Russian Military Guns - In a globally interconnected world, gun geeks of all kinds can see the latest and greatest firearms anywhere in the world. Oddly enough, the world of Russian firearms seems to be one of the most mysterious. Aside from the cultural limitations created by the language barrier, the Russians seem to be adopting and creating new rifles all the time. When a new rifle finally became the standard weapon of the Russian army, an even newer model entered production and usurped the rifle's supremacy. Trying to keep up with Russian rifle platforms naturally took me down the rabbit hole to the latest general-purpose infantry rifles, the AK-12.
The AK-12 entered service in 2018 after a lengthy production, testing and prototyping process. This latest rifle has already been delivered to thousands of Russian military forces. The US and Russian military have always punched each other over who can fire the most powerful modern infantry rifles. In 1947 the Soviets got ahead with the AK-47, but we quickly caught up with various iterations of the modern M16, and they've been following us ever since.
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The AK-12 represents the Russian military's entry into the field of modern carbines. Think of the AK-12 as a modernized variant of the AK 74 rifle. It's a very modern interpretation of the classic AK series, while adopting some of the modular systems of the M4 to push forward the old design.
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"Meet the new boss, same as the old boss" can describe most AK variants. Inside the AK-12 is the same long-barreled, gas-powered system that has long made the AK such a puppet on the battlefield. It's not fancy, it's an effective bolt-on, air-cooled system, but it's effective. The AK-12 also retains the classic paddle magazine version of the AK, the right-hand charging handle and great safety.
In essence, it's still just another AK rifle. This is great for Russian forces because the training between the two platforms will be the same. No one in the Russian infantry will know how to fire the AK-12 when the AK 74 series rifle delivers for the latest rig. Predictably, the AK-12 also uses the same Russian 5.45x39mm ammunition as its AK 74 successor. While the rifles largely share the same infrastructure, the new AK-12 has some notable design changes.
First, it's worth noting that the gas block is now one piece with the front sight. This was a change we've seen on a few older short-barreled AKs in 100 series rifles. The gas cylinder is also permanently attached to the gun.
Kalashnikov modified the firebox to provide an explosion of 2 rounds, essentially giving the soldier a button for "double tap". Russian soldiers will now have semi-automatic, fully automatic and 2-shell detonation options. The 2-bullet explosion concept was tested on the prototype AN-94 series rifle of the past.
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Breaking operations complicate the trigger assembly and often reduce trigger torque. Instead of reducing the soft torque, you usually get a heavier and rougher torque. This makes the 2 bullet burst an interesting change, as accuracy seemed to be more of a factor in the AK series than in previous service guns. Longer or more inconsistent trigger forces can adversely affect accuracy, especially at long distances.
As part of this effort to increase accuracy, the AK-12 is the first AK series to feature a free-floating barrel. The handguard has no contact with the barrel and this often improves accuracy on service rifles. Nothing the user does to the rifle's handle can affect the rifle's zero position, making it much more forgiving in combat challenges.
At the end of this barrel is a muzzle device system that allows the user to remove or add accessories. Soldiers can add suppressors or muzzle brakes depending on their mission profile.
Kalashnikov equipped the AK-12 with modern polymer furniture. The addition of a telescoping stock allows the rifle to fit users of different sizes, much like the modern M4 stock. Users also have the option of a collapsible stock for storage and transport. A small compartment in the standard stock allows Russian soldiers to store their cleaning equipment inside.
Soldier Russian Army Sub Machine Gun Stock Photo 642042988
The old AK series is famous for having rather small handle-like buttons. The modern polymer grip is much larger and more comfortable for users who are slightly larger than usual.
Size. Above this is a slightly redesigned safety with a thumb cutout that makes commissioning easier than many previous AK platforms.
The AK-12 features modern polymer handles that house Picatinny rails for attaching accessories like vertical handles, optics, lasers, lights and more. The new hand guard design attaches them tightly to the gun, allowing users to more reliably reset the IR laser for night shooting.
Loose hand protection results in zero loss with laser. Since the hand guard no longer touches the barrel, they also tend to stay cooler. Automatic AK variants have been known to ignite or melt hand guards when fired for extended periods in the past.
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The new AK-12 magazine is polymer and textured for good grip. Super modern and reminiscent of Magpul AK magazines. The cutout at the bottom of the magazine is another change designed to improve long-range accuracy. It keeps the AK on the ground in focus and keeps the gun steady when firing in a bent position.
The AK-12 dust cover has been converted into a surveillance platform. The rail runs along the dust cover, leaving plenty of room for optics. Previous incarnations of the AK have made mounting optics on the dust cover more difficult or worse. Old dust caps tended to be loose and rattling, making it nearly impossible to reset at times.
The AK used a side-mounted fiber optic cable when a fiber optic cable was required. The modern AK-12 dust cover eliminates the need for side light mounting. The Kalashnikov Concern installs the top cover in a completely new way. It is firmly attached to the rifle front and rear to eliminate residual play and keep it stable.
The Kalashnikov Concern wisely pushed the rear sight as far back from the receiver as possible. The new rear sight is also a surveillance sight versus conventional AK open sights. The increased sight radius and peephole increase the shooter's accuracy at longer ranges.
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The US military has long tinkered with various optics in infantry rifles, and Russian special forces have also been known to use a dizzying side-mounted red dot and similar components on AK rifles. Russian military forces in general carry a variety of red dot sights and the 1P87 holographic sight appears to be the most common and popular among conventional forces.
This holographic sight chart offers fast, close range targeting capabilities for combat purposes. It looks like a strong sight and has an interesting thread: a ring of tiny 60 MOA dots. There is a dot in the middle and a hash sign below the dot.
The lower hash mark provides a zero to handle the mechanical offset, and optics like this generally work well up to 200 to 300 meters. Some Russian soldiers have been seen using AK-12s with 1P87 optics and a ZT310 magnifying glass that provides a triple magnification optical attachment.
Russia has long had grenade launchers under the barrel, just like American forces. They use 40mm mortars to provide a force multiplier for infantry encounters. The guys in my group made good use of 40mm launchers and I imagine the Russians did the same.
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They use the GP-34 mounted on AK-12 rifles. These grenade launchers can throw fragmentation grenades, fragmentation grenades and smoke grenades. On top of that, there are CS gas grenades and stick grenades for less deadly uses.
Is the AK-12 better than the M4? It's hard to answer this without looking at all the variables. It would take an entire article to discuss this. I think the M4 and M16 series rifles pioneered modern firearm design and focused on modularity as a concept. As a result, it's clear that the AK-12 draws some inspiration from its western equivalent. The AK-12 is definitely helping the Russian military professionalize, and I expect it to have a pretty successful service life.
Travis Pike is a former machine gunner who served 5 years in the 2nd Division 2nd Marine Corps. He served in Afghanistan in 2009 and again in 2011 with the 22nd MEU (SOC) for a record 11 months at sea. He trained with the Romanian Army, the Spanish Marine Corps, the Emirati Marine Corps, and the Afghan National Army. He serves as an NRA-certified handgun instructor and teaches concealed carry lessons.
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