For those of us used to the ample amount of mounting space afforded by the Picatinny rails on our M4 carbines, the AK family of small arms can come off as a bit of a disappointment. What’s more, the short sight radius of the Kalishnikov leaves many of us questioning the utility of the weapon at longer ranges. Various mounting adaptions to the AK have come along, including the Russian scope mount solution but now something new is available that addresses both issues I’ve raised.
The new AKARS (AK Adaptive Rail System), designed and manufactured by Parabellum Armament is now available through Blackheart International. AKARS is a four-point mounting platform consisting of a replacement receiver cover and an integrated rail adapter combined with a one-piece 1913 Picatinny rail/rear sight assembly and attaching hardware.
The AKARS Picatinny rail assembly replaces the OEM rear sight leaf, installing directly onto the rear sight mounting location (mounting point ONE). This gives the AKARS a positive mounting point that eliminates the slop found in many optic mounts that install only onto the receiver cover. That thing moves all over the place. Additionally, the rail assembly includes a built-in Back Up Iron Sight.
The hinged design of the rail mount allows the AKARS/sight assembly to lift up and out of the way for easy access to the interior of the AK receiver. This permits operators to perform routine cleaning, maintenance and address firing/feed malfunctions without removing the optic or losing the rifle’s zero.
The AKARS receiver cover/adapter assembly installs onto the Picatinny rail assembly via two precision locating pins (mounting point TWO) with no tools needed. Once the receiver cover assembly is installed onto the rail assembly, the receiver cover is secured to the receiver via the AK’s standard rear sight base (mounting point THREE) and driving spring (mounting point FOUR).
The AKARS is available now through www.BHIgear.com
