The Kalashnikov Museum Virtual Tour: Part 5 - The AK-47 is born

Pic.5-7 Pic.5-8 The order of USSR Ministry for Defense to establish design bureau centered on technological aspects of AK-47 mass production. April 30th 1949. Pic.5-9 Top secret: Plan of AK-47 mass production arrangements (Nov. 1948) In early 1948 the young designer arrived to Izhevsk (the isolated and secret center of the Soviet weapons industry) and brought to Motozavod factory complete AK-47 documentation. By Summer of 1948 the pilot batch of AK-47 is manufactured and by the end of 1948 AK-47 successfully went through the field trials. In 1949 the assault rifle, designated "Kalashnikov 7.62mm assault rifle, make 1947 (AK)" was adopted by the Soviet Army and Kalashnikov (turning merely 30) has been honored with the Stalin Prize for Industrial Work. For your information: USSR just has began to produce first "Pobeda" (Victory) cars - exorbitantly priced and nearly impossible to get in possession by an average citizen. Stalin Prize lump sum was sufficient to buy 10 (ten) Pobedas - and Kalashnikov got one for himself. Much of what was left of the sum he distributed among his relatives (as Kalashnikov nephew Victor Ovchinnikov recalls). Mikhail Kalashnikov once wrote: "There were hardly 3 Pobedas in Izhevsk by that time, and a very few cars of other makes. One could park his Pobeda anyplace - just right in a middle of a street if you wish to, traffic was inexistent".   Pic.5-10 Kalashnikov's Stalin Prize certificate Pic.5-11 Close-up of the showcase: Kalashnikov with his colleagues at a party Pic.5-12 Close-up of the showcase: artifacts of the epoch

Pic.5-13 Down here you can see the cover of "Sovetski Voin" (The Soviet Soldier) magazine featuring Mikhail Kalashnikov - it was the very first - and the very last for following 15 years in open mass media - photo of the designer published. The reason is, the assault rifle and the designer himself had been classified as top secret since 1949. First ever appearance of AK-47 in movie theaters (in documentaries usually demonstrated to audience prior to main movie) happened only in 1955. More to this - personnel at shooting-grounds was instructed to gather and stock to warehouse exactly as many spent AK-47 cartridge cases as many rounds were given to each soldier before shooting. However, adoption of AK-47 by Soviet Army did not stop development activities at Kalashnikov's group of designers (which later developed into Kalashnikov Design Bureau). Pic.5-15 Pic.5-16 Close-up: Experimental AK with balanced automatics Pic.5-17 Kalashnikov's permit Pic.5-18 This wooden box contains gauge set meant to measure gun parts produced in shops. Take a look on this experimental gun with balanced automatics - it was designed to decrease butt kickback and increase accuracy of hits. It never made its way into the Army though.

Pic.5-19 Kalashnikov's own desk table and drawing board Here you can see reconstruction of Mikhail Kalashnikov working place - featured are his own desk table and drawing board of him, same what were captured on this old photo. Having finished merely 9 grades of formal education, he developed drawing skills only by late 50s - early 60s. Prior to this, he'd been helped out by engineers and technologist of the factories he happened to work at (in particular, by his wife Ekaterina). Also, featured here is metalworker's workbench - frankly speaking, it doesn't differ dramatically from what's left in our factories currently. Pic.5-20 Young Kalashnikov by his Kuhlmann (drawing board) Pic.5-21 Close-up of the metalworker's workbench Pic.5-22 Close-up of the metalworker's workbench

Pic.5-23 In 1959 the Soviet Army adopted AKM - a revised, lower-cost version of the AK-47, and Kalashnikov was honored with a "Hero of Socialist Labor" award.                         Pic.5-24 Top secret document: Plan of AKM development arrangements. February 5th 1952. Stamp reads: "draft document destroyed. Feb. 18th 1952". Kalashnikov mentioned as responsible for 1)development of a master drawing 2)submitting the drawings for approval of Main Artillery Administration and 4)supervising of assembly blueprints Pic.5-25 Top secret: Page 2 of the document signed by Kalashnikov (signature clearly visible down the page). Kalashnikov mentioned at point 6 through 9 as a person "responsible for: 6. making of specimen for in-factory testing, 7. in-factory testing and 8. blueprints correction upon obtaining testing results". Pic.5-26 original AKM make, 1959 Pic.5-27 Kalashnikov with two virtuoso tool-makers of his design bureau: P.N.Bukharin (left) and E.V.Bogdanov (right). Both have been awarded with The Order of Lenin. Pic.5-28 Kalashnikov tells soldiers about AKM Pic.5-29 Certificate of "Hero of Socialist Labor" award

Pic.5-30 This showcase features AKM versions: upper model - with folding butt-stock, next one - with wooden stock and different kind of bayonet, and the gun with the silencer. Down here is a limited edition version: the butt, hand grip, fore grip, hand-guard and magazine are made from glass filled polyamide material of green color. This modification was produced on special order - the best USSR frontier guard soldiers were awarded with individual AKMs of green color and individually labeled. Mikhail Kalashnikov would often visit frontier posts and personally hand this special AK as an award to the best guard. The soldier wouldn't take it home though then his draft was over - the gun would be kept at the frontier post's own museum. The label on this modification of AKM reads: "To the Winner of Socialist Labor Contest". Pic.5-31 Close-up of colored AKM and bayonets Pic.5-32 Another close-up of colored AKM Pic.5-33 Kalashnikov shakes hands with the best frontier guard (marine).