A few days ago I wrote a piece explaining why I think an AWB is still at least two years away, and not only has it received a TON of traffic but I’ve gotten quite a few emails from people thanking me for being the voice of reason to the rest of the gun blogosphere’s Chicken Little impersonation. And even though I still believe what I wrote, I’m having trouble reconciling that with the fact that I just bought this WASR-10…

I mean, my logic sounded good in my head. I was having a crappy day (some woman rear ended me in my BRAND NEW CAR, which JUST ticked past 1,000 miles), I was flush with cash from some health insurance fees being refunded, and I had been salivating over an AK action for weeks. So when I saw this one for $100 less than anyone online (who are all sold out now, BTW) I threw down the plastic and said the words that precede every great decision in my life.

“Screw it, let’s sign the paperwork.”

While I might not believe that an AWB is pending, I do recognize the MASSIVE sales that gun stores are doing. Every gun store I’ve walked into has been doing land office sales, paying the employees overtime to sell anything and everything related to high capacity magazines and AK or AR pattern rifles. The guys at Primary Arms say that their distributors upstream are just about tapped out of Magpul PMAGs, and seeing their volume of sales recently I believe them.

If I was going to buy a WASR, now was the time to do it. Because I’m pretty sure the next time I see one for sale at a reasonable price I won’t be the same age I am now. So now I’m up one AK clone, down about $500, and on track to need a bigger gun closet by the end of the year. Yes, this year.

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38 COMMENTS

  2. We keep harping about freedom on this site. You owe no explanations for the type or number of guns you buy. Unless of course you’re married.

    • Agreed. Just another tool in the toolbox. Now, my considering buying a couple of stripped lowers would be closer to a panic buy, but I’ve just finished my first build, so it’s time to start round two. Maybe if I buy just one, I can call it business as usual…

  3. Snagging a good deal isn’t quite the same as ‘panic buying.’ If you’d paid $750 for a parts-built Century AK, now that would be panic buying.

    OTOH, if you paid the same $750 for a Vepr or Arsenal AK, you’d have found a smokin deal. It’s too bad that WASR-10s aren’t $375 any more; they’re sort of the Noodle Ramen of the AK world but they still work.

  4. Last Friday a local shop only had Surefire 60 round magazines in stock for ARs. I had never seen them run out of PMAGs before. So I bought a couple Surefire mags.

    Is an AWB at least a while away? Of course. Could prices go up and availability go down at each stop along that process? Absolutely!

  5. The prices will continue to rise regardless of an AWB coming or not.

    As long as you dont buy crap you can expect to at least break even 5, 10, 20 years down the road if not make an obscene return. And you get to have fun while you hold it.

    Even junk appreciates. Those broken CAI CETME’s hit the scene at $300 years back. Today the out of spec ones still circulating can bring in $500+. That’s $200 profit on a boat anchor.

  6. The USG’s response in 2008 to the Crash was unprecedented. We live in times when recent past behaviors and cycles (50-150 years back) may no longer be relied upon to foresee the future. The “rules” of the day depend upon who has the greatest power or biggest gun and that would be the people in power and not the laws of the land. There is a difference. An AWB might be two years away, it may never occur, or it might possibly occur in two months. History is filled with examples of societies being hit with massive unexpected change. Do what is right for you, morally sound, and honorable.

  8. I plan on panic buying. I plan on purchasing a new rifle this weekend and when the wife sees another gun charge on the account, I will panic my butt down to the jewelry shop for her.

  9. I’m using the election as an excuse to stock up on stuff, but that’s because I’m looking for ANY excuse to stock up!

  10. I get it completely.
    Haven’t really bought any new guns since the election, but purchased a bunch more hi-cap mags and plenty of ammo.

  11. Echoing Jeff P.’s comment above, I suspect Nick may have to do something similar for his now dejected 300 BLK rifle(s)… perhaps buying them some shiny new optics to make them feel better.

  12. Its always good to purchase a gun when you come across one.The AWB of 1994 got me off guard not letting that happen again, I have been getting supplies threw the years. I did not want to wait for post election buying, Its to big a gamble to get what you want back-orders so on. A good reason for post election would have been on a better election that resulted in a pro-2A president. This would have lead to a supply higher than demand. If their deals out their I’ll go ahead and make a purchase, otherwise I’m good to go.

  13. I’m in the same boat. I’ve bought a decent amount of ammo, and am about to buy my second gun since the election. However, I’m not panic buying. I have been thinking about buying these guns for months, and I’ve just found really good deals on stuff i already intended to buy, and I know that if I don’t jump on these deals now then I’ll probably never see them for this cheap again. I am blessed enough to have the money to make these purchases without causing any kind of financial strain or myself or my family. The key is moderation, which I will have a hard time with once all the people who impulse bought guns start selling.

  15. WASR-10s are the most popular AKs in the Bay State with preban models selling around $650-700. Nice rifles, well made. MY FFL sold out of them at $630 with two hi-cap mags. The $500 you paid was a great deal — you shoulda bought two.

    • does the Tulammo work well with the AK platform. I had issues with it on other weapons with the hard primer. I’m just curious. had alot better luck with the Wolf 223 ammo than the tulammo. Thought I would try the brown bear since Wolf seems to be sold out everywhere.

