Quality American-made AK rifles have been scarce. It seems that many manufacturers thought they could do it better, or cheaper, than the original. That mostly didn’t work out so well. And the ones that were done correctly were prohibitively expensive for most people.
Several companies, however, are beginning to match quality and pricing so that good American-built AKs are now a reality. The Palmetto State Armory AK-103 is one of those rifles.
I’ve loved AK-pattern rifles ever since I bought a Saiga AK-103 in 2012. Delving into the AK world taught me certain truths regarding construction, such as the importance of a forged front trunnion. The shakiness of most American AKs, combined with the 2013 import ban on Russian-built firearms and the hit-or-miss condition of WASR-10s and other models, meant that I never bought a second Kalash, despite loving the platform.
Well…PSA might have cured my reluctance. I’m not going to blow smoke at you about the PSA AK-103 being the equal of a Russian-made AK. But after running a PSA rifle for several months, I believe this is a quality firearm that will reliably do what most people want it to do. It has several nice features and has performed very well.
So, let’s look at those features and talk about how the rifle runs. We’ll also take a peek under the dust cover to look at how PSA puts this 7.62×39-spitting beast together. I have the AK-103SF model, so that’s the focus. For the record, PSA provided this rifle for review purposes. I do not get to keep it.
Palmetto State Armory AK-103SF Specifications
- Caliber: 7.62x39mm
- Barrel Length: 16 inches
- Muzzle Thread Pitch: M24x1.5 RH
- Twist Rate: 1:9.5
- Barrel Material: FN Cold Hammer Forged Chrome Moly Vanadium
- Chrome-Lined Phosphate-Finished Barrel
- Hammer Forged Front Trunnion (!)
- Hammer Forged Bolt and Carrier
- PSA Imitation Bakelite Handguards and Pistol Grip
- Metal Triangle Folding Stock
- Side Mounted Optic Rail
- AK-74 Style Muzzle Brake
Palmetto State Armory AK-103 Construction and Internals
Like any AK, the Palmetto State Armory AK-103 features a stamped steel receiver, dust cover, trigger guard, safety lever, and mag release. The 16-inch hammer-forged, chrome-lined FN barrel provides top quality and accuracy.
PSA does not specify anything regarding the rear trunnion. I suspect that it’s cast, instead of forged for that reason. But that’s fine. The front trunnion is the important one. Front trunnions on AK rifles take a beating from the rifle’s recoil. Extended use will often break a cast front trunnion. PSA knows that and correctly uses a forged front trunnion to provide maximum durability and structural integrity. I cannot overstate the importance of a forged front trunnion. That’s where many American AK manufacturers dropped the ball.
The PSA AK operates just like any other AK, with a gas-driven piston system. This rifle uses a vertical gas block. But comparing the guts to a Russian-built AK-103, as I did, reveals a few differences. The PSA rifle uses the older AKM bolt, bolt carrier, and piston instead of the updated AK-103 design. The bolt is beefier. The piston head is grooved, rather than smooth. The camming surfaces on the bolt and carrier are different. Finally, the bolt and piston are 1/8-inch shorter than their AK-103 counterparts.
PSA uses AKM parts because they already have the tooling and processes to make them. It also allows the same bolts, carriers, and pistons to be used across their entire AK line, easing logistics and cost. The AKM is an older design, but it’s also the most common and proven AK variant. It will absolutely do the job. If Russians actually say, “Rifle is fine,” they’re talking about the AKM. I think the “AK-103” designation is a bit misleading, but I don’t see it as a big deal.
Palmetto State Armory AK-103SF Features
Externally, the AK-103SF features an AK-74-style muzzle brake, an enhanced safety lever with a forefinger shelf, a cleaning rod, and a side-mounted optic rail. Putting optics on AKs can be challenging, and the side mount is the most common way to do it. Just make sure you spend the money on a quality mount. After a couple of low-cost misadventures years ago, I now use an AK Master Mount. There are other good options out there too, like RS Regulate and Midwest Industries.
The PSA imitation Bakelite handguard and pistol grip are visually striking. I’ve always loved how Bakelite looks but it’s expensive these days. PSA did a great job with this stuff, and it even feels good. An imitation Bakelite stock would be even better, but I asked for the folding triangular stock, so I can’t complain.
The triangular stock is lightweight, probably aluminum, and folds to the rifle’s left side. The thin metal isn’t especially comfortable, but that kind of stock isn’t designed for comfort. I added an aftermarket recoil pad that helped a little. The stock itself is solid, though it will wobble a bit if not pulled tight to the shoulder. PSA includes a locking latch to hold it in place when folded. You can fire the rifle from the folded position. But the stock will not fold all the way if you have an optic mount installed on the rail. That’s not a knock on PSA. It’s just one challenge of the AK design.
Finally, this model includes an integral sling attachment point just forward of the handguard on the left side. There’s a sling swivel at the stock’s base on the right side to account for the folded position. AKs are not ambidextrous.
Reliability Standards and Ammo
AKs can look cool, but the proof comes with how they perform on the range. Any AK, especially non-East Bloc AKs, must deal with an almost legendary reputation for durability and reliability. History demands a healthy skepticism regarding any American-built AK.
I’ll be the first to say that my limited tests are insufficient to pronounce the PSA AK “just as good” as a real Russian AK. I just can’t do it. Maybe if I had years and tens of thousands of rounds. But I don’t. So, I’ll tell you what I observed and experienced over 800 rounds and several handling tests.
