Quote History Originally Posted By Dragynn:*Bakelite*
Invented by Leo Baekeland in 1907, patented in 1909. Interesting that in 1910, George Westinghouse invented micarta using Leo's new resin and it was one of the very first products made with it.
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russian ''AG4S thermoplastic setting'' is an ultra durable version of american bakelite said to be cooked at the temperate of glass for extended periods of time until purified then mixed with fibers and poured into molds. at least thats what we knew in the early days of ak collecting before the internet took hold.
the book ''from a strangers door steps to the kremlim gates'' by michail t. kalashnikov, the designer of the ak and another book more geared towards pictures from russia with russian to english translations is where i got this info early on. both books i purchased at the nations NRA museum in washington dc back in 2000.
with the modern internet this info has likely been added to and updated many times over lately. for instance AG4S thermoplastic setting is now know to be just one type of mil-spec mix. several were prototype and several were main production with different code designations.
for instance the early bakelite mags vs. the main production pieces vary greatly as do the mix from mags to grips being obvious and totally different. same goes for chinese bakelite with or without micro fiber mesh mixed in and in various densities, colors, sheen, etc mixes over different eras.
if you look at romanian akm bakelite grips and compare to polish akm bakelite grips the romanian is quite cheap and more wood fiber fill where the polish is built like a tank. not that either are a fragile design. american and german true bakelite can be very fragile when compared to soviet bloc bakelite mixes.
the plum polymide replaced it and was lighter weight and more durable in some but not all cases. for instance plum polymide and later black glass fill mags are not able to withstand severe heat from hot gun barrels that melt them where AG4S style bakelite is indestructable in the heat catagory.
bakelite mags tend to die when afghans use them for 40 years in afghanstan desert clicking them in and out of sheet metal mag wells and shaving off a portion of dust each time. the polymide mags do also to a lesser extent but have flex and get worn out equally in the same way being run too hard for too long. if i had to pick a go to mag it would be an ak74m black russian mag or matte dull plum izhevsk 74 mag. they cant be beat. the circle 10 bulgarian 74 mags are same as russian black just cheaper to buy in usa.
i collect and crave bakelite but for combat once youve tried both the bakelite mags start to look like hunter orange in the woods and slightly more heavy. both are great.
edit, almost forgot to mention soviet bloc bakelite is extremely toxic if you grind, mill or cut into it. do not, repeat, do not breathe the vapors. it causes severe long term health problems that you cant shake is what ive been told. i believe it because ive ground on it before with grinder and it smells like urine. thats the reason given why its no longer made even though there is a very strong market for it and reproductions. its ingredient list is said to be way, way too dicey to try to remake in factories today.