      • I have had several broken rims resulting in stuck cases/failure to extract when using TulAmmo in my AK 74. I never have had a problem with Silver Bear though.

  17. I picked up the WASR-10 last weekend. Almost spent a little bit more and got the Century Arms C-93 instead. But I already had a 5.56 AR and I wanted the 7.62x39mm.

    Can anyone tell me what is a good cheap magazine for an AK is?
    I know to steer clear of Promag and Thermold but are the Tapco any good? Or should I just save my money and buy some steel mags from a gunshow or Arsenal mags?

  18. Perception is reality. AWB or not, people are driving up demand which will increase prices. Supplies will replenish barring any crazy maneuvering, but you never know if prices will stay up or not. This is not fear mongering, merely relating the reality of people’s mindset.

  19. I succumbed to the following on the morning of November 7:
    – Joined the SAF. I am an NRA memeber too.
    – Bought 400 rounds of military surplus ammo for my M1 Garand
    – Bought (5) MagPul 30 magazines to put in storage, just in case.
    Just need to get a few more high capacity mags for my 9 mm S&W, just in case.
    I too believe there is time (two years?), but then again I didn’t think Barry O was going to get re-elected either.

  20. Nick, if you’d been seriously thinking about the AK buy for weeks, and idly contemplating it for longer than that, it’s not a panic buy.

    Walking into the gun store and shouting “OMGWTFBBQ give me one of each of them there evil rifles and 10 mags apiece”… well, that would be panic buying.

  21. I felt the same way last week when I paid for my M&P Sport. Tomorrow is pickup day and I’m super-jazzed. Of course, there will have to be apologies made to my better half, as she said we weren’t getting an AR. I’ll try the “we didn’t get one, I did” defense and see how that works.

  22. regardless of name snobs, WASRs do the job nicely, even though they’re the cheapest AK on the market right now.

    “some woman (*giggle) rear ended me in my BRAND NEW CAR, which JUST ticked past 1,000 miles”

    Im just going to STFU and let your words paint a picture.

  23. Hmmmmm, what is the word i am looking for? Begins with h….ends with “crit.” Just cant remember the word….

  24. “…the first semi-automatic rifle I ever bought was a Romanian WASR, and not just any WASR. This AKM variant was the poster child for every internet-rumored issue that ever allegedly plagued the WASR. She had canted sights, magazine wobble, uneven finish, vicious trigger slap and parts so loosely fitted that the dust cover once flew off after a string of 60 rounds.”

    The above is a quote from one of TTAG’s own reviews (SGL-21). Have you read it?

    Why buy what is unquestionably the lowest quality AK on the market today when for a few C notes more you could have had a top quality Arsenal AK, either Russian or Bulgarian? For heaven’s sake, man, your life may depend on that gun one day. Couldn’t you lay off the beer and pretzels for a few weeks to make up the difference?

    Of course, you may have many AKs already and you just needed a beater to drag through the mud.

    • WASR AKs are ok in their quality nowadays,though im sure a few lemons are still circulating around. It is my opinion that a serious AK buyer that is on a budget can find a better quality one for the money.

      Years ago, i bought a Hungarian SA-85 for 250 bucks, which are miles better than any Romanian or other Hungarian in my opinion. Needless to say, gun stores that acquired these quickly found out their superior quality and marked them up to the 6-700 dollar range. There is a subculture of SA85 buyers in the shadows that purchase these fine rifles for marked down prices or from ignorant sellers.

      For budget AKs, I would look for the Romanian SA-85, SR-3, Hungarian SA-85, Norinco MAK 90, and any AK by Waffen Werks simply because i feel you are getting the most for your money.

  25. The UN Arms treaty Obama will agree to, will be a Trojan Horse deal. He will agree to it by executive order. Thus it will not have to pass the Senate. It will be worded so that it can be interpreted many ways. Thus it will stop imports of ammo, parts, and many firearms, ban semi-autos, include registration, and make dettachable magazines over 5 rounds illegal. The fiat regulations of every industry by the Fed is already causing busines and industry to fail. Thus the fiat regulations will also cause the firearms industry to fail. He has proven in his first term he does not need congress. He will not wait it is coming soon.

  26. Anyone who wants but doesn’t have at least one EBR by now is really behind the times.

    Heck; most of my American friends have several & in at least three different cartridges too.

    There’s plenty of rifles out there but ammunition is the limiting factor for those waking up four & more years later than everyone else.

  27. I went to the Ohio Gun Collectors gun show yesterday. Prices were up a rough average of 5% over the same show two months ago. The place was mobbed. It was nearly impossible to get through the aisles. I chatted with the book dealer. He said the gun shows in the “fracking” area of northern Pennsylvania were doing very well.

  29. I am the happy owner of two additional toys: A Norinco SKS, and a Siaga 7.62*39.
    My wife thinks I am nuts. I reply that it’s a ‘guy’ thing and that she would not understand. Tomorrow, I will be receiving at least 2 cans of 7.62*54R ammo for my
    favorite toy, a MosinNagant M44. The UPS guy looks at me funny every time I
    make an ammo purchase. I am waiting for the BATF to come visiting me sometime…

  30. yep if i were ATF would be getting the sales record from all large ammo distributors and database all customers ordering over 500 rounds a year.

    “No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms. The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government.”

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