VEPR Furniture

[John Moses Browning]

Being a person of rather large stature, I require a much larger and heavier ( preference ) firearm. Thus I have my eyes focused on a VEPR 20 inch or 16 inch Rifle/Carbine. However, although I find synthetic furniture to be comfortable and sturdy, I prefer the look of wood. Therein, would it be feasable to say, add a wooden RPK stock kit to it? I know the synthetic stock on the VEPR contributes heavily to the US parts quota, but lets say I added a few more American parts.. would it be physically feasable to attach an RPK stock kit to it? Thanks in advance.

[redmenace]

Ive asked this question a dozen times and never recieved much of an answer beyond "no".

It seems that the VEPR reciever is cut in such a way as to preclude the use of any available aftermarket or surplus stock. They are shipped to the states with wood thumbhole stocks that ROBARM MIGHT part with but you'd have to ask them.

[NHGunNut]

The only option I am aware of is having Marc Krebs modify your weapon to use traditional furniture. I have on of Marc's rifles and love it but his work is not inexpensive.

[UGACherokee]

Either Robarm is interested in selling complete rifles and/or they are skittish of selling parts that could make someone's Vepr out of compliance with the law, but when I called with that question awhile back, they gave a very short, "No."

It's surprising to me that someone hasn't put out a US-made wood stockset for the Vepr, as many woodsmith/gunsmiths as there are out there. :dunno:

[mack8384]

the Vepr reciever has a very sharp angle cut on the rear (similiar, but not identical to the slant cut MAK 90s) that prohibite the installation of standard AK butt stock furniture. Krebs and other smiths do offer a service that adds a traingular piece of metal welded into the slant to allow the Vepr to take a standard stock , but it is very expensive.
Also, the forend furniture of the Vepr. is retained by a screw that goes into the bottom of the handguard and threads into the GB flange (similiar to the Siagas). Since the Veprs lack a hand guard retainer, this also prohibites the installation of standard AK handguards. In order to install the handguard retainer the FSB and GB would have to be removed and the retainer (I believe an RPK retainer will fit over the Vepr barrel) put on and then the GB and FSB reinstalled. Krebs offers a service where they use a split retainer slipped over the barrel and then squeezed together and secured either by welding or screws (not sure which).
A standard gas tube from a AK can be used to replace the Vepr gas (Vepr gas tube does not have the flanges for the upper guard).
So, although Veprs are really great built weapons and I like mine very much (it is the most accurate AK varient I own) if you are looking for the standard AK looks then it can be very expensive to modify your Vepr to achieve this.

NHGunNut- I'd be interested in looking at your Krebs conversion if your not to far from me.

Mack M.

[Aay Kay Mike]

Here's a LINK (http://www.gunsnet.net/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=120341) to a thread where a forum member modified a PK heavy machine gun stock to fit his VEPR. It seems that in the process to fit it, he had to make it a little bit shorter though. Nevertheless, it looks really nice.

AKM

[Original-SSR]

John Moses Browning, you wrote the following in another post:

"I am also a large statured person, but I am torn between a SA M-7 and a VEPR. I really, really desire the look of the original AK physique, but it's just too small for me. My original idea was to purchase a SA M-7 and install an IronWood stock on it, they appear to be larger."

I don't know if you are aware that both the standard SA-M7 and SA-M7S have a longer buttstock designed for the American shooter. The only Arsenal Inc SA-M7 with the shorter buttstocks, are the SA-M7 Carbines (which also have no muzzle brake).

I believe the extra length on a SA-M7 buttstock is about 1 1/4" to 1 1/2" inches longer than on a standard AK buttstock Not sure if you were aware of this, so just wanted to post this up, just in case