New Shotgun

Old CW4

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Sep 8, 2006
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Ordered and received a Saiga gas operated semi auto, three inch chamber, cylinder bore, 12 gauge last week. Quite a gun. Based on the AK-47 action so it's mechanically simple and virtually fool proof. The gas cylinder has a two position adjustment so you can shoot light game or skeet loads at one setting and the three inch heavier shells at the other. Also has sights and the muzzle is threaded for chokes. Came with one five and one, get this, 12 round mag. I've since ordered several more ten rounders. Not expecting trouble, just want to be prepared. Ten or twelve rounds from a 12 gauge is big medicine for just about anything. Also quite a scary looking gun, a long barreled AK with a really big hole in the business end. BTW, they also make them in 20 gauge, and a rifle version in .308. If anyone is interested I'll provide a function report after I have a chance to wring it out.
 
IIRC they make a 15 round mag for those now, a big long AK looking mag, though i dont have a saiga a bud does and i like 'em a lot.
 
Now that's a serious home defense weapon. Did you get any of the choke options (Polychoke?) or just leaving it open bore?

I would be very interested in a review after you have had a chance to put some rounds through it.
 
How's it handle slugs???

Have thought about getting one, almost did in .308, but I wasn't clear on the availability of mags for it in that caliber... or in the 12/20 guage...

I'll keep an eye on this thread in case you get a chance to write more about yours...
 
Being cylinder bore (straight through with no tapering) there should be zero problems with slugs. I didn't get any chokes with it although the gun's manual shows a variety and one of them about three inches long with rifling for slugs. I have a Mossberg 500 which is also cylinder bore and what it does with Nr 4 Buckshot at 100 yards is astounding! I expect the Saiga will do the same and its barrel is a bit longer than the Mossberg's so possibly an even tighter group. As a Nam vet I learned to greatly respect the AK-47 a long time back and more than a few of us carried AKs in preference to the trouble prone M-16s. Main problem with that is the AK has a distinctive sound and you want to make sure your buddies know you're in the line and firing a 'friendly' AK. Anyway, the AK action is classic and beyond doubt one of the best and most reliable gun actions ever made. Mud, dirt, rust, no problem. Stomp on the bolt handle with your foot and they'll load and fire. I don't plan to do a dirt/mud test with this shotgun but it is AK-47 all the way except for the caliber (gauge in thie case).
 
Back in the day I heard that storing 12ga rounds in the mags caused problems with chambering them. After a couple days the rounds would start becoming more oval than round, as a shotgun shell is plastic and deforms due to pressure of the magazine spring.

Does anyone know if they solved this issue?
 
I "heard" that they had reliability issues. Now usually hearing stuff about firearms is worth as much as passing gas in the wind, but this was from a gun dealer, in his store, while he had some in stock. That is the part that made me pass. But up above, two folks who post sensible firearm info speak no evil of this beast so perhaps the gun dealer was honest but mistaken. :confused:
 
Wow. I've seen those things in .410, but I've never even heard of one in 12ga. What a beast! Let's see some pics! :thumbup: It'd be interesting to see how the magazine is designed- a 15 round magazine with 12 ga. shells I mean. The 12 ga. is a big, heavily rimmed cartridge. You rarely see rimmed cartridges in box magazines.
 
I had a Saiga in 7.62 a while back. Best value you can find in an AK system, hands down. It shot 3 in groups at 100 yards, which was utterly baffling to my buddies that had paid $200 more for Centuries. Loved the way it handled with the stock furniture, converted it to pistol grip, loved that too. The trigger was much improved without the extra linkages and pivots, and it was only a single afternoon project. You leaving it stock or converting it?
 
Awesome purchase!

Now you just need a few 20 round drum magazines, something like this
hp.jpg


And also check out www.tromix.com/ for some really awesome modifications to your shotgun. If you live in a NFA friendly state it may end up looking like this(Not mine, picture taken from another forum)

saigadrummag006rm2.jpg
 
maybe this was just an isolated inncodent but i was at the range and a regular guy i knew bought one and it took him about 100 rounds to break in. what i mean by this is that he had to fire the like of 00 buck for the first 100 rounds. he tried bird shot and it wouldnt cyle completely.

just thought i would share
 
Yeah, sometimes they don't work well out of the box. If it doesn't after break in I would check the gas port; sometimes it isn't drilled very well.
 
I think I'll leave this one stock for a while. As to function, the older Saigas did not have a gas adjustment. The later models do. There is a about one inch diameter slotted nut and a spring detent at the front of the gas cylinder. You have to use a long metal shim tool (provided) to engage the slot and simultaneously press down the detent. You can then switch from 'position one' for light loads to 'position two' for heavy loads. I've never owned or fired one of these before so we shall see. If they are anything like their parent AKs they need a lot of lubrication especially at the start. As for the rounds deforming in the mags, we shall see and thanks very much for that tip, something to watch out for. This one came with US made 'pro mags' and they seem to bear predominately on the brass of the shells. I know it's tricky to insert the rounds in the mags.
 
for yrs. i tried to get to the youngns heads about semiauto gauges. so many were thinking fully auto 9s or 223s. i always swore about the merits of hi cap. 12s semiauto. double or trip. buck for serious crowd control up to 60 70 yds.glad to see some sensible tacties out there. keep up the good work , i've pretty much ran my race. thanks for pics & right attitude.
 
I had a Saiga 12. I thought it looked cool, but when I got to using it, I found it very unwieldy. When I got it, it wouldn't cycle the action. I was told by the factory repair facility that many had entered the USX with military barrels installed. The military barrels have one gas port, civilian barrels have two. The reason for this is that the military is using 3" high brass shells, while we use 2 3/4" low brass shells, mostly.
 
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