What do you do to zero your AK?

It is my understanding that the standard zero for AK is 100 yards.  I have actually never shot my Arsenal on paper, but it was easy to plink in the 40-50 yard range various targets as small as bottle caps. 

I'm going to shoot my AK project this weekend.  The plan is to start with the irons and see where it's at on paper at 50 yards.  Then I'll likely rough zero the red dot at 50 yards.  Then ammo and time permitting, I was planning on seeing where the POI for the dot at 100 yards are and then decide if/how to adjust. 

With the red dot on the rail, the irons are about level with the bottom of the T-1 when the irons are at the 'A' setting (or S setting on other AKs).  It appears to be flush with the bottom of the viewing window of the T-1, but can't tell for sure.  Once I zero the red dot, I don't like to take off and replace the dot, even with a QD mount that has a good reputation for RTZ (Larue low mount). 

I have some elementary knowledge of the trajectory of the AK round.  That said, I will likely zero the dot at 100 yards.

This article nicely summarizes the AK iron sights. https://www.google.com/amp/s/savannaharsenal.com/2016/04/23/how-to-zero-the-kalashnikov-ak-47-ak-74/amp/

For video instruction try The AK Operators Union channel on YouTube.

This article nicely summarizes the AK iron sights. https://www.google.com/amp/s/savannaharsenal.com/2016/04/23/how-to-zero-the-kalashnikov-ak-47-ak-74/amp/

For video instruction try The AK Operators Union channel on YouTube.

Thanks!  Yeah, I watched the The AK Operators Union video and one other regarding the zero and the adjustments and such.  Pretty easy and I also don't envision myself ever adjusting the irons, but always good to know how things work.  I'll stick with that way for the irons.  I was just wondering what folks did for their red dot. 

I was just thinking along the lines that I am so used to the 50/200 yard zero for my AR.  I know the trajectory and thus the holds for that gun pretty well from "up close and personal" distances to about 200 yards (and to a certain extent a little further).  Understand that the trajectory of the rounds are very different, but was also just wondering about alternate methods. 

You can also punch in your zero distances here and play around with points of aim and points of impact. You’ll never really know until you put it on paper at various distances but it’s a good start.

http://gundata.org/ballistic-calculator/

Hey Drk
When I get anal,  :  I go here (preset to your cal)

http://www.shooterscalculator.com/ballistic-trajectory-chart.php?pl=308+Winchester&presets=308+Winchester%7E308+Win+168Gr+Hornady+A-Max%7EG1%7E.475%7E168%7E2700%7E100%7E1.5%7E0%7E10%7E90%7Efalse%7E0%7E59%7E29.92%7E50%7Etrue%7E1000%7E25&df=G1&bc=.475&bw=168&vi=2650&zr=100&sh=1.5&sa=15&ws=15&wa=60&cfa=on&alt=150&tmp=78&bar=29.92&hum=70&cr=500&ss=100&chartColumns=Range%7Eyd%3BElevation%7Ein%3BElevation%7EMOA%7EFBFFF5%3BElevation%7EMIL%3BWindage%7Ein%3BWindage%7EMOA%7EFBFFF5%3BWindage%7EMIL%3BTime%7Es%3BEnergy%7Eft.lbf%3BVel%5Bx%2By%5D%7Eft%2Fs&lbl=308+Win+168Gr+Sierra+HPBT+MK&submitst=+Create+Chart+

and here

http://www.jbmballistics.com/ballistics/calculators/calculators.shtml
(get Drain Bamage)   

Good stuff especially for reload junkies. 

You can also punch in your zero distances here and play around with points of aim and points of impact. You’ll never really know until you put it on paper at various distances but it’s a good start.

http://gundata.org/ballistic-calculator/

Yeah.  This will be a learning experience for me as I am still quite green to AKs.  That and I am also guessing that I will likely see a range of results based on AK ammo, since I'm assuming I'll see a wider range of quality as opposed to the 5.56 and .223 ammo that I typically shoot.  For my AKs, I plan on experimenting quite a bit with cheaper ammo. 

After skimming through the article you posted, I'm leaning toward experimenting with the 25 yard/200 meter zero.  Since KHSC is 50 and 100 yard, I'll likely end up zeroing the dot at 50 yards and experiment from there, as well as experiment with POI when I raise the rear sight so that it appears in the T-1 viewing window. 

Hey Drk
When I get anal,  :  I go here (preset to your cal)

http://www.shooterscalculator.com/ballistic-trajectory-chart.php?pl=308+Winchester&presets=308+Winchester%7E308+Win+168Gr+Hornady+A-Max%7EG1%7E.475%7E168%7E2700%7E100%7E1.5%7E0%7E10%7E90%7Efalse%7E0%7E59%7E29.92%7E50%7Etrue%7E1000%7E25&df=G1&bc=.475&bw=168&vi=2650&zr=100&sh=1.5&sa=15&ws=15&wa=60&cfa=on&alt=150&tmp=78&bar=29.92&hum=70&cr=500&ss=100&chartColumns=Range%7Eyd%3BElevation%7Ein%3BElevation%7EMOA%7EFBFFF5%3BElevation%7EMIL%3BWindage%7Ein%3BWindage%7EMOA%7EFBFFF5%3BWindage%7EMIL%3BTime%7Es%3BEnergy%7Eft.lbf%3BVel%5Bx%2By%5D%7Eft%2Fs&lbl=308+Win+168Gr+Sierra+HPBT+MK&submitst=+Create+Chart+

and here

http://www.jbmballistics.com/ballistics/calculators/calculators.shtml
(get Drain Bamage)   

Good stuff especially for reload junkies. 

