Frag Out! Magazine
Issue link: https://fragout.uberflip.com/i/693549
GUN PORN The layout of the new rifle was however truly Kalashnikovian – but contrary to some allegations, the Beryl is not a simple copy of an AK-74. Nevertheless, it looks the part, repeating all the pros and cons of the Soviet rifle's layout and ergonomics (or lack thereof). The resulting rifle was simple in design, easy to maintain, with as little parts as possible and robust enough to withstand the field life. These traits were unfortunate- ly more than compensated by the non-existent ergonomics – which is as much of a trademark of the Mikhail Kalashnikov rifle as is its legendary robustness. It is an embodiment of his famous quip that "the Western weapons are for parade, while ours are for war". Some changes were made to alleviate the problem, but they hardly constituted a revolution. Even though a thumb-lever fire-selector (three settings: single, burst, auto) was introduced, some bright spark separated it from the safety lever, so one still has to move the huge clanky sheet-metal lever on the right side of the receiver to squeeze a shot from the rifle. Not that the thumb lever was placed in a particularly easy reach, though.