# mikhail kalashnikov Dies at age 93 on 12-26-12



## ardx1 (Nov 29, 2012)

Sad day for AK-47 owners. Inventor and father of the AK-47 Mikhail Kalashnikov has died at the ripe old age of 93. Thank you Mikhail Kalashnikov for making one of the greatest rifles in history!


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## Steve M1911A1 (Feb 6, 2008)

ardx1 said:


> ...Thank you Mikhail Kalashnikov for making one of the greatest rifles in history!


Yeah. Too bad that he didn't do a better job on the sights.
Oh, yeah-and he could've designed it so that it was _accurate_, too.
Well, I guess you can't have everything.


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## ardx1 (Nov 29, 2012)

Steve M1911A1 said:


> Yeah. Too bad that he didn't do a better job on the sights.
> Oh, yeah-and he could've designed it so that it was _accurate_, too.
> Well, I guess you can't have everything.


True, but what it lacked in sights and accuracy (although I personally dont seem to have an issue with either) it has made up for in reliability, as mine goes bang EVERY time.


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## Steve M1911A1 (Feb 6, 2008)

The most important thing about the Klash is its operating system.
It uses gas operation, and a piston/pushrod, but it does away with the monkey-motion piston-rod twist required by Garand's design. And still the top of the Klash's action remains open and accessible for easy cleaning and stoppage ("jam") reduction. (Kalashnikov got that from Simenov and the SKS.)

The funny thing is that the Israelis tried to "refine" the Klash into the Galil, and make it more accurate, but instead it seems to have become more fragile and less reliable.


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## Hurryin' Hoosier (Jan 8, 2011)

ardx1 said:


> Sad day for AK-47 owners. Inventor and father of the AK-47 Mikhail Kalashnikov has died at the ripe old age of 93. Thank you Mikhail Kalashnikov for making one of the greatest rifles in history!


You mean the gun which should rightly be called the "AS-47" - the "S" being for (Hugo) Schmeisser?


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## hud35500 (May 8, 2010)

The gun was designed for reliability above all. It would have been accurate had the tolerances been tighter, but that's not what Mikhail was going after. He knew it would be fielded by poorly trained, massed human waves. For that purpose, there is no better weapon. The AK and it's creator should be respected for what they were. It's a shame he didn't work for us.


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