PSA “Spiker“: A Clone of the Chinese Type 56 AK

All the best firearms history channels streaming to all major devices: Palmetto State Armory (PSA) makes a really wide variety of different guns, but one that they came out with a little while back that appealed to me in particular is their “Spiker“. This is a reproduction of the Chinese Type 56 stamped AK with a permanently attached underfolding bayonet. These rifles were available as semiautos directly form China until the late 1980s, when import laws (and Presidential Executive Orders) changed to prohibit their importation. The prices on those original has risen dramatically since, and there has not been any significant source of parts kits or other reproductions until now, with PSA’s release. The Type 56 is a particularly significant model of AK in military history, as China provided them (both models with and without the fixed bayonets) to a wide array of nations and militant forces. They remain very common today in conflict zones around the world. They are