Customer Reviews

Legends And Reality Of The AK: A Behind-The-Scenes Look At The History, Design, And Impact Of The Kalashnikov Family Of Weapons

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Note to readers: Both of the reviews below were obviously planted by the publisher or some other party with an interest in selling this book. The content is identical and they were probably written by the same person (or computer). I'm an impartial reviewer. I'm familiar with Charlie Cutshaw's work and bought this book largely because his name was on the cover. None of his style is evident. He probably did nothing more than edit Val Shilin's punctuation and grammar. The writing style is identical to that found on Shilin's website -- slightly archaic, stilted, but grammatically-correct English. Although Shilin is described as a "close associate" of Kalashnikov, I think his job title is more likely PR flack for Izhmash Arms. If you've seen Shilin on TV, you know he speaks English fluently, makes an excellent presentation, and tries hard to come off like a regular American kind of guy. The content of this book is pretty thin, with lots of unnecessary and redundant references to the brilliance of M. T. Kalashnikov. My softcover edition runs only 186 pages with large type and many photos. My interests run to the history, development, design, and nomenclature of Kalashnikov firearms that can be legally owned in the U.S. Much of this book is devoted to arms unavailable to civilians, e.g., submachineguns, general purpose machineguns, grenade launchers, and so forth. It's interesting, but not very useful. There is no "inside" information here besides what Izhmash wants you to believe about their firearms. If you are an AK owner interested in technical information or the history of your rifle, you can do much better than this book.

This BIG book is THE most definitive work of EVERY style of AK ever created. Nothing is left out. Val Shilin was a close associate of Mikhail Kalashnikov at the Izhmash Arms Factory, And Charlie Cuttshaw is a noted small arms expert. Together they have brought this fantastic weapon to life in the pages of this excellent book.

The sheer number of AK variants and spin off's will amaze you! "Secret guns", "special project Guns", the evolution of different styles, it's all in here in pictures and easy to understand text. This book has blueprints, specs and even a look at the weapons that will soon supersede the AK on the battlefield.

I you want to know everything about the evolution and the legend that is the AK-47, THIS book is where it's at!

This BIG book is THE most definitive work of EVERY style of AK ever created. Nothing is left out. Val Shilin was a close associate of Mikhail Kalashnikov at the Izhmash Arms Factory, And Charlie Cuttshaw is a noted small arms expert. Together they have brought this fantastic weapon to life in the pages of this excellent book.

The sheer number of AK variants and spin off's will amaze you! "Secret guns", "special project Guns", the evolution of different styles, it's all in here in pictures and easy to understand text. This book has blueprints, specs and even a look at the weapons that will soon supersede the AK on the battlefield.

I you want to know everything about the evolution and the legend that is the AK-47, THIS book is where it's at!