Question by Josh A: Is there a way to make an ak47 more accurate?
i have seen that most ak47’s that i have seen are not as accurate as an ar15 what i want to know is is there a way to make an ak47 accurate enough to shoot soda cans out 100 yards?
mind you by what i have herd it can be hard even to shoot a pumpkin out 100 yards with an ak47.
Photo Credit: DJPhear/Flickr 
an ak47’s accuracy is really effected by the loose construction of the action by what i have seen. because it is so “floppy” the bullets fly every were. what technically can i do to the action that would improve accuracy. for those of you who answered thanks for the info.
Answers and Views:
Answer by smilethoughts
shoot smaller bullets. A real AK47 can also fire the same rounds as a M16, so just use 5.56 rounds.
Answer by GUNSLINGER
The action of an ak is not to blame for a lot of their accuracy problems. When Israel wanted a good assault rifle they turned to the ak-47. They also wanted to improve the accuracy of the weapon. They turned a gun that could hardly hit a pumpkin at 100 yards into a popcan drilling nightmare for anybody who come against it by simply increasing the distance between the back sight and the front sight. This in turn made the gun easier to aim and much harder to miss with. They did not really do anything else to improve the ak-47 but simply moving the sight was enough. They called it the Galil (ga-lee-il). So in answer to your question I would move the sights farther apart before I went and screwed the the action or bought a custom barrel.
Answer by randkl
The action has next to nothing to do with it. The bolt remains locked in place until the bullet reaches the exact same spot in the barrel on every shot so the action has nothing to do with it. If yours is loose, it’s exactly as loose on every shot and can be compensated for. You can even sight in a bent barrel….as long as the weapon is able to shoot consistently. Barrel “quality” has nothing to do with it, either. That’s the same barrel “quality” that goes into a Dragunov….and *better* quality than a Mosin Nagant….and yet both shoot more accurately. If you wanted to really test your action/barrel’s accuracy, simply remove the gas piston and plug the tap and use it as a bolt action. You’ll need to jerk back on the bolt and eject the empties after every shot, but you’ll see exactly what your gun’s capable of.
The one constant factor that makes the AK an inconstant shooter is the ammo. Basically put, it’s crap at long range.
You can take a Dremel moto-tool and slice a bullet in half and you’ll find it has tiny airholes through it. The “steel core” that goes into so much of their ammo is actually a short length of thick gauge wire cut off raggedly with what appears to be hand operated, manual wire cutters. The “cores” can differ as much as 5-10 grains in weight….and they’re seldomly perfectly centered in the bullets. Further, those casings can be loaded with so much differing levels of different quality powder that one round might be 100-200fps faster or slower than the next. Further, no two factories, even in the same country, make the same quality ammo. Further, the ammo can be so different between individual shots that the sights are never perfectly sighted in for benchrest-level accuracy.
If you want to see how good your AK really is, buy a few hundred rounds of Winchester Super X, plug your gas tap, and get your sights adjusted right. Hell, go all out and get a good Mojo Micro Click peep rear and *really* sight it in.
Read all the answers in the comments. Know better? Leave your own answer!
That One Dude says
First off, an AK-47 is only as good as the person shooting it. I am pretty accurate with mine even out at 100 yards or beyond using iron sights. Also depends on how good it is zeroed in. The AK is a machine gun first, and a rifle second, where the M16 is a rifle first, and a machine gun second.
Dr. Physics says
I usually shoot at clays hanging up at 100 yards and hit them no problem.
What you heard are mainly lies and propaganda brought on by years of hatred and bitterness of the black rifle companies.
lawagoneer says
I don't find the AK47 to be terribly inaccurate. Not too much off a service grade M16 but much, much, much more reliable. Part of the problem with the AK47's apparent lack of accuracy is the ammunition available for it. The surplus ammo is service grade and not meant to be very accurate. Commercial ammunition in the U.S. is loaded with standard .308 bullets, while most AK47's slug out at .314 (slugging is a process where a soft lead slug if pushed through a barrel and the diameter is measured to determine the barrel diameter in order to match the ammunition properly to the barrel) Loading the 7.62X39 with the proper diameter bullets with increase the accuracy to levels equal to or exceeding the M16.accuracy
Daddymonster says
The 7.62 is a .311 not .314
DJ says
My MAK-90 can hit soda cans at 100 yards with good ammo. I have Mojo click sights, which are an improvement. What you have heard is myth based upon prejudice.
METROPOLIS1 says
More accurate? — Probably not —- Soda can at 100 yards? — I can do that only sometimes — It might take me 6 or 7 bullets but I can get it —- Pumpkin? — If you cant hit an average size pumpkin with an AK47 then I suggest you practice more — If you put 20 pumpkins at 100 yards I can get all 20 with no problem —- Practice more….. If I might make a suggestion — Practice by shooting at 12 inch steel gongs / plates hung from chains…. When the bullet hits you can see the steel swing and here a plink thru your earplugs…. This way you will ge more of a "feel" for the rifle…..
Daddymonster says
I had a cheap wasr 10, cheapest of the cheap! Hit cans 29/30 shots at 100yds with ANY 7.62 ammo. Work on your skill as a shooter. Another note, an AK will NEVER be more accurate than an AR.
scredawg says
That is why they are so cheap, maybe you can add a "Hellfire"…
MasterPython says
Maybe replacing the barrel with a better quality one.
Sourdough says
Your first two answers are wrong and I am afraid both have no clue what they are talking about.
The AK47 was never designed to be a long range rifle. However you can upgrade them with a custom barrel.
Who ever told you that an AK can’t hit a pumpkin at 100 yards is wrong. Some Ak 47s can shoot groups less than 4 inches at 100 yards others only a 6 in group. Custom ones can shoot 2 in or less groups at 100 yards.
Instead of listening to some people guessing read the info on the links I have here; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AK-47 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_the_AK…
http://www.allmilitary.com/board/viewtopic.php?id…
ishootbirds2 says
well, if you practice with it a lot your accuracy with the rifle will improve over time. It won't hit much worse than my SKS in accuracy. Like 4-6" groups at 100 yards.
then some tweaks:
>> forward pistol grip- better control over the rifle in rapid fire or handling recoil
>> A compensator or muzzle break- reduces muzzle climb and some felt recoil. increases handling and thru increase accuracy. A big one than a basic slant muzzle will further reduce recoil and increase handling.
>> Balance the rifle- the AK107 (newest) are balanced rifles and they show a moderate increase in overall accuracy.
>> A scope will make it easier to hit stuff at range- iron sights work up to 25-30 yards, shooting cans, but after that it get difficult. a scope of some kind will make things easier to aim and aim more precisely.
deliverence421 says
Yep.move closer.lol
There`s a lot to factor in.Where the ammo is stored,if it`s windy,or wet,humidity(you already know that i`m sure).Think not as to how the bullet travels but as to how well the ammo does to the destination of firing.If you can store rounds at op temperature, it can make a very slight but significant time diff.Just think of it in the way of regardless of how well you keep your weapon,what would fire better in the world of fire works ,being dry, humidly dry or wet
Hope it helps.
arlanymor says
When you life depends on it,it,s funny how accuracy improves
Bernie says
nope you cannot make it accurate because it has a terrible recoil
and it's hard to handle even for a proffesional