I'm no expert on them, but I will do my best on your question:
1. Are the ones from EAA and RAA the same rifle? If not what are the differences, and also are there other companies that make these?
It is my understanding that there ARE some differences based on the years that they were produced when each of those were importing. Currently, RAA is importing. I have the 308 converted imported from RAA
2. How similar is this to the AK design? Really why i'm interested in them is that it seems as it they are a solid and reliable as the AK... am i wrong to assume this?
They are essentially THE AK design. They are made in the original factories that produced the Russian AK. They'll be every bit as reliable as any other AK, and most consider them far more accurate-- especially the 308 one (my 308 is consistently 1-1.5 MOA depending on how I am doing that day). The primary confusion over the issue is that there are some small differences in the Saiga that was changed to obtain sporter status for import. While it is not illegal to change the saiga to the traditional style, 922 regulations will come into play in doing the conversion. However, if you do a full conversion, you will have the necessary amount of US parts.
3. What are the pros and cons of either .223 or .308? I'm not really aware of the costs of rifle ammunition so any insight to that would be appreciated to.
It really depends on what you want to do with it. The 308 was appropriate for me because I use mine in deer hunting. I couldn't do that with a 223. In fact, there really isn't much use for a 223 where I live other than having a caliber in common with the military. A varmit hunter is going to have a completely different perspective on this that I would.
At the moment, I'd say the 223 is going to be significantly cheaper to shoot than the 308. If I understand correctly, you can still get 223 milsurp. Those days are gone probably for good in 308. Because of that, I have now taken up the study of reloading. If I can start that, I really won't worry about the cost difference. Thank God I stocked up on 308 South African when I did.
4. Should i just buy a converted one instead of converting one after i buy it? I really only want to get pistol grips and a folding stock added... how much should i expect to pay for this? Also are there any already converted packages that have this and just this done to it?
Now this is a good question. I *personally* bought mine pre-converted because I did not have confidence in my skills. However, now I have been able to study what was done in the conversion as well as read on Saiga Forums. I've no doubt that a person who has access to the following tools can do the conversion with no issues:
Decent calibers
Center punch
Cobalt drill set
Drill press
Dremel
A pin punch
You'll need to get the necessary US parts to do so. Here is a link detailing a "budget conversion" process:
http://www.cross-conn.com/Saiga_Conversion/index.htm
Here is some commentary on it:
http://forum.saiga-12.com/index.php?showtopic=2042
There are other ways to do it.
If you want to use Galil magazines in a 223, or AK magazines in a 7.62x39, you will need to put in a bullet guide, which isn't hard to do. A guy on the Saiga Forums named Dinzag has a bullet guide kit that works great. For the 308 to take high capacity magazines, you will not need a bullet guide-- just call up Correia at FBMG to hook you up with 20 round magazines.
Now, muzzle brakes are another issue. On the 223 and the 7.62x39, it isn't hard at all. You have to dremel off a barrel shroud up front and thread the barrel. One the 308, you have a bit more to do. The 308 barrel has to be turned down to the right diameter. Alot of people have the barrel pushed off to do this. However, I have a machinist who can turn mine down without having to pull the barrel, which I did not want to have done. He is doing it next week when my Dragunov muzzle brake comes in.
In addition to getting the correct barrel diameter, you will have to move the Front Sight Block back one inch and bore the FSB slight to account for a slightly larger barrel diameter behind the original location of the FSB. This actually isn't hard at all. It's only a matter of popping out two pins, tapping off the FSB, and then having it bored only slightly. Once you put it back on, you will need to them run a drill through the pin holes to indent the barrel to accept the retaining pins again. No worries. You then probably want to have the barrel threaded to 14 x 1 mm negative threads. I'd do the threading while the FSB is still off the rifle to make sure you thread deep enough.
Godo luck with it! When I can figure out my wife's new camera, I'll show
mine.
All the best!
John
