User Panel
Posted: 4/21/2005 11:01:22 PM EDT
Here's the article Kokalis wrote for Shotgun News......it's pretty informative and gives great info about AK's and amm in general.
Arsenal Inc. has the article in PDF format on their site. Kokalis AK article |
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"One day we will all learn that cool guy gear does not a shooter make"......Pat Rogers
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He likes the SAM7 varients a lot, and gives weights of 7.7-7.9lbs for the fixed, side, and under folder options. He also likes the Kobra.
Odd that Wolf gets a plug in the article but no groups are posted. |
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Why will the SLR108 be so good?
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With the exception of the US extra long buttstock, it'll be a real semi-auto Bulgarian AKM......we haven't had anything like that since the Hungarian FEG SA-85M's came in the country in 1986. |
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"One day we will all learn that cool guy gear does not a shooter make"......Pat Rogers
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Woods rider: I like trees....not like that.
IL, USA
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What kind of price are they gonna be starting at? I've been looking into the prospect of getting a high quality AK. WIZZO |
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...And to Prime Minister McDonald...... release her pronto, or we'll level Toronto...(Canadian Bacon)
Some pies have turkey necks......tequilabob |
msrp is on their web site
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i just read almost two pages of this article- haven't had time to sit and read a .pdf on my screen...
is it just me or is the author like every other author out there? whenever they write a review, they try to smoke as much pole as possible, not just the pole of the manufacturer of the item, i can look past that, but he goes on about the cobra red dot sights a little too much- granted, not much at all, but too much. he acts like he holds stock in the company itself "and it takes common round batteries like the 2032, etc..." jesus H. do we need a brief history of AK mags being made of steel and then ABS plastic? were they ever made out of ABS? he doesn't mention bakelite and then says that bulgarian mags have the 10 with the circle around it. I'm not an AK guy, but i have seen different markings and don't remember the 10 being specifcally bulgarian or that bulgarians all have a "10" on them... aluminum magazines were tested but failed immediately? "AK magazines must be rocked into and out of the magazine well during insertion and removal and tactical reloading suffers as a consequence. In this area, the M16 clearly wins, although M16 magazines are distinctly inferior to those of the Kalashnikov." WTF? DID WE GO OFF ON A TANGENT HERE? it just bugs me when he (or any writer) will get into what he things are the finer points or difference in this particular rifle and then immediately explain how a paddle release works as if the reader now has no fucking clue what an AK is all of a sudden... i've pissed you off enough already. sorry and goodnight. p.s.- it's the article itself, not the author and not the AK47 or anything else I'm annoyed with. |
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<font size=2>"Cum catapultae proscriptae erunt tum soli proscripti catapultas habebunt."
"When catapults are outlawed, only outlaws will have catapults." </font id=s2> |
No, you're on the money, Joe. Typically, these gun rag writers get some kinda inside deal when the prep their articles. You know, like free this and free that. The quid pro quo is obvious in the tenor of their articles. How often does one read about anything in other than glowing terms. Your point is also well taken about how the author treats the readership like morons.
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I think he doesn't know how to write period. He can't decide how to write an article or what he wants to include. He starts out explaining differences an avid fan might notice and then stops to explain stuff only an idiot would not know, then treats all readers like idiots.
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<font size=2>"Cum catapultae proscriptae erunt tum soli proscripti catapultas habebunt."
"When catapults are outlawed, only outlaws will have catapults." </font id=s2> |
Agree, most gun writers don't even know how to objectively write an article about a rifle because they have very little or limited experience with the weapon system as a whole. If I wrote an Ak article I would compair that rifle to production runs of other countries, pros, cons. Example the Bulgarians recently modified in the past year or so the 5.56 magazines by smoothing out the areas that push the round first center then over the other rounds in the magazine- a faulty design change because the bullet feed ramp guide was never designed as a feed ramp guide but instead as a block to keep double feeds from occuring etc. No other country modified their magazine in the manner except the bulgarians which deny doing so but then you only have to look at their various production runs to see, honestly suprised their SAM5 models run unless they changed the feed lip itself on the barrels etc. Honestly I would tear most gun designers a new one.
