The AK-107 is a Russian 5.45 mm assault rifle developed from the AK-100-series and features a "balanced" operating system, similar to that used in the AEK-971. In this case, the designation AK does not indicate Avtomat Kalashnikova but Alexandrov/Kalashnikov. The revised designation indicates the incorporation of a new gas system, designed by Youriy Alexandrov, for Kalashnikov-pattern rifles.
These new rifles were derived from the AL-7 experimental rifle of the early 1970s. The AL-7 utilized an innovative balanced gas operating system known as the Balanced Automatics Recoil System (BARS) developed by Peter Andreevich Tkachev of TsNIITochMash that was first used earlier on the AO-38 assault rifle of 1965 that essentially eliminated felt recoil and muzzle rise. The system was modified by Alexandrov, then a junior engineer at Izhmash, and prototypes were produced under the designation AL-7. The AL-7 was considered too expensive for production at the time and the Soviet Army selected the AK-74 instead as the new service rifle. No further development occurred until the mid-1990s when Alexandrov, by then a senior engineer, was directed to update his design for production as a less expensive alternative to the AN-94. The new rifle differs only slightly from the original AL-7. The AK-107 receiver is not fluted and a three-round burst feature has been added. There is otherwise little difference between it and the AL-7 prototypes.
| AK-107 | |
|---|---|
| Type | Assault rifle |
| Place of origin | Russia |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Youriy K. Alexandrov |
| Designed | 1990s |
| Manufacturer | Izhmash |
| Variants | AK-108 |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 3.45 kg (7.61 lb) |
| Length | 943 mm (37.1 in) stock extended / 700 mm (27.6 in) stock folded |
| Barrel length | 415 mm (16.3 in) |
| | |
| Cartridge | 5.45x39mm (AK-107) 5.56x45mm NATO (AK-108) |
| Action | Gas-operated, rotating bolt, BARS system |
| Rate of fire | 850 rounds/min (AK-107) 900 rounds/min (AK-108) |
| Muzzle velocity | 900 m/s (2,953 ft/s) (AK-107) 910 m/s (2,985.6 ft/s) |
| Feed system | 30-round detachable box magazine |
| Sights | Protected front post, rear U-notch on tangent |
