Jambooo! I sold my Saiga and bought an Iraqi Contractor WASR from Atlantic

Well, I'm 63 years old, a retired LEO and ex-military, and not expecting to battle Zombie paratroopers any time soon. If I did, I have a couple ARs, a PTR91 with a 3x9, an M1 carbine, and 12 Gauge riot gun as a back up. For an AK platform, I had a Saiga (restored to its intended form with a pistol grip and AKM furniture), but it was too pretty.

For an AK platform, what I really want is a cheapo, beat up "featureless" AK that I could throw behind the seat in the 4x4 F150 in the mountains (without a case) and not feel the slightest bit bad about it. As I already said, my restored Saiga was just too pretty. I also had too much into it to beat it up! With that in mind, I ordered one of the Atlantic Firearms "Iraqi Contractor" WASR 10/63s for $489. I sold the Saiga to fund the purchase, and I used the extra money left over after buying the WASR from to fund another AR15 project. I wish I had done it when they were $449, but oh well, what the heck, better late than never. The payment to Atlantic for the Contractor WASR cleared my bank, and it is supposed to ship in the next week.

Another reason I wanted to switch from the Saiga to an AKM based one was spare parts. Just try to find a spare Saiga (AK103) bolt, carrier, or extractor. If you do, it will cost more than an entire AKM parts kit! Heck, I can get a complete Polish Bolt, carrier and recoil spring set for $69!

Do I think they are super special because a SOC contractor from Uganda guarded the PX on a base outside Baghdad with it? Not really. While it does add a certain neato-keen factor, the price was actually the main selling point. If door kickers had used them, that would raise the value in my mind. And, no, I don't think they took new WASRs, aged them artificially, just to sell them for $80 or $90 LESS than they would get new. That's just a retarded argument from couch commandos, mall ninjas, wannabes, and "Atlantic haters." I have been buying from Atlantic for years, and have had nothing but EXCELLENT customer service.

I just got notified. It shipped!!!!! Now I feel like Ralphie on "A Christmas Story" waiting for his Daisy Red Ryder BB gun!

All I have for mags, though, are my "legally possessed by me in California prior to 1-1-2000" high caps. I sold my 10s with the Saiga. Even though I have 14 or 15 of the 30s, I don't want to rivet any, so I ordered two Tapco 10s. Hopefully my Monsterman grip will show up before the rifle. Anyone know what metric pitch the thread is on AK pistol grip nuts? I need to get a shorter bolt to attach the MMG/AR grip adapter to it so I can run featureless. I have a couple extra AK grips, too, so I might fabricate my own paddle grip.

Pics or it didn't happen...you know how we roll...

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Originally Posted by browningautorifle

Pics or it didn't happen...you know how we roll...

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^^^
This :D

Hahaha! It is still in transit to my FFL, then 10 day jail...

Yup, we'll be waiting...

While you’re waiting for the pictures have a look at their advertisement video. Iraqi Contractor WASR 10 AK47

I like “contractor.” It doesn’t have a negative connotation.

I'm not really an AK kind of guy but the slightly worn look of those veterans makes me want to at least handle and shoot one...owning one would be great if our laws would allow...

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Originally Posted by Vincent

While you’re waiting for the pictures have a look at their advertisement video. Iraqi Contractor WASR 10 AK47

I like “contractor.” It doesn’t have a negative connotation.

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Contractor does sound better than Mercenary or Security Guard. I was actually a Domestic Security Contractor for 18 months. It was Homeland Security mandated/funded "Critical Infrastructure Protection" contract, through the local utility. I patrolled the dams, transmission lines, and powerhouses. It was 12 hour nights, 3 days a week. I put 300 to 350 miles a night on the Jeep 4x4, including the drive up and back into the mountains. Add to that the 140 mile round trip to Sacramento to pick up the patrol vehicle and the two and a half hour round trip, it made 15 hours and 450 mile days. The balance of the time was on one lane gravel or sometimes one lane blacktop roads. It was a good job, but tough on a 60+ year old body. I wore a Level IIIA tactical vest, an 1911A1 in a tactical leg rig, and aa long gun. Sometimes I carried my M1 Carbine, and sometimes I carried a n AR15 M4gery.

Considering it was an anti-terrorism patrol, Security Guard did not even come close as a job description.....

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Originally Posted by imarangemaster

Sometimes I carried my M1 Carbine, and sometimes I carried a n AR15 M4gery.

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I remember that whole line of discussion too, m1 Carbine v/s M4gery...and you being up on your own...