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Peter Kokalis has been in the gun writing business for a long time. He was the head firearms guy for Soldier of Fortune Magazine for years. Then he was editor/contributor for Small Arms Review and now writes for Shotgun News. He’s the most knowledgeable military firearms guy in the country. And he’s a nice guy, if you ever get a chance to meet him in person!
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Yea, Kokalis has been around for a long time and he definitely knows his shit. I remember an article he wrote about AKs years ago in SOF's Fighting Firearms; I must have read it at least 10 times; it was great. Eventually, the magazine fell apart.
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You know, if I were going to buy an AK I'm sure it would be one of those...but no matter how well they're made they're still an un-ergonomic rifle that is snail-slow to manipulate compared to an AR. I took a Pat Rogers class last summer with a contractor-type who used an AK because that's what he was going to be issued in the box, and he was a reasonably competent shooter..but he couldn't keep up with the SLOWEST M4 shooter in the class when it came to any kind of weapon manipulation.
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www.arsenalinc.com/slr108.htm
SLR-108 - Import 7.62, stamped receiver, 14mm muzzle threads, slant compensator, cleaning rod, slant gas block with accesory lug, black polymer furniture, NATO buttstock • COMING SOON! • Standard production • MSRP $650 SPECIFICATIONS * • Caliber: 7.62 x 39 mm * • Total Length: ??? mm * • Barrel Length: 415 mm * • Weight without Magazine: ??? kg * • Muzzle Velocity: ??? m/s * • Rate of Fire (practical): 40 rds/min * • Twist Rate: 1 in 240 mm * • Effective Range: 400 m * • Max Effective Range: 2000 m When is "soon"? How long is this buttstock. I need the long stock for my long arms to have good pull. I'm looking for a length similar to the PC one-piece style hunting stocks. |
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not a member of the Pattywagon, so SHUT UP!
TX, USA
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get the arm9 stock. I'm going to get that thrown on the 5.56 I plan on buying. stock like an ar-15. I'll just take the metal plate off of it and grind a pachmeyr presentation pad to it instead.
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* NewOrleans ([email protected]) has quit IRC (Excess Flood)
http://www.voldermortist.com my own little hole in the wall of the internet. =] oh yeah go here too. http://www.badgerbadgerbadger.com/ |
I actually saw him at the IWA show (Euro version of the shot show) last year (2005).... Guess where? The Wolf booth! He had some weird guy falling him around..Guy I was with said he had seen them together in Russia as well....Guess it was his lover or some deal..
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And strange enough Wolf is almost not sold in Europe, you see it in Germany sporadicly (sp?) but I've yet to see it in the Netherlands.
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Wasn't that blond Nordic type guy that's always the subject of his photos was it? |
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"One day we will all learn that cool guy gear does not a shooter make"......Pat Rogers
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No, he was bald, just like him.. |
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have an SLR-95 and just picked up a SAM-7SF with side folder last week. friggin awesome rifles
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Isn't Kokalis a member here?
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not that i know about
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[url]http://www.venganza.org/[/url]
You can stay comfortable in the knowledge that you were touched by his noodly appendage and shall be blessed with a beer volcano and a stripper factory. |
I have been lurking here for quite some time and I feeI I should speak up. I am very disappointed at the personal negitive comments slung at Mr. Kokalis. You may all FLAME me all you want, but Mr. Kokalis has actually been in more real combat situations than most of us ( including me, ) put together. He is also one of the best writers in the business and one of my favorite authors. This was NOT an AK "fluff piece", the firearm happens to really be that good. He is not shy about trashing guns that are not..... Please gentleman, I really enjoy this forum and I feel we can ALL be a little more professional than some of the comments in this thread...
