Polish Tantal 5.45mm ....Bday gift to myself.

[skipbo32]

i can give further review, once i get ammo for it and take better pics with range report. i have my Arsenal SGL20 7.62 next to it to compare. as you can see the Tantal has a grey park....but i prefer it over the black paint finish on the Arsenal that you can scrape off with your finger nail.

these are two fine examples of the AK platform IMO. the Tantal is the better value at the moment given the fact that most of these are built on original matching parts kits and are almost half the cost. Mine came from Interarms, so even though the barrel is not original...it is chrome lined (a must for AKs shooting corrosive ammo). the trigger on it is great!

i just ordered 6k rds of 5.45 for this thing....but at .15 cents a round i didnt feel too bad. and that is the real reason i purchased this rifle is the cheap ammo......the magazines however have become expensive and hard to get.....so if anyone has a good sorce.......

 

[xxxleafybugxxx]

How much did you pay? What is better, tantal or saiga?

 

[skipbo32]

How much did you pay? What is better, tantal or saiga?

well, i paid $600 for mine, but mine was made by Interarms. Century offers them for $450 range but they do not have chrome barrels (which i think is important to have when shooting corrosive ammo).

Saiga is a good brand. they are Russian which is good. this darn 922 rule is hindering the quality of AKs i think. my Arsenal SLG is built on a Saiga receiver and has a Russian made barrel that is chrome lined.

you get what you pay for, but i feel that even though these Tantal style AK 74s have already been going up in price....they are still a good value for what you get.

 

[Jenrick]

Mags are a roll of the dice theses days. Online I've polymer Bulgarians go for over $30, while at a gun show locally they had them for $19 after tax. Just check around and be willing to pay over $20 but stop at $30 and you'll be good. If you're okay with metal mags, then those are still floating around for $15-$20 online.

-Jenrick

 

[skipbo32]

i just got some E German bakelite mags for my tantal. i have heard they can have a tight fit on the tantal though.

 

[AethelstanAegen]

i just got some E German bakelite mags for my tantal. i have heard they can have a tight fit on the tantal though.

I've had good luck with the East German bakelite mags...the Bulgarian polymer/plastic mags were a tighter fit on my Tantal. YMMV of course.

 

[skipbo32]

i just got some bakelite mags and grip to flesh it out. still cant wait to shoot it.




the e german mags fit great.

 

[AethelstanAegen]

Looks great, skipbo32! You've got to love that bakelite!

 

[aubie515]

I just sold my AK74s...those Tantals are nice. If you order mags from RRC be very careful of the "grey" mags since they just blasted the finish off and everyone that was sent to me had rust issues. I got a refund on my order since 9/13 mags I ordered were rusted.

 

[nathan]

Bakelites can be have at Atlantic Firearms but at a price. They are really nice to pair with the AK 74, looks very classy and authentic.

 

[FIVETWOSEVEN]

I was recently able to pick up four "Bakelite" magazines for my AK all for $20. Sometimes you get lucky and can't wait till my rifle comes in so I can finally try them out.