Haha.  My weekends are to relax, not to strain my brain!!! 

Nah.  All good info.  My project AK, or any of my AKs aren't intended to be precision guns.  But always good to know the ballistics.  I'll get around to the stuff you posted.  Eventually. . .

Ended up with zeroing the red dot at 50 yards.  I was going to move the target back to 100 and see where the POI was, but didn't get around to it.  Was having too much fun shooting steel after shooting paper, as well as having other folks shoot it.   

I started with the irons at 50 yards.  I took off the red dot so that I had open access to the irons.  IIRC, I was about 2" high at 50 yards and pretty much centered on windage, so I was happy.  Put on the red dot and proceeded to zero.  Should have been pretty quick to zero as I had a rough idea from the irons.  Quickly got the windage adjusted, but took a while with the elevation, but that was mostly brain farts on my part where I ended up adjusting the wrong way at first.  Thinking back, I probably should have adjusted the elevation on the irons, but wanted to get to the dot.

While zeroing the dot, I had some pretty tight 3 shot groups here and there.  Like maybe a 1" lateral spread at 50 yards, so that told me a good amount about accuracy of the gun.  When I shot the 5 shot group to confirm zero, I ended up with about a 2" spread.  I think I could do better, but the steel was calling.  Had a friend be the first to shoot it at the steel, which was a 12" diameter plate at 100 yards.  He shot with a front sandbag and could easily get solid hits on the steel.  Couple other shooters had the same results and I took a pass at shooting the steel standing and was getting consistent hits.  So that told me the zero was good enough for me and I moved onto my AR.  I would love to try it out on some steel in the 16" range out to 200-250 yards, but that will have to wait for another day (and a different shooting venue  ).

I will eventually shoot the AK at 100 yards and see what the POI is.  I also hope to try out some different ammo.  I was shooting Wolf Polyformance 123 gr JHP yesterday. 

Will also read more about that article posted above.  But for now, I'm comfortable that the AK will do fine in getting consistent hits at defensive ranges, or at least what I envision. 

I can get 2" groups at 50 yards with the right ammo but turns into 6" at 100 yards. I'm convinced the AK is not accurate past 50 yards, mostly due to the rigid barrel attachment to the receiver. It doesn't flex like the AR barrel does. IOW, you'll knock someone over with an AK but not between the eyes.

Ended up with zeroing the red dot at 50 yards.  I was going to move the target back to 100 and see where the POI was, but didn't get around to it.  Was having too much fun shooting steel after shooting paper, as well as having other folks shoot it.   

I started with the irons at 50 yards.  I took off the red dot so that I had open access to the irons.  IIRC, I was about 2" high at 50 yards and pretty much centered on windage, so I was happy.  Put on the red dot and proceeded to zero.  Should have been pretty quick to zero as I had a rough idea from the irons.  Quickly got the windage adjusted, but took a while with the elevation, but that was mostly brain farts on my part where I ended up adjusting the wrong way at first.  Thinking back, I probably should have adjusted the elevation on the irons, but wanted to get to the dot.

While zeroing the dot, I had some pretty tight 3 shot groups here and there.  Like maybe a 1" lateral spread at 50 yards, so that told me a good amount about accuracy of the gun.  When I shot the 5 shot group to confirm zero, I ended up with about a 2" spread.  I think I could do better, but the steel was calling.  Had a friend be the first to shoot it at the steel, which was a 12" diameter plate at 100 yards.  He shot with a front sandbag and could easily get solid hits on the steel.  Couple other shooters had the same results and I took a pass at shooting the steel standing and was getting consistent hits.  So that told me the zero was good enough for me and I moved onto my AR.  I would love to try it out on some steel in the 16" range out to 200-250 yards, but that will have to wait for another day (and a different shooting venue  ).

I will eventually shoot the AK at 100 yards and see what the POI is.  I also hope to try out some different ammo.  I was shooting Wolf Polyformance 123 gr JHP yesterday. 

