Introduction
Is the AK-47 type rifle any good for hunting purposes? This is perhaps a divisive question for many people. The Kalashnikov rifle was designed to be a fighting rifle for infantrymen, but its flourishing among American gun owners has brought it into civilian service. This has been a common practice since our countries inception, and countless military rifles have become hunting rifles. But today we will look into the subject; can we recommend hunting with an AK?
Hunting Purposes
Most Americans hunt for recreation and sport, chasing after deer, hogs and other animals. From a purely hypothetical perspective, the AK could accomplish many of those tasks easily. If you have adequate accuracy and energy from a given firearm, it can do the job well. That’s the rub though, does your AK have those appropriate characteristics to hunt the animals that you are after? We need to address the cartridges involved for a start.
AK-47 CARTRIDGES
A huge majority of AK-type rifles are chambered in theĀ 7.62×39Ā cartridge. The short Soviet cartridge shoots .30-caliber bullets of around 120 grains in weight, at a muzzle velocity of around 2,300 FPS. While those numbers are certainly enough to handle many hunting purposes, they can also be somewhat anemic for others.