The AK-47, officially known as the Avtomat Kalashnikova, is an assault rifle that is chambered for the 7.62×39mm cartridge. Developed in the Soviet Union by Russian small-arms designer Mikhail Kalashnikov, it is the originating firearm of the Kalashnikov family of rifles. After more than seven decades since its creation, the AK-47 model and its variants remain one of the most popular and widely used firearms in the world.
The AK-74 is an assault rifle designed by small arms designer Mikhail Kalashnikov in 1974 as a successor to the AKM. While primarily associated with the Soviet Union, it has been used by many countries since the 1970s. It is chambered for the 5.45×39mm cartridge, which replaced the 7.62×39mm cartridge of Kalashnikov's earlier automatic weapons for the Soviet Armed Forces.
A flash suppressor, also known as a flash guard, flash eliminator, flash hider, or flash cone, is a device attached to the muzzle of a rifle that reduces its visible signature while firing by cooling or dispersing the burning gases that exit the muzzle, a phenomenon typical of carbine-length weapons. Its primary intent is to reduce the chances that the shooter will be blinded in low-light shooting conditions. Contrary to popular belief, it is only a minor secondary benefit if a flash suppressor reduces the intensity of the flash visible to the enemy.
The SKS is a semi-automatic rifle designed by Soviet small arms designer Sergei Gavrilovich Simonov in the 1940s.
The PP-19 Bizon is a 9×18mm Makarov submachine gun developed in 1993 by the Russian company Izhmash. The Bizon was designed by a team of engineers headed by Victor Kalashnikov and including Alexei Dragunov.
The RPK, sometimes inaccurately termed the RPK-47, is a Soviet 7.62×39mm light machine gun that was developed by Mikhail Kalashnikov in the early 1960s, in parallel with the AKM assault rifle. It was created to standardize the small arms inventory of the Soviet Army, where it replaced the 7.62×39mm RPD machine gun. The RPK continues to be used by the military of the post-Soviet states and certain African and Asian nations. The RPK is also manufactured in Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, and Serbia.
The RK 95 TP, officially 7.62 RK 95 TP and commercially known as the M95, is a 7.62×39mm Finnish assault rifle adopted in relatively small numbers by the Finnish Defence Forces in the 1990s.
Wassenaar Arrangement Semi-automatic Rifles are a line of Romanian-designed gas-operated semi-automatic rifles sold in the United States by Century International Arms. The rifles are manufactured in Romania by the Cugir Arms Factory and are a semi-automatic variant of the Pistol Mitralieră model 1963/1965, a Romanian licensed derivative of the Soviet AKM assault rifle. Century imports them and modifies them in order to comply with national legislation before sale to the general public via licensed traders. The WASR series takes its name from the 1996 Wassenaar Arrangement, a multilateral export control regime to monitor and limit the proliferation of certain conventional weapons and dual-use technologies.
The two most common assault rifles in the world are the Soviet AK-47 and the American M16. These Cold War-era rifles have been used in conflicts both large and small since the 1960s. They are used by military, police, security forces, revolutionaries, terrorists, criminals, and civilians alike and will most likely continue to be used for decades to come. As a result, they have been the subject of countless comparisons and endless debate.
The AMD-65 is a Hungarian-manufactured licensed variant of the selective fire AKM rifle for use by the armored infantry and paratrooper ("descent") units within the Hungarian Defence Forces. The operating mechanism does not require a gas expansion chamber at the muzzle, as in the AKS-74U to ensure reliable functioning, but does use a specially designed muzzle brake.
The AKM is an assault rifle designed by Soviet small arms designer Mikhail Kalashnikov in 1959. It was developed as the successor to the AK-47 adopted by the Soviet Union a decade prior.
The Saiga semi-automatic rifles are a family of Russian semi-automatic rifles manufactured by Kalashnikov Concern, which also manufactures the original AK-47 and its variants, Saiga-12 shotguns and Dragunov sniper rifle. Saiga rifles are a sport version of the Kalashnikov rifle, and are marketed for hunting and civilian use. They are sometimes referred to as Saiga Sporters.
The Pistol Mitralieră model 1963/1965 is a Romanian 7.62×39mm assault rifle. Developed in the late 1950s, the PM md. 63 was a derivative of the Soviet AKM produced under license. It was the standard-issue infantry weapon of the Army of the Socialist Republic of Romania until the late 1980s, after which it was gradually superseded by the Pușcă Automată model 1986, a derivative of the Soviet AK-74.
An assault rifle is a select fire rifle that uses an intermediate-rifle cartridge and a detachable magazine. Assault rifles were first put into mass production and accepted into widespread service during World War II. The first assault rifle to see major usage was the German StG 44, a development of the earlier Mkb 42. While immediately after World War II, NATO countries were equipped with battle rifles, the development of the M16 rifle during the Vietnam War prompted the adoption of assault rifles by the rest of NATO. By the end of the 20th century, assault rifles had become the standard weapon in most of the world's armies, replacing full-powered rifles and submachine guns in most roles. The two most successful modern assault rifles are the AK-47 and the M16 designs and their derivatives.
The AK-12 is a Russian gas-operated assault rifle chambered in 5.45×39mm, designed and manufactured by Kalashnikov Concern, making it the fifth generation of Kalashnikov rifles.
The AK-104 is a carbine variant of the AK-103 chambered in 7.62×39mm, thus feeds from any standard 7.62x39 AK pattern magazine.
The Nesterov assault rifle is an assault rifle of Soviet origin.
The CMMG Mk47 Mutant is an American-made semi-automatic rifle chambered in 7.62×39mm, made by CMMG Inc. It can accept all types of Kalashnikov pattern magazines, including steel, polymer and drum magazines.