Yep. It did get lonely, especially in the winter, when there was NO ONE around! I saw lots of bear and mountain lion, but no Mujahidin. With ho back up within 45 minutes to an hour AT BEST, I am glad I never ran into any. So dam and powerhouse there wasn't even radio reception. Jaybird canyon powerhouse, it was 30 minutes from the rim of the canyon to the bottom. Radio went out as soon as you started to drop in. Single lane road chiseled out of the side of a sheer canyon wall. 3,000 feet straight down.

I just googled that area and "Walked" around it. Pretty bleak. I'm just behind you in age and would probably find myself obliged to carry an M4gery and a cummerbund of mags...no support fire or airstrike coming if you have trouble.

Well, it finally got to my FFL today, to start its 10 day jail sentence... Went by to check it out... WOW! It's really nice!

It is not as worn as some I have seen pictures of. Just nice honest wear, and as expected, every nook and cranny has yellow sand imbedded in it!. The interior, on the other hand shows little wear. It has the usual sweet trigger pull of the Tapco G2 single hook FCG. It looks like it has the same wear as the rest of the weapon, so I am sure it was put into it when it was shipped to SOC. The top cover has a different serial number, but I think the rest is all matching, not that it really matters on an AK!

Overall, the finish is Very Good+, if not a little better. Good, honest looking wear, about like my M1 Carbine. It still has faint rack numbers on the top handguard, too. It came with the cleaning rod and cleaning kit in the butstock. I have a Rommy leather sling and bayonet already, so that is good to go. I picked up some 10 rounders, but will run it "Featureless" with a kydex wrap on the grip and take the mag lock of to use the standard mag release, and my pre-2000 possessed 30 round magazines.


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Looks good. You say little use? Like the ARVN weapons? Never been shot and only dropped once?

Is that an extended mag release?

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Originally Posted by imarangemaster

take the mag lock off to use the standard mag release

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He said it's a mag lock.

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Originally Posted by browningautorifle

Looks good. You say little use? Like the ARVN weapons? Never been shot and only dropped once?

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Hahaha! I like it!

I brightened up the pictures a little better

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They are in stock now. They are even off pre-order program. Just in regular inventory. For $489, you can't beat it. It is as close to a "battlefield pick up" AK as you can get. For that matter, as close for any AK. When you consider it is the only post WW2 semi-auto military type firearm that has been deployed and used in a combat zone that you can get, $489 (which is $90 less than a new one) is a great deal. Sure, door-kickers probably didn't use it, but they may have seen use at checkpoints and roadblocks and could have seen some skirmishes there. Think about this: Most M1 Carbines in WW2 were used by REMFs (rear echelon folks). It is a neat piece of Gulf War History, and I am proud to own it. Best thing is that I can shoot the heck out of it, and ding it up, and I don't ruin the value!

I wonder if the sights are canted,,,,the mark of a true WASR. I got lucky with mine just slightly canted..

They appeared to be dead-nuts on true, and I have a very good eye for visual/spacial things. I heard that SOC had a QC inspection on every one Century delivered to them in the US, before they were containerized and shipped to Iraq. All of the contractor ones I have seen or heard of on the web have been straight. They have military chrome lined barrels. Some have even had Russian "Y" in a circle proofed ones. I didn't pull the handguards at the gunshop to check, but will in 10 days when I pick it up.

Note, In my earlier post, I should have said "MANY M1 Carbines were used by REMFs" not most...

Good, somebody needed to put a boot up their arse!!

You figure the SOC contract was high dollar for Century. Several thousand WASRs GP 10/63 single stacks had to be imported from Cugir, then opened up to take double stack mags, QC checks, and assorted accessories and bulk magazines (probably a dozen per weapon), and even bulk ammo. Then drop ship everything to SOCs' headquarters in in Northern Virginia for finally approval. VERY lucrative, so I doubt they would chance screwing up the deal with a bunch of rifles with canted sights!

Never stopped them from screwing John Q Public.

Had a weird issue with my WASR where it was slapping my face bad when I fired it. Put a buffer in for s..t's and giggles and it seemed to help. The biggest improvement to smoothing things out was straightening out the rails. Literally, it looked like a drunken monkey beat on the rails with a hammer. Don't get my wrong I love the thing, but they did have issues in the past that linger in peoples minds.

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Originally Posted by WarPig1976

Never stopped them from screwing John Q Public.

