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a friend and we can play some matches together! The AK-47, one of the world's most iconic
firearms- but we're willing to bet even you don't know some of these crazy facts about
this legendary rifle and its family of spinoffs. 20. It's everywhere Clint Eastwood wasn't lying in Heartbreak
Ridge, the AK-47 is one of the most popular firearms ever made, and the top choice of
America's enemies for over 50 years. But it's not just her enemies who are equipped
with the AK, it's her allies too. With nearly 100 nations equipped with the
AK family of assault rifles, it's without doubt the most prolific battle rifle ever
created. There's a fair bit of irony in the fact that
the Soviet Union out-marketed the free-wheeling capitalists of America in the global firearms
trade, but with the AK being cheap, easy to manufacture, and ruggedly reliable, the weapon
has been involved in conflicts on nearly every continent. Egypt even made a massive monument to the
iconic rifle on the Sinai peninsula 19. Soviet made, but inspired by the Nazis In World War II armies around the world faced
a similar problem- heavy, large caliber rounds were great for taking out enemy infantry,
but the weight limited the amount of ammunition a soldier could carry. Further, they were too heavy for rapid-fire
weapons that were not crew-served. Lighter, pistol caliber rounds could allow
soldiers to carry weapons with a high rate of fire, but the small caliber had limited
effectiveness and short ranges. The Germans were the first to bridge the gap
with the 7.92mm Kurz round, which would be used in the Sturmgewehr 44, or StG44. This fast-firing weapon allowed soldiers to
fire the impactful 7.92mm round at a high rate of fire, and benefited from increased
range over a submachine gun. The allies had no comparison- and the Soviets
took note. After the war, Mikhail Kalashnikov set about
to create a new battle rifle inspired by the German StG44. 18. Made to be tough This wasn't the only lesson from World War
II incorporated into the AK-47 however. During the war, Soviet industry had been badly
mauled by the Germans, and factories frequently had to be quickly relocated to avoid advancing
Nazi troops. For those on the front lines, conditions were
brutal, infamously rugged and a challenging environment for any weapon system to operate
in. Thus the AK was designed with loose tolerances,
giving it unparalleled reliability in even the most extreme circumstances. This did necessitate a trade-off in accuracy,
but for the Soviets it was an acceptable compromise. But the AK-47 was designed to win the most
extreme of wars. 17. The weapon needed to win a total war The United States may have faced the AK-47
in guerilla wars all around the world, but the rifle's primary purpose was always to
face off, and win against, America in a total war scenario. Soviet cold war planners envisioned the possibility
of American aggression in Europe, and the inevitable escalation to nuclear exchanges. This would mean the complete annihilation
of entire industry centers, which also meant the AK-47 needed to be cheap, easy, and quick
to mass produce. Interestingly enough, the M-16 would itself
turn out to be the more optimal choice for such a total war scenario, as it didn't require
the specialized stamping equipment that the AK-47 needed. This would allow the Americans to more widely
distribute their manufacturing, while the Soviets needed to protect and hoard specialized
machines to pump out their battle rifles. 16. Not just a weapon, a tool of revolution Russia's communists always knew their position
was a perilous one- their workers-first message struck a chord with exploited post-industrial
revolution workers in many nations, prompting harsh crackdowns by their respective governments. As the Bolsheviks seized power in Russia,
it was feared that the world would unite against the fledgling Soviet republic. Thus the concept of ongoing revolution was
born, with the Soviet Union believing that it needed to propagate global communist revolution
in order to not be overwhelmed by the powerful capitalist nations of the world. This led to the AK-47 becoming a part of communist
planned economies. As communism spread to a nation, the AK came
with it, so as to defend and continue to spread the global revolution. 15. Its first true test was Vietnam On paper, the AK was superior to any other
battle rifle in the world- but war is a different matter altogether. The AK-47's trial by fire would come in Vietnam,
as millions of the rifles were shipped to North Vietnam and Viet Cong revolutionaries. There in the jungles of Vietnam, America would
come face to face with the AK-47, and be immediately overwhelmed by it. Having learned nothing from World War II,
the United States still relied on slow, heavy battle rifles that were incapable of suppressive
fire. Its antiquated way of thinking would result
in a crisis upon entry into Vietnam, as US troops were immediately outgunned by simple
farmers. This would prompt one of the fastest development
and procurement programs in world history, leading to the M-16. But the biggest fans of the AK were its enemy. 14. Americans loved the AK Even after being issued the M-16, many American
soldiers preferred the AK-47. While eventually becoming one of the best
battle rifles ever created, the first few iterations of the M-16 were incredibly unreliable,
and often left US troops in a lurch in the middle of a firefight. This prompted many to loot AK-47s from the
corpses of fallen enemy soldiers, resulting in more than one unfortunate friendly fire
incident as well. 13. US Special Forces especially loved the AK Compared to anything in the US arsenal, the
AK was simply superior at the start of the Vietnam war, and American special forces quickly
took note. The 7.62mm rounds provided enough punch to
tear through thick jungle cover at a high rate of fire, and as a bonus the distinctive
sound of the AK-47 firing often confused the very same enemy they were engaging. 12. The Chinese loved it too The Chinese were big fans of the AK-47 as
well, so much so that they routinely stole Russian shipments to North Vietnam and replaced
the weapons with their own inferior copies. These cheap Chinese knockoffs did not have
the same durability and reliability of a Soviet AK, and would end up costing many North Vietnamese
and Viet Cong soldiers their lives. And as it turns out, the AK was better at
capitalism than America. 11. A global supply network Capitalist America was supposed to be the
