The AK is one of the weapons that’s notorious for many things, one of them being its bright flash at night. A lot of that has to do with the powder com-bloc ammo uses, but the fact remains that the AKM puts out a huge fireball in low light conditions. For patrolling purposes, especially at night, anything we can do to mitigate that blast is an improvement. Most AKs come with 14×1 left hand threads on the muzzle along with a (nearly) useless slant break- I advocate tossing that thing as soon as you get it and replace with with something better. The Strela AK Flash suppressor is one device that makes a gigantic difference. Currently popular with both sides of the Ukrainian conflict, the muzzle device offers many benefits of a suppressor without the sound reduction (and need for NFA paperwork).
I’ve been using it for a few months now and I’m impressed with its performance. There’s less muzzle blast even in the daytime and unlike running a can on other platforms, there’s no gas in the face. We took some night video of it down at the UW Gear annual gathering. Take a look for yourself:
As I noted in the commentary, it has a single baffle to mitigate the muzzle blast. It doesn’t offer much in the way of sound reduction, but as anyone who’s fought at night can tell you, the muzzle blast will give your position away long before the sound will. Although it’s a bit heavy on the end it does cut down felt recoil, and that extra weight also eliminates muzzle rise.
They’re not cheap but I think they’re worth it. If you’re considering the AK as a go-to weapon or want to outfit one just in case, I’d pick up one. And while you’re at it, pick up some good magazines. The Russians are building 50,000 AK-103s per year just down in Venezuela…so training with an AK might not be a bad idea.
Bryce Sharper
Gray Man
Hawkeye
JC Dodge
Jesse James
johnyMac
Matt Bracken
NC Scout
Patriotman
Sam Culper
Great review as always Scout.
I have run a number of flash hiders from Manticore Arms in the past including the Eclipse and Nightshroud with favorable results as well as the PWS FSC-47 (Primarily designed as a Brake but also offers good hide).
Look like a Strela is next.
Cheers.
What a massive difference in light signature!
And that is the difference between taking immediate effective return fire, and your adversary having no idea where the shots are coming from while you keep hammering them.
Of course, the AK will need some kind of sight that can be used in low/no light, or it’s just guys firing blind in the woods in general directions.
Anecdotal RE unmitigated flash (particularly AK). I’d done some testing earlier in the day on POI changes of the standard slant brake vs. the A2 flash-hider. Yes, they make a left-hand threaded version for the AK & have been around a long time; it’s quite good actually. Later in the day I was meandering through a valley (think deciduous triple-canopy) on some hunting property and, as my eyes had opened wide up, I hadn’t realized how close to full-dark it was when I hiked back up to the field. Spying a coyote out about 80m away I decided to take… Read more »
Well thanks,that article just cost me a 150 bucks! I know,you say James,tis only about 75,not 150,but,really can’t get one and have me buddy I work with skill wise a lot not having one,now can I? I will give a personal review as we have a safe environment to test at night in comments in future for folks still on the fence.I am lucky am working a great paying gig at moment and thus can afford to to buy good stuff and help out a bud who is on a tight budget due to kids and all. Did get some… Read more »
The AKM is if not the best carbine ever made, it is very close to being the best. I have gotten almost the same effect using the old school WW2 “cut off length of pipe and a fitting” Much like that used on the M1918 BAR or the “Beer can” flash suppressor used on the M-1917 heavy MG. Cheap easy to make and legal. With TRITIUM night sights it makes your AKM MUCH more effective at night and in foul weather. A Tip from someone who has been training with soviet block arms for more than 40 years. The vertical… Read more »
[…] There’s a few mods I suggest for running the AK. The biggest and easiest one is changing out the muzzle device. Most AKs out there come with a slant brake out of the box, and I consider it not much more than a thread protector. There’s a bunch of good options on the market depending on what you want to do, ranging from actual muzzle brakes to reduce recoil to flash hiders which tame the Kalashnikov’s huge fireball at night. Threads on AKs are either 14×1 Left Hand for most rifles or 24mm Right Hand on Arsenal models. As… Read more »