Questions on Saiga 223

[rocky3]

How much does a Saiga 223 weigh?
How bad is the recoil?
Is Surefire magazines best way to go, especially the 30 round magazine?
And last: what should I pay for a Saiga 223?
Thanks for any help you give me
Rocky3

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[ZA_Survivalist]

Unconverted, the saiga should be in the $380-$430 range
Converted, check J&G sales.. Pretty affordable.

Mag wise, youll have to convert it to legally be able to use a mag over 10 rounds.. Even the surefires.

However, many if not all saiga .223s accept wieger, galil, circle 10 with the instillation of a bullet guide.

The weight? Depends on what you're wanting to mount on it. The specs should be on atlantic firearms or J&Gsales for the unconverted.
The recoil is very managable, as is the 7.62x39.
Its a quality firearm all around.

 

[Blitzkrieg]

I've never fired any 5.56 that even had recoil

 

[2gr8dgs]

I run the surefire 30 rnd mags. I have never had an issue with them function-wise.

 

[PopsBdog]

The recoil for the .223/5.56 for sure is less than the 7.62.
Surefire magazines are the easiest way to go, but there are lots of options if you are willing to work on it, even AR magazines can be made to work. It has to be made 922R compliant if you want to legally raise the mag capacity limit beyond 10. There are other ways but I found converting it takes care of that and gives you better ergonomics and a better trigger.

My Saiga .223/5.56 weighs 10 lbs loaded and equipped as in the photo.
The small magazine is a Surefire 5 rounder for hunting. The medium one is the OEM 10 rounder. The big one in the gun is a Surefire 30 rounder

 

[cookie]

I would like one because it doesn't have a pistol grip.

 

[PopsBdog]

I would like one because it doesn't have a pistol grip.

^^
For real. My Saiga is illegal in California. I don't take it there.

 

[Blitzkrieg]

I would like one because it doesn't have a pistol grip.

Or you could move to what is left of America

 

[SomeDude]

I've been eyeballing one of these as well. Do they eat steel cased .223 the same way most AKM-types eat steel cased 7.62x39? I've drifted towards an AK, primarily because of the cheaper ammo availability. What I've realized recently though, is that the two rounds are actually priced about the same when you compare apples to apples. If you price brass cased 7.62x39 it is as much or more than .223. Conversely, steel Tula ammo costs roughly the same for both rounds. The difference is most of what is available for 7.62x39 is the steel, while steel .223 typically is shunned like it is poisonous because we don't want to taint our precious ARs with it.

 

[ZA_Survivalist]

I've been eyeballing one of these as well. Do they eat steel cased .223 the same way most AKM-types eat steel cased 7.62x39? I've drifted towards an AK, primarily because of the cheaper ammo availability. What I've realized recently though, is that the two rounds are actually priced about the same when you compare apples to apples. If you price brass cased 7.62x39 it is as much or more than .223. Conversely, steel Tula ammo costs roughly the same for both rounds. The difference is most of what is available for 7.62x39 is the steel, while steel .223 typically is shunned like it is poisonous because we don't want to taint our precious ARs with it.

Oh yes, they eat anything you feed them.
The only issues are: if the mags don't feed well, worn out or the wrong kind
(yes there are some .223 ak mags that wont fit/feed well in a saiga .223)
OR
The bullet guide wasn't installed properly. Which really it only has to be straight, other than that it'll feed.
As I was changing over into the new common calibers-common magazines belief I sold both of mine.. I think if I run across one again Ill keep it for good. But Id rather have an Arsenal converted/built one the next time around.

 

[2gr8dgs]

mine loves the zinc coated 62gr hp silver bear. It's ridiculous how well it groups at 100 yds. with this ammo.