Century AK SBR

Short. .30 cal. Doesn’t suck. Any questions? 

- Iain Harrison

Believe it or not, Century Arms is the most prolific AK builder in the U.S. It shipped over 60,000 guns last year, a number that dwarfs any other manufacturer or vendor, and in order to keep up with demand, it was forced to add capacity to its Vermont facility — a piece of good news that no doubt was celebrated by Senator Sanders.

We laid hands on the newest of the milled-receiver C39V2 models because A, we’re leery of Century’s reputation in the AK realm, having a long enough memory to recall the Tantal fiasco, and B, we love SBR’d AKs, as the x39 round shines in this application.

LIFT HOOD, KICK TIRES 

The chopped C39 lets you know right up front that its receiver is milled from a solid chunk of 4140 American steel, as it’s one heavy mofo — if you’re used to the feel and heft of stamped-receiver AKs then the extra meat comes as a bit of a shock. Fortunately, this being an SBR, the mass is distributed between the hands, rather than hanging forward in space, and it’s actually quite nimble when it comes to transitioning between targets. Racking the bolt produces another pleasant revelation. Instead of feeling like you’re ripping a beer can in half, the carrier glides back and forth on well-machined and polished rails. And why shouldn’t semi-literate peasants have nice stuff?