SILENCER SATURDAY #68: Suppressing Kalashnikov Patterned Rifles -The Firearm Blog

Good afternoon everyone and thank you for joining us for TFB’s Silencer Saturday. We’ll pick back up with the reviews next week, starting with CZUSA’s CZ Rimfire, but for this week I thought it would be a good idea to take a look at suppressing Kalashnikov patterned rifles. Full disclosure, while I have built a few Romanian AKs from parts kits, I’m not a Kalash expert. Make sure you consult with a competent machinist/gunsmith before altering any of your weapons to run suppressed.

SILENCER SATURDAY #68: Suppressing Kalashnikov Patterned Rifles

There are several concerns when suppressing Kalashnikov patterned rifles, all of which are related to the fact that the AK platform was not designed as a suppressor platform from the beginning. Let’s take a look:

Thread integrity (parts kit build)
Thread concentricity and mounts
Gas management

Thread Integrity:

De-milled parts kits with original barrels are drying up, but they still exist. But since the de-mil process itself is more like a arborist with a chainsaw and less like a surgeon with a scalpel, banged up muzzle threads on original barrels can cause problems with proper mounting. A quality gunsmith and machinist can outfit almost any barrel with new threads. I’ve used Class 3 Machining with great success in the past.

Thread Concentricity And Mounts:

Original barrels may also suffer from concentricity issues, where the boreline is not centered within the barrel. A machinist may be able to solve this issue with new threads, but the AK silencer from Dead Air – the Wolverine PBS-1 – is built specifically to address mounting issues with still providing excellent suppression. Both the baffle stack and the end cap have additional tolerances built in to avoid strikes from ammo and concentricity issues. In addition, Dead Air offers the best variety of thread patterns in muzzle adapters for almost any variety of AK ever built.

ABOVE: This rifle is a custom built Arsenal SLR106 made by none other than Mike Pappas himself. The wood furniture is from Combloc Customs.

Dead Air Wolverine PBS-1

https://deadairsilencers.com/products/wolverine-pbs-

The mount of the Wolverine PBS-1 works with the rifle’s existing front sight block pin to help prevent loosening under a heavy firing schedule. And since we ship it with two different sized external locking collars, a swap of the collar and thread insert gives you one of the most versatile silencers you’ll ever own.

Like the Sandman series the Wolverine PBS-1 features a detachable front cap. This lets you change out the front cap simply and quickly. Should you drop your suppressor and damage the front cap or have an unfortunate baffle strike, you won’t need to send it back to the factory for lengthy repairs. The Wolverine PBS-1 removable front cap is interchangeable with the Sandman front caps.

No other silencer has even attempted what the Wolverine successfully does. For your AK and Combloc silencing needs, welcome the Wolverine PBS-1 into your home.

Buy The Dead Air Wolverine PBS-1

Thread inserts:

14L (included)
13mm RH Galil
14mm RH VZ-58
14x1mm LH AKM
15mm RH HK
16mm RPD
24mm RH L
26mm LH PAP92
5/8×24

Wolverine Specifications

Rating: Multi – Up to 7.62x54R
Length: 7.4″ (with thread adapter)
Weight: 19.8 oz – 24.4 oz depending on mount
Diameter: 1.5″ tube, 1.93″ outside diameter
Finish: Cerakote body with nitrided parts
Min. Barrel Length: No Restrictions
KMSRP: $1099

Gas Management

And last, but certainly not least, comes the issue of gas management. Built to run in harsh environments with sparse maintenance schedules and sketchy ammo, most AKs are over gassed for reliability sake. And as you can imagine, adding a suppressor to the system compounds the problem. There are a couple ways to deal with gas in the AK system.

KNS Adjustable Gas Piston

https://www.knsprecisioninc.com/product/ak-adjustable-gas-piston/

Finally, a drop-in solution for taming the notoriously-overgassed AK platform. The patent-pending KNS AK Adjustable Gas Piston is a replacement for the AK’s piston head that attaches to the bolt carrier in about 10 minutes with no major gunsmithing or permanent modification required. The user is granted an extremely wide range of gas adjustment for suppressed and unsuppressed use, as well as a variety of different kinds of ammunition.

A good rule of thumb to determine if our piston will be useful, is if your gun throws the brass over 15 feet. This can signify excess gas pushing the carrier back at a higher velocity and pressure, than is needed for effective operation. This causes more recoil, more wear and tear, and less controllability. Many users are surprised to feel the difference in how their gun shoots with our Adjustable Gas Piston System installed.

There is no need to remove or replace your gas block for adjustability. Just change the piston, and go shoot.

Small Bore/Caliber pistons are for .223″, 5.56mm, and 5.45mm. They work better in AK’s of ALL CALIBERS with less excess gas.
Large Bore/Caliber pistons are for 7.62×39, .308″, and 7.62x54r.
$149.00 – $165.00

Buy The KNS Adjustable Gas Piston At Brownells

KNS AGP Variants

AKM Large Bore (AGP-A-10)
AKM Small Bore (AGP-A-10S)
AK-74 (AGP-A-9)
Bulgarian AK-74 (AGP-A-17)
AIMS-74 (AGP-A-21)
PSL (AGP-A-13)
M92 PAP (AGP-A-4)
M85 PAP (AGP-A-5)
AMD65 (AGP-A-6)
Draco (AGP-A-7)
VEPR/Saiga 5.56 and 5.45 (AGP-A-16S)
VEPR/Saiga Large Bore (AGP-A-16L)
Arsenal Large Bore, Rifle Length (AGP-A-20L)
Arsenal Small Bore
Rifle Length (AGP-A-20S)
Galil ACE SAR Rifle (AGP-A-8)
WZ89 Onyks (AGP-A-2)
7.62 Krink (AGP-A-3)
5.45 Krink (AGP-A-1)
5.45 Bulgarian Krink (AGP-A-19)
Valmet M76 Large Bore (AGP-A-18L)
Valmet M76 Small Bore (AGP-A-18S)
AK-105 JBI Custom (AGP-A-22)
C39V2 PISTOL, Small Bore (AGP-A-23S)
C39V2 PISTOL, Large Bore (AGP-A-23L)
Galil ARM Small Bore (AGP-A-24S)
Galil ARM Large Bore (AGP-A-24L)
Galil ACE MAR Pistol (AGP-A-25)
Mini Draco (AGP-A-26),
7.62 Krink Small Bore (AGP-A-3S)

Buy The KNS Adjustable Gas Piston At Brownells

Adjustable Gas Blocks

While the adjustable gas block has enjoyed a rise in popularity with the explosion of suppressors in the shooting community, the AK47 has been slower to adapt. Mainly because most AK modifications require a competent gunsmith that is skilled in the Combloc platforms. Still, there are a few adjustable gas block options available to the AK market.