Not AK clones, such as the KUSA KR-103 or PSA's myriad failures but rather AK variants of their own design by Meridian Defense Corp. Krebs Custom, Michigan Kinetics, Texas Weapon Systems, and others.

Such ideas have been around for as long as we have been able to say "Khyber Pass," but with the increase in popularity of AK-pattern rifles and the value of imports and historical kit builds going up substantially, companies catering to run-and-gun types, such as the people competing at Red Oktober, Kalashni-Con, and Kalash Bash, have been busy bringing purpose-built fighting rifles to market. This has dovetailed nicely with the acceptance of 5.56mm in the AK community.

The most obvious deviation from the traditional stamped or forged AK receiver form factors for some of these rifles is they are based on Sharps Bros MB-47 4140 billet receivers that can include either an integrated AR buffer tube receptacle or a Picatinny rail at the rear for attachment of various folding stock options by Sig, JMac, etc.

Both variations look a little off to the trained eye, kind of in the same way Galils do.

Allegedly, these billet receivers hold up, but I am happy for people who are not me to depend on them while running CoFs.

The combination of stamped receiver and forged front trunnion have not been abandoned, though, and are plentiful among these US-designed rifles. That being said, a few models use billet trunnions, which is unfortunate.

With regard to finished products, there is a tendency among the shops to gravitate toward the Ultimak-style Picatinny gas tubes, a trend I never understood. I have heard of 2 possible positive attributes of the Ultimak design, though, if not the actual product by Ultimak.

One is that the Picatinny rail on the 6061-T6 aluminum tube acts as a heat sink and thus dissipates heat better than a standard steel gas tube.

The other is the machined aluminum tube is likely straighter than a stamped steel tube and rounder on the inside.

Those might make sense, but I never have seen either claim tested.

Adjustable gas is another feature that has gained in popularity. Either KNS pistons are being included or, better, adjusters are being included right on the gas blocks so adjustment can be made without takedown. Makes sense since modifying a gas block for adjustable gas is not the greatest engineering challenge.

And of course, they all include some kind of rail setup at the handguard position--whether short, medium, or long—for accessories.

So far, most of these offerings are listing for way too much money, but the shops probably are trying to recover some light engineering costs.

TWS IK-103
https://texasweaponsystems.com/ik-103/
Looks more like a 104, but whatever.

Michigan Kinetics “MKU Boutique” rifles
https://michigankinetics.com/

Krebs Custom “Core”
https://krebscustom.com/products/produc ... core-rifle
The M23 and, presumably, M22 are in the pipe, as well.

Meridian has a whole line of custom rifles in 7.62x39, 5.56x45, and 5.45x39.
https://meridiandefensecorp.com/build-to-order/