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
AK-100 (rifle family) AK-100 (rifle family) The AK-74M is the basis for the new Russian AK-100 family of Kalashnikov firearms: The AK-101, 102, and 104 are destined primarily for export, while the AK-105 is slated to replace the AKS-74U with the Russian Armed Forces. The 103 is used by elite Russian military and police groups in addition to being exported. Additionally, the AK-107 (5.45×39mm M74) and AK-108 (5.56×45mm NATO) rifles have a balanced recoil system to reduce felt recoil and muzzle rise. This balanced recoil system is derived from the AEK-971 rifle. In 2017 Kalashnikov unveiled modernised version of the AK-100 family of