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I Agree
It was this review that convinced me to buy one of the SLR-106 Rifles and as a matter of fact I did so 3 days after reading the artical. Kolakis was correct in every regard to the weapon, and I can confirm everything he said. Mine is by far the best made and most accurate AK I have ever fired. Seems there is one bad apple in every bunch who just wants to trash everyone hinking.gif |
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After reading the article and some evaluations of the rifle, I am this close [-] to purchasing one instead of waiting for an FN-SCAR or Magpul Masada
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AAH AHH EEH EEH كافر كافر
"They will carry me out of here in a PINE BOX" |
Master Cyclone, come to the DARK side MUHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA You won't regret it. |
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Whoops, shouldn't click so fast (double post)
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Sorry folks, but G. Kokalis if F.O.S. about the black mags working. They probably did in his test rifle, but this article is fraud to those of us who collected those mags when they were costly and not easy to find, and then bought the SLR-106FR thinking they would work. He should distance himself from Arsenal if he cares about his reputation. They are putting out SAR-3 level quality (junk) at 2-3X the cost.
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I have an SLR-106FR and completely disagree. Mine has been awesome. VERY accurate, very low recoil, reliable, and have had ZERO isues with my mags. I have handled many AKs and none of them have come close to the fit and finish of my SLR-106. |
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I like Kokalis (never met him) and his articles. He seems to be spot on with most of his stuff. I just wish that he would study up a bit more for his pics. Some of them are not really the right camos or equipment for the particular gun or topic...not a big deal, just one of my pet peeves when I read his stuff.
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My favorite is Fortier; in every article he writes, he brings up that the heat under sustained fire was uncomfortable. I was thinking about sending him some baking mitts or something to shut him up about it.
Yes, rifles get hot if you fire them. Thanks. |
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http://blog.ryjones.org/
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So is the NATO buttstock the short one or the longer US one??? |
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nato is the long (too long IMO) one.
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What the hell is a Custom-X Sponjah?
NC, USA
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Out yet?
Need another AK to replace my Polish Underfolder that was stolen in January.. CXS |
"Bushido is all very well in its way, but it is no match for a 30-06." - Jeff Cooper
"Be polite, be courteous, but have a plan on how to kill everyone you meet." SKD SALE - www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=2&f=156&t=158757 |
damn exactly what im thinking.. i was going to hold out for one of those but screw it 5.45 ammo is way cheaper than 5.56 or 7.62 nato.... plus i already own a SAM-7-SF and that rifle is just plain nice |
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.................
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'You get further with a gun and a kind word, than with a kind word alone'
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So what's the difference between the SLR-108 and SLR-107, besides the 108 having a slant brake and fixed stock and the 107 an AK-100 brake and folding stock?
Also, are the folders on the SLR-106 and 107 com-bloc length rather than NATO length? I'm 6'2", but the shorter stock on my WASR-10 is comfortable to me, so I'd probably stick with the shorter one. |
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America is at that awkward stage where it's too late to change things from within and too early to shoot the bastards.
polarbare is THE MAN. |
Imported from where?
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What the hell is a Custom-X Sponjah?
NC, USA
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Originally Posted By jtberry1: Imported from where? LOL. What sub-forum are you in right now? And are these ever coming? CXS |
"This is the system you can overload like a fucking Jingle truck and carry 500 mags, 18 smokes, 12 pistol mags and 3 medical kits for, you know, SHTF. Oh yeah, and a multi-tool." - TimW
www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=2&f=156&t=158757 |
the article seems to have been removed from Arsenal's website. Perhaps this thread needs to be removed from a sticky or relinked?
