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Arsenal SAM7r Observations and Questions

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I just picked up a lightly used SAM7r for $900 and made it to the range today.  I also have a fully converted Saiga that I've been enjoying since last summer.  

 

SAM7r Observations:

1.  Front sight is all the way to the left, it is zeroed but it pretty much as far left as it can go.  Guess I got a canted front sight edition.  

2.  My shoulder hurt after 200 rounds, about 50 were from sandbags as I sighed in the irons and then a RS Regulate/Bushnell.  I find the RWS saiga stock to be much more comfortable, the Sam is hard and angled down into my shoulder when using sandbags compared to the Saiga.    

3.  I really enjoy the longer front hand guard of the Saiga compared to the Arsenal for off hand shooting. 

4.  Magwell is really tight compared to Saiga - need some strength to insert mag but no wobble compared to the Saiga. 

5.  Mag release is much harder than the Saiga but that's due to above point.  Hopefully it breaks in.  

 

Questions:

1.  Anyone ever fix a canted front sight or should I just leave well enough alone?  

2.  Any suggestions for a better stock - I know they're harder to find and suggestions are appreciated. 

3.  Any suggestions for a longer bottom hand guard - again I knew choices were limited so looking for possible solutions?  Don't see a lot of options from a few searches I did.  

 

Thanks, overall I'm getting used to the SAM, don't know if it will surpass the saiga.  Certainly better fit but the saiga is easier to load/unload and I like the buttstock and longer hand guard so far.  Also like the bolt hold open feature that the Saiga came with.  It may just be a matter of getting used to it, not complaining it's just very different.   

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You got a good price on that - hope you enjoy the rifle.

 

1.  front sight block can be corrected by drilling new holes with oversized pins - may or may not be worth it if the rifle is already zeroed.  Is your gas block and front trunnion aligned straight?  Sucks that yours came canted.  Arsenal won't even fix those under warranty unless the rifle isn't able to be zeroed.

2.  k-var.com or akfiles.com - you can find decent deals for various milled buttstocks.  I've got a shorter polymer warsaw length stock on my sam7r.

3.  bottom hand guard... unless you go for a rail I don't think you have any other options

 

The magwells on most sam7r's are very tight.  If I'm not mistaken they're spec'd for bulgarian mags, which fit perfectly - including the arsenal mags.  That's one downside to AK's - surplus mags are not created the same and they all have slight dimensional variations.  Eventually they'll wear in, but you may have to slightly modify metal surplus mags to fit properly.  The mag release will also break in.  You just need to shoot the snot out of it.

 

good luck

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These are AK's. As long as the rifle can be zeroed with an off centered front sight post, they are within spec. It doesn't necessarily mean something is crooked. I'd leave it alone but an RPK adjustable rear sight could be an option.

 

Mag catch needs to be broken in.

 

Sandbags/bench shooting a rifle usually has more felt recoil because all the momentumof the recoil is going in to and dissipating through your shoulder and upper body. Standing and shooting has less felt recoil because it's going from your shoulder and down to your legs (if you are shooting with a strong stance).

 

Aftermarket extended handguards is really your only option for more hand space up front.

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Ordered Troy short AK rail, called them and they confirmed it will fit.....we'll see. It adds 4" to the hand guard. Also ordered an ALG trigger, which I already have on the Saiga and a retainer plate to replace the shepards hook.

 

I shoot mainly off hand so holding off on the new stock until I get at least a thousand rounds through it.

 

Will also leave the front sight alone for the time being as well, if I really start to love this rifle I'll make the effort to fix it as it looks pretty straightforward to do.

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Yeah that AKOU video was troubling...  brand new SLR107 with a host of problems, but I think someone mentioned it was some kind of batch problem?

 

Thankfully, the SAM7R is parkerized under the paint and the vast majority are good to go.  Mine is at least.

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Ak operators Union are great! My trigger is fine, did a quick polish before taking it out and was good to go. Not as good as the ALG but fine, right on par with the tapco G2. Thankfully no finish issues yet, but seems like Arsenal QA with their sights is a consistent theme.

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Not trying to sound like a dick but that SLR video from Robski wasn't anything new to most AK enthusiasts. Arsenals finish has left much to be desired for some time. You can find canted sights (slightly to worse) on almost imported AK. As long as they zero it's not really an issue IMO.

 

The ALG is nice but it's a bit light for me. I wanna say it's 1.5lbs which isn't much. I like my modified G2's, smooth and a tad heavier than ALG.

 

Good luck with it OP. The SAM7s are what most consider to be the creme of the crop. Super duper smooth action in a beautiful rifle.

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The ALG is nice but it's a bit light for me. I wanna say it's 1.5lbs which isn't much. I like my modified G2's, smooth and a tad heavier than ALG.

Good luck with it OP. The SAM7s are what most consider to be the creme of the crop. Super duper smooth action in a beautiful rifle.

I have two ALG triggers and they're both the same weight as a standard Talco G2, the reset is a shorter and I find they just clean up a little of the slop especially if you do a $0.25 polish.

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Made some changes, ALG trigger, Troy short rail, RWS mount with TRS and a forward grip. Put 600 rounds through it this weeks and really like it now. The Troy rail is a pita (as expected) to install with the set screws but the forward grip helps with the heat. Did 90 rounds pretty quickly and rail was too hot to touch but the grip made it pleasant to shoot without gloves.

 

Anyway, magwel breaking in nicely and it has really smoothed out. Bottom line is it was worth the $900.

post-3162-0-05039700-1465146051_thumb.jpeg

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AK Operators Union recently did a review on an arsenal and the front sight was canted, rivits were shit and the paint on the barrel was bubbling off.. Not something I would expect from a < $1000 rifle.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=XjJaikgeAQk

SAM7 is milled and no rivets there to worry about (not as many as on stamped), Robski complain about SLR107 painting, obviosly totally diferent and cheaper rifle model with specific serial number issue. I own two Arsenals now (SAM7R and SLR104) and I found nothing wrong with the painting, sight could be adjusted if you are using them, I never use metal sights on any of my rifles.

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I filed my mags that were too tight. I found that the area above the mag catch tab on the mags was jamming it up; the sheet metal was folded uneven and some of it protruded upwards. That has fixed the issue with my steel mags from Estrella, they had 20's pinned to 15, they're awesome, and my magpuls.

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