Thinking about taking the 5.45 plunge.

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macadore

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I'm starting to lust after a 5.45. No reason, I just want one. The unconverted Saiga looks like the cheapest way to go. Would these magazines work in an unconverted Saiga? http://www.gunclips.net/sa5fagunma1.html

The ad says they work in an RAA Saiga. Is that the unconverted Saiga or something else. The Century Tantals look interesting but I have heard horror stories about them keyholeing. Any other suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks.
 
My brother has a Polish Tantal. It doesn't keyhole, but I think he was lucky. I wouldn't risk buying one when you can buy a Saiga for less.
 
Yeah, I would pay more for the Interarms Tantals rather than the CAI versions.

Atlantic Firearms has 'em.

M
 
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My brand new CAI tantal is what dreams are made of i polished the bolt and gave it all red bakelite furniture and that thing is a real beauty now and she shoots great all the way out to 300m.
 
youd be much better off with a bullet guide and using surplus mags, those you found are one helluva expensive piece
 
you won't be disappointed with a 5.45 saiga. Mine was a good shooter. I have moved to the 6.8 plunge now.:D
 
The 5.45 round is a "what the h*ll" round. You have the right attitude for it, just because. I have a Saiga in 5.45 and while it is OK to shoot it is nothing special. I ended up with an upper for my AR in 5.45 as well. Neither perform as well as I would have hoped. For me the 556 round performs better in both platforms and has a larger variety of rounds.
 
youd be much better off with a bullet guide and using surplus mags, those you found are one helluva expensive piece
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That was my question. Will those mags work without the bullet guide? If not, how difficult is it to install a bullet guide? I realize the military surplus mags are cheaper.
 
I just popped the top on my 6th tin of 5.45x39. I have experienced zero failures in 5000+ rounds with my saiga and no bullet guide using sanitized romanian ak-74 mags (aka russian plum mags with LOTS of ugly black paint!).

BTW, I love the 5.45x39 round so much I picked up a 5.45 AR upper to go along with my Saiga. Twelve cent/round 5.45 ammo can get addictive;)
 
That was my question. Will those mags work without the bullet guide? If not, how difficult is it to install a bullet guide? I realize the military surplus mags are cheaper.
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Although ive never done it, bullet guides are relitively cheap and installation isnt exactly rocket science. If instructions are not provided when you order the bullet guide theres a ton, and i meen a ton, of stuff about doing so on the internet.

And i believe the factory mags do still work with a bullet guide installed, as the bullets will simply go over them, surplus mags cant be chambered because their feed lips are lower
 
The real deal is the Arsenal SGL 31. Nothing else in this country compare to quality and authenticity as close to original .
 
The real deal is the Arsenal SGL 31. Nothing else in this country compare to quality and authenticity as close to original
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Aresnals are nothing more than converted saigas with all the goodies attached. There pretty fairly priced but you could do the same thing to a stock saiga(around $300) and by the end of it spend about $100-200 less. Maybe more depending on what all you want to put on it.

The biggest advantage an arsenal provides is a warranty, and time. But converting a saiga can be very informative to one looking to own one. Definitly do your homework before jumping in to do it though
 
Aresnals are nothing more than converted saigas with all the goodies attached. There pretty fairly priced but you could do the same thing to a stock saiga(around $300) and by the end of it spend about $100-200 less. Maybe more depending on what all you want to put on it.
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No, you will not build a gun equal to an arsenal for less than or even equal to the price unless you already have a number of expensive tools laying around. And even if you had said tools buying the gun parts seperately that are used in Arsenals will probably still be significantly higher. And i don't want to hear about tapco hair triggers which should have no place on an AK.
 
eh its all a matter of here or there. Depending on what options you want on your saiga you can come out below, but yea i agree converting one to arsenal standards would probably be more expensive than just buying one.

Only thing i hate about the current production arsenals is that the ones chambered in 7.62 dont have 1x14 lh threads, and i really just want a good ole AK with wood and a slant break.
 
For what it's worth I've been very impressed with my Interarms Tantal (on the top of course).

DSC01477.jpg

In my case, the rifle was all matching in numbers less teh few US replacements for 922r. It has worked 100% reliably, no keyhole issues and does have a chrome lined barrel/bore (mirror by the way) if that matters to you. I thought about getting a Century, and I have heard reports that the new ones don't keyhole, but Atlantic Firearms themselves told me they don't recommend buying a Century Tantal. I've had it for about 4 months and it's time to buy a whole new case of 7n6 surplus ammo as it's a hoot to shoot and doesn't break the bank to fire. So you probably can't go wrong with a Saiga but if you want an AK74 configured rifle, I'd recommend going with any of the Interarms rifles (which will run you more than a Saiga but less than an Arsenal and I think on par with Arsenal quality).
 
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