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Originally Posted By JosephR: i just read almost two pages of this article- haven't had time to sit and read a .pdf on my screen... is it just me or is the author like every other author out there? whenever they write a review, they try to smoke as much pole as possible, not just the pole of the manufacturer of the item, i can look past that, but he goes on about the cobra red dot sights a little too much- granted, not much at all, but too much. he acts like he holds stock in the company itself "and it takes common round batteries like the 2032, etc..." jesus H. do we need a brief history of AK mags being made of steel and then ABS plastic? were they ever made out of ABS? he doesn't mention bakelite and then says that bulgarian mags have the 10 with the circle around it. I'm not an AK guy, but i have seen different markings and don't remember the 10 being specifcally bulgarian or that bulgarians all have a "10" on them... aluminum magazines were tested but failed immediately? "AK magazines must be rocked into and out of the magazine well during insertion and removal and tactical reloading suffers as a consequence. In this area, the M16 clearly wins, although M16 magazines are distinctly inferior to those of the Kalashnikov." WTF? DID WE GO OFF ON A TANGENT HERE? it just bugs me when he (or any writer) will get into what he things are the finer points or difference in this particular rifle and then immediately explain how a paddle release works as if the reader now has no fucking clue what an AK is all of a sudden... i've pissed you off enough already. sorry and goodnight. p.s.- it's the article itself, not the author and not the AK47 or anything else I'm annoyed with. Gun rags do not make money by insulting products and scaring away advertisers. Gun writers are basically paid advertisers, and the only ones with the balls to do an honest review are on youtube. FAC-Sturmgewehre with his Military Arms channel is one of the few out there that will do an honest review. Basically if you want to get the skinny on a gun or a product you have to read gun forums and you'll eventually find the answer your looking for after wading through miles of crap (fan boys, haters, people who read shit but never owned it, ect). |
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Anyone save this article, the link's down?
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Originally Posted By purevl2:
Anyone save this article, the link's down? http://www.arsenalinc.com/usa/imgs/articles/BulgarianAK.pdf |
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Originally Posted By mach6:
No, you're on the money, Joe. Typically, these gun rag writers get some kinda inside deal when the prep their articles. You know, like free this and free that. The quid pro quo is obvious in the tenor of their articles. How often does one read about anything in other than glowing terms. Your point is also well taken about how the author treats the readership like morons. I read one expose on Ferrari about this from a journalist once. He black-balled himself out of the industry by doing this. Basically said Ferrari always did so well in the rags because they sent TWO cars. Totally different suspension set-ups on either. One set up for good weight transfer and not a lot of negative camber for acceleration tests, and one with tons of negative camber and different suspension setup for the handling tests. Also, Ferrari was the only one allowed to supply a test-driver for the magazines. They fielded the car––two of them–– and the crew. At least, that is what this author claimed, and claimed as a reason that Ferrari owners were not getting equivalent numbers ANYWHERE near the rag numbers. I really hope this isn't as bad as what happens in the firearm world. It's why I always look for "I bought with my own money at a local gun store unknown to the company..." when I read a magazine test. |
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Originally Posted By 12_gauge:
Originally Posted By mach6:
No, you're on the money, Joe. Typically, these gun rag writers get some kinda inside deal when the prep their articles. You know, like free this and free that. The quid pro quo is obvious in the tenor of their articles. How often does one read about anything in other than glowing terms. Your point is also well taken about how the author treats the readership like morons. I read one expose on Ferrari about this from a journalist once. He black-balled himself out of the industry by doing this. Basically said Ferrari always did so well in the rags because they sent TWO cars. Totally different suspension set-ups on either. One set up for good weight transfer and not a lot of negative camber for acceleration tests, and one with tons of negative camber and different suspension setup for the handling tests. Also, Ferrari was the only one allowed to supply a test-driver for the magazines. They fielded the car––two of them–– and the crew. At least, that is what this author claimed, and claimed as a reason that Ferrari owners were not getting equivalent numbers ANYWHERE near the rag numbers. I really hope this isn't as bad as what happens in the firearm world. It's why I always look for "I bought with my own money at a local gun store unknown to the company..." when I read a magazine test. Why I come to ARF.com, S12.com, and THR for advice on unkown gun stuff. Or private bloggers, such as hipowersandhandguns. There is too much community to rely on the gun mags for anything other than pretty stuff to look at while in the bathroom. Just reading the review on the US PALM magazines in the last book of the AK-47. At least the review on the Romanian underfolder was honest. |
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I concur.
Originally Posted By JosephR:
I think he doesn't know how to write period. He can't decide how to write an article or what he wants to include. He starts out explaining differences an avid fan might notice and then stops to explain stuff only an idiot would not know, then treats all readers like idiots. View Quote |
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