I fired four loads during the testing:
- 123-grain Belom FMJ
- 123-grain PMC Bronze FMJ
- 124-grain Sellier & Bellot FMJ
- 122-grain Wolf FMJ
The Belom, PMC, and S&B rounds were brass-cased. The Wolf was, of course, steel-cased and accounted for half the test ammo. Honestly, every AK should reliably fire Wolf, Tula, Barnaul Brown Bear, and Golden Tiger ammo. If it doesn’t, you need to get another AK. I will say, however, that those brands are drying up thanks to the Russian ammo import ban. But PSA is ramping up their 7.62×39 ammo production to ease the shortfall. I appreciate that.
Most of the ammo used, including all the brass-cased rounds, was provided by our good friends at Ammo-to-Go. We thank them for their generous sponsorship which makes these reviews possible.
How Does it Run?
Despite being an AK enthusiast, I was skeptical of the PSA. History requires me to be, as noted above. But the rifle’s seemingly solid construction, including the forged front trunnion, made a good first impression. The action is smooth and makes that lovely AK sound when you cock it.
Reliability
Reliability is where it’s at, especially with an AK. I experienced one failure to feed out of 800 rounds. I was able to pin that failure on a faulty magazine since it happened during a side-by-side comparison with my Saiga. The mag malfunctioned in my rifle too. We removed that mag from the rotation and had no further problems. So, the PSA rifle performed with 100 percent reliability using the ammo listed above.
I did not clean the rifle during the entire test, despite disassembling it several times to check the wear on the moving parts. The limited wear I found looked completely normal compared to my Saiga’s bolt and carrier. That pleased me and boosted my opinion of the rifle’s quality. Yes, it’s only 800 rounds, but that’s what I had to work with.
Shootability
To be blunt, the PSA AK-103SF shoots like an AK. The recoil is a bit heavier than a 5.56 AR, but it’s nothing major. The muzzle climb was a bit less, compared to my Saiga, thanks to the PSA’s muzzle brake. My Saiga lacks a muzzle device, thanks to my ignorance in selecting an import company in 2012. The triangular stock makes the recoil a bit sharper thanks to its decreased surface area. The butt pad helped a little. But that’s how those stocks go.
I really like the enhanced safety lever, which I can actually operate with my trigger finger — unlike my Saiga — and I like the action as well. The sights are standard AK. The sliding rear sights are adjustable out to a very optimistic 800 meters, and the front is a simple, adjustable post protected by steel ears.
The trigger is the trigger. No AK trigger is great, but it’s not awful. It’s not mushy but lacks a clean wall and break. It does its job and I honestly didn’t notice it one way or the other. Just like my Saiga. AKs are not precision rifles, nor are they intended to be.
I generally find AKs more satisfying to shoot than ARs, if that makes sense. They have a bit more “thump,” which I like. The PSA didn’t disappoint. It was fun to shoot.
Running the Palmetto State Armory AK-103SF
My co-tester and I ran the PSA rifle pretty hard. We mag-dumped it, ran drills, and even did a little slow, measured firing. We did not shoot from the bench except to zero the optic we ran on it near the end. It’s an AK, not a hunting rifle.
We mostly shot 2-2-2 drills, incorporating mag changes. The drill’s last two shots were sometimes taken out to 50 or 100 yards. We also did a comparison to my Saiga running the same drills side-by-side. That comparison session accounted for 280 of the 800 test rounds, not including the 280 also fired through the Saiga. We used the single Palmetto State Armory mag that came with the rifle, along with numerous Gen 3 Magpul PMAGS and Gen 2 XTech Tactical Mag47s. The PSA mag was not the one that malfunctioned.
The PSA’s controls were responsive, including the mag release. We stripped out the empty mag with the new one, and the PSA handled that technique well. The mags seated with no problem and, as noted, we had no rifle malfunctions.
The PSA and Saiga rifles had slightly different points of aim at distance, but that’s unsurprising with AKs. The PSA shot just a touch higher at 100 yards, but once we found the hold, it was all good. Accuracy was about the same with both rifles. We held 3 to 4-inch groups at 10 yards and reliably rang the 12-inch steel plates at 50 and 100.
Our accuracy improved with the 3x Primary Arms prism sight, but we didn’t use that during the comparison session. Conversely, accuracy degraded a bit when the gun got hot, as it did several times. That’s how it goes with any gun.
Conclusions on the Rifle
The PSA AK-103SF surprised me, in a good way. I had my doubts, and not because of PSA, of whom I have a generally favorable opinion. But affordable US-built AKs have a rocky history, and I needed to see it and experience it before I could buy in.
Now that I have experienced it, I can say that I would purchase one of these rifles for myself. My co-tester, who is my adult son, agrees. We may be a bit snobby when it comes to certain guns, and the AK is one of them. We both like the PSA.
The only question is long-term durability. I think the PSA is a fundamentally good rifle. The materials are good, and the company didn’t monkey with the construction or the system.
I didn’t torture test this rifle because it doesn’t belong to me. Honestly, I don’t do that anyway. I can’t afford to burn down or otherwise screw up a perfectly good firearm. But the PSA performed well in the tasks we set before it, and we ran it hard at times.
These PSA AKs are only a few years old. Time will tell us how they do long-term.
Final Thoughts
That said, most gun owners won’t run this gun particularly hard. I believe it will serve those people well over a long time, assuming even basic care and maintenance. Palmetto State Armory is an emerging company striving to provide quality firearms at an affordable price. They’ve invested heavily in the capability to do that and do it well.
Despite what some holier-than-thou gun snobs say, PSA does a lot more for the average gun owner than many well-established, but higher-priced, companies.
Remember, “affordable” doesn’t always equal “cheap,” though American gun culture has convinced itself otherwise. The PSA AK-103SF explodes that prejudice. I think it’s a quality rifle at an affordable price. I can’t, and won’t, tell you it’s “just as good” as a Russian-built AK. But I believe it will do everything you want it to do. And I believe it will do it well. What else do you need?