one with the competitive advantage in global markets, and it largely did- but the Soviets
dominated the global arms industry thanks to the AK-47. The rifle was so widely disseminated that
even fledgling revolutions in far-flung corners of the world could be reliably supplied. 10. Even the US helped sell the AK When the US began the process of building
a national Afghan military and police force, an inevitable choice had to be made on what
to arm the Afghanis with. It was assumed that the US would simply provide
surplus M-16 and M-4s to these new forces- but the Afghans outright refused the offer. They wanted Kalashnikovs, not American rifles. The reason was simple- most Afghans were already
familiar with the weapon, and even more importantly ammunition was easy to locally procure. Thus the US was forced to buy Hungarian AK
rifles to supply the fledgling police and army forces. 9. No one knows how many really exist The Soviet Union couldn't produce and export
Kalashnikovs nearly fast enough- it was actually a significant portion of the Soviet economy. However, the mass production of the rifle
and the fact that it was licensed for production in over 30 countries- not counting those who
illegally replicated it, such as China- means that today no one really knows how many AKs
were ever produced. The best estimates place them at around 100
million, enough so that 1 out of every 60 people on earth could be armed with one. But the AK would have a legacy unmatched by
any other weapon in history. 8. Deadliest weapon ever created The nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
killed tens of thousands. Modern nuclear weapons could kill millions-
but of all the weapons ever actually used in combat, none even come close to the Kalashnikov. It's estimated that a quarter of a million
people are killed every year with an AK, which if true means the AK could be responsible
for over 18 million deaths. Thus the AK family of rifles have killed almost
as many people as the lowest estimates for World War I. This makes Mikhail Kalashnikov the single
most dangerous human to have ever existed, which is ironic for a man who originally wanted
to be a poet. To be fair, Kalashnikov did mention before
dying that it made him nervous to see people like Osama Bin Laden clutching his iconic
firearm. 7. A troubling legacy Mikhail Kalashnikov struggled throughout his
life with the legacy he was leaving behind. As the popularity of the AK grew and the weapon
spread around the world, he was often questioned about his invention. In response, Kalashnikov often expressed that
he'd rather he had invented something more peaceful, such as a machine that helped farmers
around the world. However, the AK-47 was a tool of necessity,
with Kalashnikov's work on it beginning during World War II as he listened to complaints
about Soviet weapons from fellow soldiers and experienced his own frustrations. With his country reeling from a devastating
invasion that had left millions dead, Kalashnikov put his talents towards creating a reliable
rifle that in his own words was “a weapon to be used for the protection of the borders
of my Fatherland.” He puts the blame on the massive casualties
the rifle has caused on politicians who can't find a solution other than war for their problems. 6. Kalashnikov made no money from his invention If Mikhail Kalashnikov had been born in America,
he would have been one of the richest men on earth. However, the Soviet Union looked dimly on
things such as 'licensing', and while he received the Order of Lenin three times and was made
a Hero of the Russian Federation by Putin sock-puppet President Dmitry Medvedev, Kalashnikov
himself stated that he never made any money off his invention. With the fall of communism in Russia, the
new liberal economy allowed Kalashnikov to sell advertising rights to his name to various
products, earning him some small income. However, upon death at age 94 he was still
living off a state pension. The AK-47 made a huge impact almost immediately,
but the Soviets did their best to keep it a secret. 5. The gun was so good, it was a secret The Soviets were no fools, and once the AK-47
had proven itself in tests undertaken by the Red Army, the ever-paranoid Stalin ordered
the rifle be kept as secret as possible. That would be difficult for a weapon meant
to be issued as a main battle rifle, so the weapon was at first given only to Soviet special
forces and elite units. Its members were sworn to secrecy and inexperienced
soldiers completely forbidden from even touching the rifle. As production ramped up and the weapon became
available in greater numbers, the veil of secrecy was eventually lifted out of necessity
and every Soviet soldier got their hands on the incredible rifle. 4. Americans love it so much, they bought as
many as the Russian military For a weapon originally meant to kill Americans,
the US sure has fallen in love with it. In 2012 the American public bought as many
AKs as both the Russian military and police. Maybe in the end our love for tools to kill
each other with may be the thing that truly unites us all and stops us from actually killing
each other. 3. American love for the AK is helping arm America's
potential rival though Built in Russia, sales of AK rifles have surged-
with most of those sales going to civilian buyers. Of civilian buyers, the vast majority are
Americans, who make up 40% of all civilian sales of AKs. Ironically, profits from sales of AKs to Americans
are directly funding the modernization of Russian forces, in preparation of a future
conflict with... you guessed it, Americans. But with so many to choose from, it’s hard
not to love the AK. 2. A grand family legacy There are 14 primary variants of the AK rifle,
with the most recent being the AK-19, itself an updated variant of the AK-12 which fired
5.45mm ammunition. Designed for foreign buyers, likely looking
to tap into the widespread availability of nato 5.56mm ammunition, the AK-19 ditches
the 7.62 cartridge for a 5.56 round. 1. The incredible vanishing rifle The AK-47 has one other property unique amongst
any other battle rifles- it has the ability to disappear at will. At least that's the best explanation for why
during 2004-2005 the United States lost track of 110,000 AK-47s it had purchased on behalf
of Iraqi security forces. Along with the incredible, vanishing AK-47,
80,000 pistols and millions in American taxpayer money all disappeared as well, leaving no
trace behind. Now go check out Evolution of the AK-47 Rifle,
or click this other video instead!
