Type 81 Side Mount Options?

Can we please stick to the topic.....

The bubba and devalue comments/opinions are hijacking the thread and not helping.

I hardly think a discrete, professionally installed side rail is going to reduce my ability to sell this pressed metal chicom rifle for $1000 if I had to.
 
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bryan.14 said:
I hardly think a discrete, professionally installed side rail is going to reduce my ability to sell this pressed metal chicom rifle for $1000 if I had to.
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Supply & demand. Look at how much Norinco AK's are going for in the States if they are still in their unmolested condition... hint: big bucks! This is because they can no longer be imported and have something called "collector value". If you start drilling holes, cutting stuff off and welding sh*t onto it, you lose this "collector value".

I know it's a hard concept to understand for the younger generation of milsurp owners (especially SKS owners), but this is simply a repeat of history. A few decades ago many gun owners thought it was a great idea to "sporterize" their dime-a-dozen WWI and WWII Enfields to make them "more comfortable" by cutting down the stocks, putting on aftermarket sights, etc. Well, today such a sporterized Bubba special is worth around $100, whereas an unmolested Lee Enfield example is closer to $1000 in value.


You do the math, preferably BEFORE you get that Dremel itch... ;)
 
bryan.14 said:
Can we please stick to the topic.....

The bubba and devalue comments/opinions are hijacking the thread and not helping.

I hardly think a discrete, professionally installed side rail is going to reduce my ability to sell this pressed metal chicom rifle for $1000 if I had to.
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You already got your answer, its a gun board, people talk about guns, and drilling holes and permanent modifications are all relevant to side mount scope bases.


Just saying

View attachment 159717
 
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...and regarding "helping": this is the ONLY official PLA red dot option for the Type 81 which supposedly mounts directly onto the rifle "as is".

"Military Type 81 AK 3x Red Dot Scope"

https://shop.ehobbyasia.com/china-military-type-81-ak-3x-red-dot-scope.html

mad-ak-scope_2_mark.jpg
 
762mm said:
Supply & demand. Look at how much Norinco AK's are going for in the States if they are still in their unmolested condition... hint: big bucks! This is because they can no longer be imported and have something called "collector value". If you start drilling holes, cutting stuff off and welding sh*t onto it, you lose this "collector value".

I know it's a hard concept to understand for the younger generation of milsurp owners (especially SKS owners), but this is simply a repeat of history. A few decades ago many gun owners thought it was a great idea to "sporterize" their dime-a-dozen WWI and WWII Enfields to make them "more comfortable" by cutting down the stocks, putting on aftermarket sights, etc. Well, today such a sporterized Bubba special is worth around $100, whereas an unmolested Lee Enfield example is closer to $1000 in value.


You do the math, preferably BEFORE you get that Dremel itch... ;)
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I always find these comparisons hilarious.... Although I agree it's true, $100 vs $1000. That's an investment gain of $900 over the course of decades lol. Hardly an investment worth loosing hair over.
 
ComradeVlad said:
I always find these comparisons hilarious.... Although I agree it's true, $100 vs $1000. That's an investment gain of $900 over the course of decades lol. Hardly an investment worth loosing hair over.
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It all depends on how many "investments" you have in your gun safe. At the end of the day, it's all money... and it adds up. Statistics show that most Canadians don't have $1,000 put way in case of a financial emergency. You obviously do, but that may not be the case with the OP today or in 10 years time (and a large portion of members on this site are probably in the same boat, judging by how many "financed" this rifle through Tactical Capital or whatever).

If you want to have a rifle you can attach stuff to, get something that actually supports it from the get go without Bubba'ing the sh*t out of a collectible piece. Dropping $1,000 on a gun (or worse: borrowing $1k) just to turn it into a $750 gun overnight with the spin of a Dremel is idiotic at best.


Some folks mine cryptocurrency with their computers, other mine real currency with their gun safes. ;)
 
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Trying to deduce what firearm will be a future collectible is just like investing in stocks: almost impossible to do all the time and guarantee a return. Regardless, I'm about to try...

Let the people bubba this piece in peace. Personally I think messing with the T81 makes perfect sense. It was produced just for us, has no military issue to it, never fought in any popularized wars in a notable, public role, and is at most a novelty. In 100 years (like grandpapy's Smellie/Mauser/whatever) it may indeed be worth a little but it has none of the mystique associated with the forefront of military technology like our WW1 collectibles or have the prestige of freeing/conquering Europe like our WW2 guns. The Type 81 isn't the hottest video game gun and it hasn't won any crazy awards or have an real presence outside of some third-nation countries, China and Canuckistan.

If we had received a big shipment of honest to Jesus issued T81's, different story. What we have now is not that. I would be interested in one a lot more if I COULD mount optics to it. It's a mildly modern combat rifle and would benefit from that.

I wouldn't try and force a side mount from another rifle on it because that isn't the proper solution. The market will create a solution of it's own accord in due time. Let the industry do it's thing. You may save some of the perceived value if you use honest T81 parts if you're that concerned.

