Lancaster AK or other?

[JhankG]

I am trying to decide on an AK and currently have the Lancaster at the top of my list. Here is the link...

Atlantic firearms - AR15 & AK47 rifles - Olympic arms at wholesale prices.

Anyone have any experience with this company. If you think I could spend $600 on a better rifle, what do you suggest? I would prefer wood furniture and a chrome lined barrel. Thanks for any suggestions!

[einheit 13]

Originally Posted by JhankG

I am trying to decide on an AK and currently have the Lancaster at the top of my list. Here is the link...

Atlantic firearms - AR15 & AK47 rifles - Olympic arms at wholesale prices.

Anyone have any experience with this company. If you think I could spend $600 on a better rifle, what do you suggest? I would prefer wood furniture and a chrome lined barrel. Thanks for any suggestions!

I don't know too much about Lancaster, but I can say Vector made guns are top notch....you may want to go check around AR15.com in the AK section for posts about Lancaster.

[JhankG]

I did a search over there but didn't come up with much information. I asked the same question on that forum and had some say that they make great rifles while others said to go with something else...but I don't know what that something else would be. With a lifetime warranty, it would seem that Lancaster has a lot of faith in their products.

[Ishpeck]

Originally Posted by JhankG

I did a search over there but didn't come up with much information. I asked the same question on that forum and had some say that they make great rifles while others said to go with something else...

Guarantee you those nay-sayers are the snobs who think that if it isn't a [insert their favorite country here] build, it's crap. Those people should be ignored. AK's are AK's.

Originally Posted by JhankG

but I don't know what that something else would be. With a lifetime warranty, it would seem that Lancaster has a lot of faith in their products.

It's difficult to say much about a rifle you haven't handled yourself. If this is your first AK, I recommend going with one that you can actually handle before you buy it. That way you can check to see if there are any glaring issues.

[nothingness]

I have that same exact rifle from Lancaster, the 3060 model if I remember right. They call it the Russian Red. I've had no problems with it!

I picked mine up from East Coast Firearms because they had it a tad bit cheaper than Atlantic. Either place is good though, just need to email them to confirm they're in stock. If you pick it up, make sure you send in your warranty card within a week to get in on the lifetime warranty given by Lancaster.

Good luck.

[einheit 13]

Originally Posted by JhankG

I did a search over there but didn't come up with much information. I asked the same question on that forum and had some say that they make great rifles while others said to go with something else...but I don't know what that something else would be. With a lifetime warranty, it would seem that Lancaster has a lot of faith in their products.

Thats a good point, I have built all but 3 of my rifles, never had any issues with any of 2 range sluts and they are approaching over 30k rounds each respectively. Except for recoil springs and a couple of firing pins, never had an issue. their warranty does make it inviting though. Hell, buy one, if you don't like it send it back, experience is the best teacher...

[einheit 13]

Originally Posted by nothingness

I have that same exact rifle from Lancaster, the 3060 model if I remember right. They call it the Russian Red. I've had no problems with it!

I picked mine up from East Coast Firearms because they had it a tad bit cheaper than Atlantic. Either place is good though, just need to email them to confirm they're in stock. If you pick it up, make sure you send in your warranty card within a week to get in on the lifetime warranty given by Lancaster.

Good luck.

There ya go, a +1 for Lancaster...

[JhankG]

What did you think of the fit and finish? How about accuracy?

Originally Posted by nothingness

I have that same exact rifle from Lancaster, the 3060 model if I remember right. They call it the Russian Red. I've had no problems with it!

I picked mine up from East Coast Firearms because they had it a tad bit cheaper than Atlantic. Either place is good though, just need to email them to confirm they're in stock. If you pick it up, make sure you send in your warranty card within a week to get in on the lifetime warranty given by Lancaster.

Good luck.

[nothingness]

The fit was good on the ak, cheap surplus Romanian mags have little wobble. (all i've used in it, so no opinion on other mags)

The accuracy is good enough for me. I have no problem hitting 5"x5" printed targets at decent range.

The finish is actually pretty good. If you look hard enough you might find a run or two on the wood finish but it really isn't noticeable. These pictures are from East Coast Firearms and I can't really see anything different about them than what mine looks like:




The finish on the metal is tough too. It's a blackish baked dura-kote over parkerized metal.

It's a Romanian G-Code with pretty wood and a good receiver. Everything was straight on mine. They checked the headspacing and sighted it/test fired it at the factory.

This is THE only 7.62x39 ak i'll probably own. I see no need to spend more since this does what it's supposed to do in a reliable & accurate manner. Now all I need is a 5.45 . Also, I haven't heard much in the way of Lancaster being hit and miss like a lot of Century stuff so I can only assume a very high % of their rifles are great. And if for some reason it's not, send it back and they'll replace it with one that is.

Hope some of that info is helpful.
I've recommended this Lancaster to my brother so i'm pretty pleased with it myself.

Mike over at East Coast Firearms was very helpful too in alot of my questions and I'd like to see them get your business.

I've never delt with Atlantic so I have no opinion of them, heard good things about them though.

Either route, I think you'd be pleased with it.

[JhankG]

Thanks for that review, it was exactly what I have been looking for. One more quick question. Is the Romanian G code considered to be superior quality compared to the WASR?