First Look: PSA “Spiker” Rifle Type 56 Clone

Palmetto State Armory has finally launched the AK-47 “Spiker” Rifle, a clone of the iconic Chinese Type 56 Kalashnikov variant.

Palmetto State Armory catches a lot of flak online for teasing products well before they ever enter production. Hell, it’s been almost three years since the company first showed off its 5.45 “Krinkov” AK pistol and a release date is still not known. Regardless, PSA usually does eventually get around to making them, and the newest belated addition to their digital shelves is called the AK-47 “Spiker” Rifle.

Designed to aesthetically mimic the iconic Chinese Type 56 AK variant, the AK-47 “Spiker” Rifle certainly looks the part. Despite what some may tell you, commercial export Chinese AKs destined for the U.S. were some of the finest Kalashnikov samples to enter the country. Unlike the subpar AKs that the CCP supplied to Africa and the Middle East, the factories working under the Norinco and Polytech conglomerates understood that the American market demanded quality. While it’s a dubious proposition to suggest that PSA’s new “Spiker” Rifles will be equally well made, it appears that they’ve done an excellent job of imitating the appearance of a stamped-receiver Type 56. The major details that contribute to this include the blonde imitation “Chu wood” furniture patterned after the Chinese style, the hooded front sight, the smooth dust cover and of course the iconic folding “spiker” bayonet from which the rifle gets its name. The metal components have also been treated with a shade of Cerakote that mimics the bluing style of original Chinese guns.

While there’s no doubt the gun looks the part, it seems that PSA has made an effort to make the AK-47 “Spiker” Rifle a quality firearm as well. The company opted to use its cold hammer-forged, chrome-moly vanadium barrels for these builds, a step up from the nitrided options included with many of PSA’s more budget models. The “Spiker” Rifle’s stamped receiver is also the proper 1.5mm Chinese-spec as opposed to the standard Soviet-pattern 1mm thickness. This not only aids the durability but the authenticity as well. The front trunnion, bolt and carrier are all hammer-forged too.

A few other authentic details that bear mentioning are the ventilated gas tube, the placement of the forward sling swivel, the pattern of the front trunnion and the inclusion of a muzzle nut rather than a slant brake. It also lacks a side scope rail, something that PSA had previously incorrectly included on its soviet AKM parts kit builds.

Considering that Chinese-made AKs haven’t been available new in the U.S. since 1994, the AK-47 “Spiker” Rifle is an exciting addition to PSA’s lineup, and the attention to detail frankly surpassed what I would have expected. If it’s successful, it will hopefully prompt PSA to clone the Type 56-1 (underfolder) and Type 56-2 (side folder) as well.

The AK-47 “Spiker” Rifle has an MSRP of $1,099 and is now in production.

For more information on PSA, please visit palmettostatearmory.com

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