There my .2 cents
 
Coffice> I think you are likely right, if the firearm becomes popular, aftermarket parts will be developed. The VZ58 is a great example of this, a lot of aftermarket parts were created for this rifle by a lot of different companies because there was a demand. So I guess only time will tell if this rifle can drive the same level of demand.
 
762mm said:
It all depends on how many "investments" you have in your gun safe. At the end of the day, it's all money... and it adds up. Statistics show that most Canadians don't have $1,000 put way in case of a financial emergency. You obviously do, but that may not be the case with the OP today or in 10 years time (and a large portion of members on this site are probably in the same boat, judging by how many "financed" this rifle through Tactical Capital or whatever).

If you want to have a rifle you can attach stuff to, get something that actually supports it from the get go without Bubba'ing the sh*t out of a collectible piece. Dropping $1,000 on a gun (or worse: borrowing $1k) just to turn it into a $750 gun overnight with the spin of a Dremel is idiotic at best.


Some folks mine cryptocurrency with their computers, other mine real currency with their gun safes. ;)
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Lol u keep telling urself that.... In the mean time, I'll mod my type 81 as I see fit, have fun doing it, learn new skills, and enjoy shooting the rifle for many years :) during the same time loosing thousands in depreciation on the countless electronic products.
 
ComradeVlad said:
Lol u keep telling urself that.... In the mean time, I'll mod my type 81 as I see fit, have fun doing it, learn new skills, and enjoy shooting the rifle for many years :) during the same time loosing thousands in depreciation on the countless electronic products.
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Iv done some nasty things to mine purely to enrage people 4chan is an amazing place for that.
 
It's all about supply & demand. If TI brings thousands of these in, the prices will remain the same or even fall as time goes on. The latest news though is that the manufacturer WILL NOT make more of them until the next T81 military contract, which is estimated at 5-7 years. By then TI might no longer exist, or concentrate on other more profitable and less problematic imports.

Case in point are the commercial Norinco AK's in the US; not the finest examples ever produced, not true military examples, but worth a lot of money nevertheless due to their rarity. If TI imports 2000-3000 of T81's in total for a country of 36,000,000 with 4,000,000 licensed gun owners today, the rifle is still pretty damn scarce. If no future imports take place in the foreseeable future (or ever), the value will climb very quickly. Let's not forget the witch hunt against all these "scary com block" rifles in Kanukistan either, which only adds to their collector desirability.


Anyway, you guys do whatever you want; the more you desecrate yours, the higher the value for the unmolested pieces will be down the road. What are still doing here, go and Dremel away! Hell, take a stick welder + grinder to'er while you're at it and call it "gun art"... lol! :)


art-against-war_ak-47-peace-edition-gold-1.jpg
 
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762mm said:
Anyway, you guys do whatever you want; the more you desecrate yours, the higher the value for the unmolested pieces will be down the road. What are still doing here, go and Dremel away! Hell, take a stick welder + grinder to'er while you're at it and call it "gun art"... lol! :)
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OMG thank you SO much! i totally WILL , now that i finally have ur permission!
 
762mm said:
...and regarding "helping": this is the ONLY official PLA red dot option for the Type 81 which supposedly mounts directly onto the rifle "as is".

"Military Type 81 AK 3x Red Dot Scope"

https://shop.ehobbyasia.com/china-military-type-81-ak-3x-red-dot-scope.html

mad-ak-scope_2_mark.jpg
Click to expand...

This sight supposes to clamp down on the two rivets on each side at the rear of the receiver without any modification. However, don't know how reliable is the site that is selling this. I contacted their customer services to ask whether it is military surplus (these weren't really issued in the PLA), but they won't give me a straight answer.

I have one that is supposed to be genuine surplus coming in the near future, but it would most likely beat the T81 I ordered in the second shipment, so I probably won't have anything to mount it on when it comes :(
 
Here's my take/attempt at a Warsaw Pact siderail conversion for the T 81.

It's working well--need to use a "mid jaw" weld for the dot sight. With a 3 moa-ish red dot, I got 3 shot averages of 3.2" (Norinco); 4.5" (Saudi Norinco made Contract ammo); 4.4" (Sellier & Bellot Soft Pt); 4.8" (MFS FMJ)

o8XzgJC.jpg

0o0xcP6.jpg


Had the safety moved to the other side--had I known about Claven 2's 90 degree mod, I wouldve tried to keep it on the left and extended the lever by about another inch--hoping there's enough room to clear when the optic is on. I'm not sure it'd work, but there seems to be room there depending.....(see below)

LtHhDim.jpg


Here we are without the optics:

xdPZcOe.jpg


7xWuhXm.jpg


I was lucky that I had this old Kalashnikov USA (screw on from the inside) AK siderail mount.
The only other mount that I'm aware of that's readily (?) available is the NcStar AK Rail --which has three nut and bolts to secure it to the side of an AK. I haven't seen one in the flesh, so it may easily need a grind down.

OR--as Murray 3D showed in another thread, he used another type of siderail (most are meant to be used with rivets) with a spacer to give enough "meat" for screws to attach the rail on the inside of his receiver.
 
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