Had a weird issue with my WASR where it was slapping my face bad when I fired it. Put a buffer in for s..t's and giggles and it seemed to help. The biggest improvement to smoothing things out was straightening out the rails. Literally, it looked like a drunken monkey beat on the rails with a hammer. Don't get my wrong I love the thing, but they did have issues in the past that linger in peoples minds.

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Change the FCG. I had one, a Polish underfolder, that was beating the living crap out of my cheek. The FCG had the disconnect hanging on the hammer. I got the fix information off AKfiles.com and was amazed at how smooth it was after changing out the entire FCG with a Tapco.

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Originally Posted by Bill Hollinger

Change the FCG. I had one, a Polish underfolder, that was beating the living crap out of my cheek. The FCG had the disconnect hanging on the hammer. I got the fix information off AKfiles.com and was amazed at how smooth it was after changing out the entire FCG with a Tapco.

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Early WASRs had horrible FCGs that Century put it n before they switched to Tapco G2s. The first WASR I had about 2007 was terrible. They were awefultripper slap nd jump. This has a G2 FCG in it already.

Picked mine up today. SWEET, I am in love! :D I'll do some pics later this weekend. Right now, busier than a one legged man in a but kicking contest. In fact, I picked it up after work, and just had time to take it home and put it in the safe, then had to head towards Sac for an appointment. Ugh, like Ralphie, I want to play with my "new Daisy Red Ryder" AK style....

Additional thought. When I hold it, I get the same kind of feeling I get when I hold my Inland (post war rebuild) M1 Carbine. I wish they could talk. Was my carbine used in an Infantry unit against German or Japanese troops, or later North Korean or Chinese, or some of each???? Maybe it was a staff officers weapon, or maybe a grunt in a foxhole. With the AK, it is I wonder if it was used in Iraq or Afghanistan, or maybe both. Was it used by a Ugandan guarding the PX, or was it used in a watch tower, roadblock, or the front gate entry control????

I do wish they could talk. I am already much more attached to it than the restored Saiga I sold, or any other AK I have had (except for maybe the Chinese Type 56 RAW I sold when I went out on disability...)

Alright. Picked it up on the way home from work, and threw it into the safe. Got home from Sac, so I thought I would tear it down. It has all matching numbers (Trunnion, Bolt Carrier, gas tube) except top cover. The trunnion does not have the triangle and arrow, but does have the 1983 date. I seem to recall some Romanians don't have the triangle and arrow. EDIT: according to AKFiles.net, it is pretty common for 1980s Rommies to NOT have a triangle! The cleaning kit in the buttstock was complete, but well used, so I grabbed another, nicer complete Romanian cleaning kit to use. I'll hand on to the original.

As you can see from the first picture of the matching numbers, Iraq, or a small part of it, came home in it! EVERY knook and cranny was permeated with fine dusty sand. As you can see from the picture of the FCG and rails, it has virtually no wear, so I am guessing from personal experience less than 500 to 1,000 rounds through it tops! The bore is awesome, chrome lined, and bright, with no damage. The crown is crisp. No rust in the gas tube, so I am guessing it shot little or no corrosive ammo. If it did, it was thoroughly cleaned after.

The barrel has proofs, but not sure what they are. I think it has one that is a character in a double circle. Maybe the Russian contract barrels we have heard about.

Anyway, I took an M16 "tooth brush" and my pump spray can of Ballistol, and scrubbed it down. It cleaned up VERY nice, and I would rate the finish 90-95%. I put my Munkieboi paddle on, took of the mag catch. I installed a used Romanian leather sling I had, and checked my Romanian Type II bayonet. Perfect fit. I tried com-block steel and Tapco "bakelite' orange slabsides. Both types fit perfect with no "WASR mag wobble". I am very happy! More pictures later

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Originally Posted by imarangemaster

like Ralphie,

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You'll shoot your eye out kid.!!

Finally. Good pics with the Nikon D90 camera. lat one is a "Family" photo with most of my mags, pouches, bayonet, and vintage Tasco "Accu-Dot" red dot shotgun scope.

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I can see why the red dot, makes it easier to shoot. Some sights are getting harder to see, like my Krag...

I am not a "tacticool" guy. On my AR and M1 Carbine I prefer irons, as rear peep and post and wing front sight with a long sight radius are optimum. With that said, however, AK sights are not optimum. Not that they are terrible, but the sight radius is too short, and the rear notch hard to find quickly. I got familiar with the Tasco red dot in Southern Illinois where everyone hunts deer with shotgun slugs. The ones I knew almost all use the vintage Tasco Accudot or newer Pro-point, or the Bushnell version of it. They are made to handle 3 1/2" magnum slug recoil, terrible weather, and are all metal. With the Tasco, I can quickly snapshot a pie plate sized target off hand, all day long. It does add half a pound, but it is well worth it.

