If you want a $600 AK, I would suggest a WASR only if you can handle it or confirm that it doesn't have any issues (mostly being canted sights). You are getting a low-end AK, it's not going to be the smoothest but it will shoot and cycle reliably. I owned one and didn't have any issues with it.

 

A lot of people are quick to bash them, but as I said, as long as you get one that doesn't have the known issues some of them do have, you're good to go.

I don't necessarily care if people like them or not, but when someone is looking for a cheap AK and people say don't buy them I don't agree. From my personal experience they're good rifles for getting into the platform. There's also little risk if someone wants to sell one, prices for AK's aren't dropping much.

 

I can not speak to the age of the guns I have handled... but yes I have seen canted sights and terrible actions in real life guns in hand... now to be fair they still fired OK.. an AK is an AK... in that you could load the mag.. fire the gun and rip through the mag... but if we are talking build quality.. the ones I handled for the most part were sub par.. but my experience in AKs besides the WASR is limited to Saigas which were my built guns (which I am going to obviously have a bias towards since they were put together how I wanted them).. and a couple of milled AKs which were in my personal experience very well built.. heavier.. but solid well built guns.. I think sometimes people take things personally.. if I say "you hear a lot of nightmares about the WASR being garbage.. and the ones I have handled appeared to be terrible quality" people by nature that own them want to defend them.. when there is really no need.. if it works for the end user then great.. but it is pretty factual to say that the general consensus is that they are of lesser quality than many other AK variants..

Here are a few that are NJ legal or if compliance work is needed (N and O pap) still within your budget:

 

SAR-1 (pre-WASR, made in Romania)

WASR

Yugo N-PAP

Yugo O-PAP

If you want a $600 AK, I would suggest a WASR only if you can handle it or confirm that it doesn't have any issues (mostly being canted sights). You are getting a low-end AK, it's not going to be the smoothest but it will shoot and cycle reliably. I owned one and didn't have any issues with it.

 

A lot of people are quick to bash them, but as I said, as long as you get one that doesn't have the known issues some of them do have, you're good to go.

 

If he can settle for a used AK in very good condition a nice SAR-1 would make for a great rifle, I have 3 of them and they are ban compliant as-is so no compliance work. $450-$600 for VG condition on GunBroker and AuctionArms.

 

The SAR-1 is a hi-cap factory AK assembled in Romania (pre-WASR) so if he takes it out of state and wants to run hi-caps they will function correctly with minimal mag wobble/tilt.

The new WASRs have a much better reputation for quality than those from a few years ago. I wouldn't hesitate, especially from Atlantic Firearms. They give their guns a good once over before selling them to you. Consider an Atlantic Firearms assembled gun. Check their website. They are good quality and the non-Russian ones are reasonably priced.

Romanian WASR10/63 is a decent gun if you get one made in 2008 or later. The earlier models had issues with everything stated above, crooked front sight, rough action, wood that gives splinters ect.

SAR-1's are excellent AK's at a good price point. Yugo's are nice as well. 

 

There are plenty of variants under 800 bucks that are nice. AMD-65's are sweet too.

I recommend the N-PAP.  Beautiful and new from the Serb factory.  Under $600 and works 100%.

http://www.classicfirearms.com/paprifle-2

Had it trasnfered, nics, and barrel pinned by monmouth arms in morganville for under 600 bucks.
Really good rifle. The yugo cheek slap is def there, but you can either adjust ur hold a lil, or be like me and spend 45 bux on a tapco ar style buttstock and pin it yourself.
And even with the added cost of the stock, I'm still in under 600.