AK-74 AK-74 The AK-74 (Russian: or "Kalashnikov automatic rifle model 1974") is an assault rifle developed in the early 1970s by Russian designer Mikhail Kalashnikov as the replacement for the earlier AKM (itself a refined version of the AK-47). It uses a smaller 5.45×39mm cartridge, replacing the 7.62×39mm chambering of earlier Kalashnikov-pattern weapons. The rifle first saw service with Soviet forces engaged in the 1979 Afghanistan conflict. The head of the Afghan bureau of the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence claimed that the CIA paid $5,000 for the first AK-74 captured by the Mujahideen during the Soviet–Afghan War. Presently, the rifle continues to
TKB-517 TKB-517 The TKB-517 () is an assault rifle designed by German Aleksandrovich Korobov. This rifle was externally similar to the AK-47, but based on the lever-delayed blowback mechanism invented by John Pedersen and refined by Pál Király. It turned out to be more reliable and accurate, and easier to produce and maintain. Like the AK series, it was also manufactured with folding stocks, longer, heavier barrels with bipods (forming light support weapons) and even a belt-fed variant. Its rejection was because of a greater proficiency with the AK-47 among the Russian military. The TKB-517 is externally similar to the AK-47