I now have optical sights on my Beretta Storm, M4Gery, and .22 AR...can't bring myself to put them on any thing else though.

Ah ha! Atlantic is now out of stock, and do not expect to get anymore. I am glad I snagged mine when I did.

The only change I made to it is to put a Tactical Tri-Delta brake on it from Custom muzzle brakes. As much as I want it totally Stock like it came from "the Sandbox," they work so well, I have to put it on. I had one on my Saiga and on my 5.56 and 300 BLK M4geries, and they work AWESOME! Between that and a Damage Industries black buffer, it really tames the AK for subsequent follow-up shots.

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Tactical Tri-Delta Brake

Check at 00:46 on the video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FEGW7mRcP8Q

Check out the recoil at the :19 second mark :rofl::rofl::rofl:

Pulled the trigger on an empty chamber and it recoiled! This is why I very rarely trust manufacturers test results or videos.

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Originally Posted by Bill Hollinger

Check out the recoil at the :19 second mark :rofl::rofl::rofl:

Pulled the trigger on an empty chamber and it recoiled! This is why I very rarely trust manufacturers test results or videos.

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Haha! Very true. I have been using these brakes on my weapons for several. ON my 300 BLK M4gery and 5.56 M4gery, it worked VERY well, but on the Saiga (that I sold to buy this) it was phenomenal! The difference with it and a Damage Industries "black" recoil buffer, tamed it to 5.56 recoil or less. REALLY sweet to shoot.!

By the way: I couldn't find a Century applied SN on the receiver on mine. The gun dealer used the romanian trunnion serial number, including the date. "1983NM8902"

How many of the others with the Iraqi Contractor WASRs have only the trunnion numbers for serial number?

Attachment 64112





Here's a photo of my Romanians, including my SOC Afghanistan/Iraq "Ugandan Contractor" rifle, which is the second rifle in the photo. Click on the photo for larger version


When you consider your only other option for an AK that actually served in a war zone/conflict area is a papered Vietnam bringback that will run, what, $35,000 to $50,000?, these are a pretty sweet deal.

Even if they didn't fight pitched gun battles with Hadji in the streets of Fallujah and weren't picked up off the bullet riddled carcass of Osama Bin Laden, they "were there" in Afghanistan and Iraq, and are the closest thing to an AK with a combat history that most of us will ever be able to see and handle, much less own. Hell, we can even have them here in California as long as we either play the "featureless" game with grip condoms or mag locks and 10 round magazines.

The photo I posted was taken in Free Arizona, which is why some of the rifles don't have mag locks or have it moved back out of the way.


As far as serial numbers, all WASR rifles including, including these SOC issue ones, use the original markings on the trunnion for the serial number - there is no added serial number on the receiver like you see on something like a NDS receiver.

UPDATE: Finally got a chance to shoot her. Took it to Spenceville with a couple other rifles on Monday. I sighted it in at 25 yards, POI/POA the same at 25, with the sight on the 200 meter setting. (my personal preference from years of having AKs) It was centered perfectly already, and I just had to raise the front sight 3/4 turn and I was done.

Typical fabulous G2 trigger pull at about 3 pounds. It loved Tulammo 122 FMJs, with a quarter sized group at 25.

Then I sighted it in with my vintage Tasco Accu-dot 1X shotgun red dot on a knock off of a Midwest Industries low rise side mount. Made it about 3/4" to 1" below POA at 25 just to dial in. With initial sight in, I started shooting at 100 and 200 yards, both with and without the red dot.

At 100 with irons and with the red dot, I pounced some cans with monotonous regularity. It was dead nuts on. At 200, I actually did better with the red dot than the irons. With the red dot, I bounced a milk jug around with every shot. With irons, I was about 75%.

I shot about 300 rounds of FMJ and about 50 of the Tulammo 124 HPs (a lot that was loaded with Ulyanovsk Sapsan 8M3 "fragtastic" bullets). Function was 100%, with zero FTEs or FTFs. With the Damage Industries recoil buffer and the CustomMuzzlebrakes.com Tactical (short) Tri-delta Brake, the recoil was about in .223 class. Very nice to shoot.

BTW: when I was cleaning it after, I noticed that : Bolt, Bolt carrier, gas tube, trunnion, and recoil spring guide/top cover catch all have the matching number. Only the top cover has a different number (probably from a barracks cleaning party).