as well as the CZ 527 and Ruger M-77 turn bolts for comparative testing. The following, however, is a review of my findings that is based on my field ap- plications and some downrange veloc- ity energy measurement data with the tools I had on hand. In the end, I will simply lay out the results and you make your own choice regarding what is what in the world of the ever changing AR- 15 platform, using the 6.8 SPC and 30 Remington rounds. Basic Field PerFormance. Starting with the 7.62x39 AK-47, I
proceeded to set up and run my target testing with an established profile I have used in previous reviews that were for shooting publications. Three 12"x12" targets were positioned in a staggered pattern from 100 through 250 yards on three target backers at the Buffalo Chip Shooting Complex, Sturgis, South Da- kota. Shooting from a heavy bench rest with a small bag for support, I shot the following firing order. Each target received three rounds
at about one second per shot timed fire. Each target was located along the 250-yard staggered pattern. The sight on the AK-47 was the Bushnell Zoom Dot, red dot type. Being a basic combat ACOG-style system designed for closer range work, even at 250 yards it was a stretch to assume much in the way of sustained accuracy from the sights. In the past, test shooting with red dot com- bat sights had, for the most part, held the same test rifle and paired cartridge to a couple of hundred yards service as a maximum range limit. I only wish I owned, or had on hand at the time, a custom or factory turn bolt chambered in 7.62x39, or a tuned Ruger Mini 30. The outcome, to my way of thinking, would have been very different regard- ing this first comparative test … at least in terms of accuracy. Shooting on an almost windless
morning at the “Chip,” I proceeded to send rounds downrange with my Cen- tury International Arms AK-47 (Model 39). The 39 was a milled steel receiver rifle and, for the most part, showed better accuracy than many other vari- ants of the AK-47 rifle. Ammo for the test event was the 7.62x39 Remington 125-grain FMJ, with brass cases in a target/military cartridge variant. Three rounds down range to the 100-yard target resulted in a good center mass
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group that measured close to 31/2 inches. However, as would be expected at 200 yards, the group opened a good deal to 7 inches, but even with that loose grouping all three rounds were some- what centered on the target’s center mass. At 250 yards I lost two rounds from my group, and this was not in any way the fault of the cartridge, but rather the sighting system (that tended to shift on the forward heat guard) and the Weaver-style mount. For the most part, the AK-47 was acting like a typi- cal AK … because of sight setup in this
case. In terms of the accuracy we can associate with the 7.62x39 when shot in a CZ turn-bolt 527 or the Ruger M-77 (both of which have been chambered in this cartridge from time to time), it’s as good as bench rest performance with good ammunition. Shooting for accuracy after shim-
ming the loose forward heat shield plate, three rounds at 100 yards shot slow fire on sandbags produced a group of 3". Again, this was acceptable for the setup I was shooting. However, in ac- curacy terms regarding other types of
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