[GunRing] Premium AKS-74U Krinkov Keychain

 Description: 

In 1973, a design competition (codenamed "Modern"—Модерн) was started for the adoption of a fully automatic carbine.

Soviet planners drew from the unsolicited design AO-46 built in 1969 by Peter Andreevich Tkachev, which weighed only 1.9 kg. The TTT specifications required a weight no greater than 2.2 kg (4.9 lb), a length of 75 cm (29.5 in)/45 cm (17.7 in) with the stock unfolded/folded, and an effective firing range of 500 m (547 yd). The competition was joined by designs of Mikhail Kalashnikov (PP1), Igor Stechkin (TKB-0116), S. G. Simonov (AG-043), A. S. Konstantinov (AEK-958), and Yevgeny Dragunov (who called his model "MA"). Kalashnikov also presented an additional design (A1-75) which differed from PP1 by having a modified muzzle for flash and noise suppression.

The AKS-74U bridges the tactical deployment gap between a submachine gun and an assault rifle. It was intended for use mainly with special forces, airborne infantry, rear-echelon support units, helicopter and armored vehicle crews. It has been augmented and replaced by various submachine guns, and the less compact AK-105 carbine in Russian military service. It is commonly used by law enforcement; for example, each urban police foot patrol is issued at least one.

In the United States, the AKS-74U is sometimes called a "Krinkov". The origin of this term is uncertain. A hypothesis was circulating that the name came from the Mujahideen who supposedly had captured a high-ranking Soviet officer armed with an AKS-74U, and that they had named it after him. However, investigation by Patrick Sweeney could not confirm this hypothesis, for no Soviet officer with a resembling name was captured in Afghanistan. US journalist C. J. Chivers reported that the gun was nicknamed "the Osama" in jihadist circles, after Osama bin Laden was photographed next to an AKS-74U. Research by The Firearm Blog published in 2016 suggests that the name "Krinkov" is a Pashtun invention that came to the United States with accounts of the Mujahideen.

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Comes in a hard case gift box

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