Will also read more about that article posted above.  But for now, I'm comfortable that the AK will do fine in getting consistent hits at defensive ranges, or at least what I envision.

i plugged in some data for you into my ballistics app.  i used a muzzle velocity of around 2400 fps, for a 123gr Hornady with a G1 ballistic coefficient of 0.266.

i used a iron sight height over bore of 2.0 inches.

environmental factors of 80 deg F weather, 29.5 inHg of pressure, and 78% humidity.

if the AK is zeroed at 50 yards, then:

25 yards, POI will be 0.79 inches below POA
50 yards, POI will be at POA
75 yards, POI will be 0.36 inches above POA
100 yards, POI will be 0.26 inches above POA
125 yards, POI will be 0.33 inches below POA
150 yards, POI will be 1.45 inches below POA
175 yards, POI will be 3.13 inches below POA
200 yards, POI will be 5.34 inches below POA

i plugged in some data for you into my ballistics app.  i used a muzzle velocity of around 2400 fps, for a 123gr Hornady with a G1 ballistic coefficient of 0.266.

i used a iron sight height over bore of 2.0 inches.

environmental factors of 80 deg F weather, 29.5 inHg of pressure, and 78% humidity.

if the AK is zeroed at 50 yards, then:

25 yards, POI will be 0.79 inches below POA
50 yards, POI will be at POA
75 yards, POI will be 0.36 inches above POA
100 yards, POI will be 0.26 inches above POA
125 yards, POI will be 0.33 inches below POA
150 yards, POI will be 1.45 inches below POA
175 yards, POI will be 3.13 inches below POA
200 yards, POI will be 5.34 inches below POA

Awesome! Thank you!

The 0.26” above POA at 100 yards sounds about right from what I noticed. I think that trajectory is something I think I can work with for this AK. Prob will still look at 100 yard zero for the red dot as well as spending some time to adjust the iron zero.

With the AK 50 or 100 is about the same for me.  I don't shoot it much past 150-175 with it anyway.  The 50 or 100 is pretty much POA holds from contact to 150 on say a pig-sized target.  If I use a red dot, I generally use a 50-yard zero as you get a little flatter of a trajectory with minimal plus ordinate and a bit more distance before dropping rapidly.  There is virtually no noticeable plus on the max ordinate and out to about 160 the +/- is POA all the way.

If you wanted more distance with less hold, say out to ~250 or so and a +/- 5" is within acceptable margins than a 25y zero might be a good option.  While it is capable, it isn't my choice of a rifle much beyond that.  For irons, I stick with the 100 and use the irons adjustments as intended. 

With the AK 50 or 100 is about the same for me.  I don't shoot it much past 150-175 with it anyway.  The 50 or 100 is pretty much POA holds from contact to 150 on say a pig-sized target.  If I use a red dot, I generally use a 50-yard zero as you get a little flatter of a trajectory with minimal plus ordinate and a bit more distance before dropping rapidly.  There is virtually no noticeable plus on the max ordinate and out to about 160 the +/- is POA all the way.

If you wanted more distance with less hold, say out to ~250 or so and a +/- 5" is within acceptable margins than a 25y zero might be a good option.  While it is capable, it isn't my choice of a rifle much beyond that.  For irons, I stick with the 100 and use the irons adjustments as intended.

I would envision contact to about 100 yards for this gun.  So I was happy when the 50 yard zero was "about the same"  in terms of POA/POI at 100 yards.  The 50/200 zero is somewhat ingrained in my mind from ARs, so I would eventually like to learn more about how the AKs do in the same range.  When KHSC had the steel upon the hill, my "test" after zeroing was getting consistent hits on the plates that were about 12" wide by 16" tall in the 220-260 yard range.  I wish the steel was still up there to test with this AK. 

Was having a conversation with folks at the range when we found that we could all get consistent hits on a 12" diameter plate and relating that to expectations on performance. 

I'd like to do the same testing with the irons as the red dot, but with this particular setup, the irons are mostly blocked out by the T-1 as the mount is maybe 1/8" too high.  I don't like taking the dot off and putting it back on even though it has a QD mount with good reputation for RTZ.  So I'll likely use my Arsenal AK, which is still all stock for that.

Overall, I'm really enjoying this AK project.  While I would say I am still way more comfortable with ARs than AKs, I think this project AK will be a "fair" comparison between the two.  Will eventually set up some drills with a timer to compare. 

While I would say I am still way more comfortable with ARs than AKs, I think this project AK will be a "fair" comparison between the two.  Will eventually set up some drills with a timer to compare.

did you, have you ever acquired/bought/built an AR chambered in the same round as the AK, for an even more fair comparison?  no, not trying to jump-start a whole debate about CPD vs ASC mags, unreliability in the AR, etc.  Just curious.

In Soviet Russia, rifle no need zeroing.

did you, have you ever acquired/bought/built an AR chambered in the same round as the AK, for an even more fair comparison?  no, not trying to jump-start a whole debate about CPD vs ASC mags, unreliability in the AR, etc.  Just curious.

Never considered an AR in 7.62x39.  I kept up with the thread on AR in 7.62x39 here, but I was never interested getting one.  I mean I'm not against them, but just never considered one.  That and I've always been interested in AKs in general.  Actually, my initial interest in AKs are the "classic" with wood furniture.  I would love to have a Chinese or other from the "pre-ban" days. 

In Soviet Russia, rifle no need zeroing.

It's Hungarian comrade.  Their rifles need zeroing. . .