Video: Making an AK Rifle Function Using Rubber Bands and a Sharpie

AK-pattern rifles are regarded as some of the most simple and reliable firearms ever made. But is it possible to replace one of the critical components of the recoil assembly with a few “junk drawer” items and keep the gun functioning? TAOFLEDERMAUS and a friend sought to find out. They removed an AK’s dust cover and replaced its recoil spring with several rubber bands wrapped around the rifle’s front sight base and the rear of the bolt carrier, which were then held in place by a Sharpie marker. They then tried firing the gun. Check out the results below.

As you can see, the rifle managed to properly cycle at least a few rounds. Obviously, you should never try this on your own AKs at home, but it’s interesting to see that a “backyard mod” like this can keep a gun running.

Matt Korovesis

I've been a history and gun enthusiast since I was a kid. I love to shoot just about anything, from silenced bolt-action .22s to fully automatic heavy machine guns, and I love even more when I get to write about them. My main interests are modern small arms and the military small arms of World War II and prior conflicts, with a particular focus on Russian and Finnish firearms. Reading about guns like the Mosin-Nagant rifle in books and on the internet got me interested in collecting, shooting, and writing about them, and I hope to do the same for others through my work.

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