already have experience with both the 7.62 and .223, which caliber do you prefer?

Here are some PERSONAL feelings about the .223 vs. 7.62 - NO FLAME INTENDED!
.223 is a little more accurate and has a lighter recoil
7.62, according to a lot of people, penetrates certain mediums better and has a little more stopping power. Slightly cheaper ammo and you can hunt small deer with it in most states.

Most agree you need to make a head shot on deer with a .223 but YMMV. You can easily upgrade a Saiga to take hi-caps, and add a pistol grip, etc. to make it "legal." I "think" you can do this or something similar with the .223 though.

Longer barrel generally means more velocity/accuracy. Shorter barrel can be better for clearing a house, walking through brush, IMHO more fun. Both are probably good coyote guns; I'd rather have the .223 because of quicker follow-up target acquisition on second shots.

Look at it this way, you could get FOUR - one in each caliber and barrel length - for the price of ONE AR-15 or FAL or Krinkov!

jAK-47
 
What will you use it for primarily?
Click to expand...

Target shooting and the theoretical SHTF scenario. For the latter, I want to be able to reach out to the end of my neighborhood block to catch the zombies coming around the corner.

I don't hunt, so that's not an issue.

What other guns do you currently own or have experience with?
Click to expand...

Own (or owned):
9x18, 9mm para, .40 S&W handguns, all for CCW.
Mosin M38 7.62x54, but I haven't shot it yet.
7mm Mag Ruger M77
22LR Win 9422

In addition, fired:
30.06 Weatherby bolt action
.223 Ruger Mini-14
300 Savage

If you already have experience with both the 7.62 and .223, which caliber do you prefer?
Click to expand...

Never fired the 7.62, and it's been a long time since I fired the .223. I have no preference right now.

For non-target-shooting scenarios, I simply want to be able to stay on target and be confident of my stopping power.

Other key objectives are readily available and inexpensive ammuntion (today, for stocking up), and readily avaialable for "requisitioning" when SHTF.

Thanks!
 
matsaleh,

Your wants/needs almost make this literally a split decision! The very BEST thing you could do especially since you haven't shot the 7.62 before, is post a thread asking for members in your area to meet at a range. You could make a day of it and bring your unfired Mosin M38 7.62x54 and offer to let them fire it for shooting their Saiga or AK 7.62X39. If someone had BOTH calibers in the Saiga, all the better!

People talk about "requisitioning" ammo and that's valid but there's a lot of AK ammo around and MOST people who own AKs have AT LEAST 3,000 rounds stored (under $250 TOTAL).

You really can't go wrong with either one and they both pretty much fit your needs. It's like Honda vs. Toyota - matter of personal taste.

Pick one and do a range report. The Saiga Sporter is near the top of MY list for future additions to my collection.

jAK-47
 
How about the Saiga 12 gauge autoloader? I gots a feeling the ATF is going to make them Destructive Devices soon, like the USAS-12. After Sept you can get a pistol grip kit for it too.
 
That is a very tough call so I won't vote in terms of caliber. I have the 16 inch 7.62 and am very happy with it. The shorter barrel is less cumbersome and I doubt there is much accuracy difference at 7.62X39 range levels (but could be wrong). This was what was available locally when I bought mine. I have never seen the 223 version anywhere around here. I like mine the way it is. Have no plans to retro-fit it back to traditional AK configuration. Have no complaints at all.
 
As the brother of bowstreet who recently recieved the Saiga in 7.62x39 with the shorter barrel I can say that it is a blast to shoot. And a breeze to clean. The ammo is cheaper than dirt too which is nice when you're on a limited budget. In any event I don't think you could go wrong for the price and so I've voted for it.
 
7.62x39 in 16 inch. I own 2, you will be pleased with the accuracy. I also love how it has practically NO recoil. Third, it is simple and inexpensive to convert to take AK mags using the proper amount of U.S. Parts.
 
Get the 16" barrel in 7.62x39. The 20" model looks funny and is awkward to handle and I really don't like shooting .223. 7.62 is just a lot more fun to shoot, even though you do give up some accuracy.

Anyone looking for more info on Saigas, please join us in the Saiga forums: Saiga Forums

Here is my converted 16" 7.62x39 Saiga and my soon to be converted (in Sept.) Saiga 12 gauge:

24295My_Guns_012-med.jpg


24295My_Guns_033-med.jpg
 
I have the .223 with the 16" barrel and love it. It is much more accurate than I had a right to expect. I think that shooting the .223 is more fun, because it is definitely easier to be accurate when firing rapidly.

You may hear a lot of talk about how the .223 underperforms terminally, but if you get softpoints or hollowpoints, it is a plenty deadly round. I personally like the fact that the flatter trajectory will tend to make longer shots easier to make.
 
Ugh, hartzpad!!! My shoulder hurts just looking at that row of 12g slugs.
Click to expand...


Have you shot a Saiga 12? It is the easiest recoiling 12 gauge I've ever shot. I can shoot 3" magnum loads and it doesn't even hurt. I also have a soft buffer installed to lessen the recoil. I can even bumpfire my Saiga 12. The one time I tried it, it emptied all six rounds (5+1) in about one second. I love this shotgun.
 
I haven't tried one. I want to. All I know is slugs out of my 870 are no fun after about 5 rounds. Soon as I find a 12g Saiga around here I'll own one.:)
 
I voted for the 16.5" 7.62, as it's probably the best of the three for zombie defense (good stopping power, quick swing on the shorter barrel.)

That said, a 12 gauge Saiga with slugs & buckshot will terminate zombies nicely at end-of-block ranges. :D

John
 
hartzpad those mags look like they hold more than 5 rounds. The ones laying side ways. What kind of mags are those and where did you get em?:scrutiny:
 
Oooo that Saiga-12 looks cool

... much better than the picture in the CDNN catalog for some reason. I still want the rifle for now, but a shottie was next on my list, and that may be the one. Heck, for about the price of a single SAR, I can get both!
 
alduro,

Those mags are 10 round mags from the banned destructive device the USAS-12. Those mags are very rare and expensive, but require modification to work in the Saiga 12, so that is why I have not used them yet, I'm waiting for the AWB sunset in September. Here is a pic I found of someone using them in their Saiga 12:

post-2-1049659317.jpg
 
All of this talk about Saigas is going to inspire me to buy one!! You guys better stop all this Saiga talk I really don't need anymore rifles right now.
 
Well, I think it's settled, and not how I expected, either.

I finally was persuaded to get the 7.62 in 16". But, when I called my dealer, she was out of 16" models, but she had one 20.5" instead (she cannot get the .223 at all, she says). Funny, when I called 2 weeks earlier, she had a bunch of 16-inchers in stock and no 20.5 inchers, so it looks like her business is doing quite well. (That makes me happy, citizens buying guns, you know.)

So, I either get the 20.5" now, or wait a little longer for the 16 inchers to come back.

So, as I said, it's settled: I'm buying a 20.5" now, AND I'll get a 16 incher when they come in, AND THEN I'll get a Saiga-12.

Sound reasonable?

By the way, the dealer I'm buying from is: http://www.ak-47man.com/SaigaRifles.html No harm in putting in a plug for them. They seem to have good service and prices, from what I can tell, plus a 3% discount for cash.
 
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