The AK. Some love it, some hate it. Either way, anyone being honest has to admit that the most ubiquitous rifle in history has its place. Like its more refined nemesis, the AR-15, there is no ‘standard’ AK configuration. But the AR platform, even with its numerous makers and configurations, all bear a familial association. AK’s, on the other hand, come from all over the world in an infinite variety of buttstock, forward handguard and rifle configurations. The BFG Customer Service team gets weekly, sometimes daily, calls and emails about AK sling options. So we are going to attempt to define the best sling options for the most prolific weapon system in the world.

Skip Straight to the Firearms Featured in this article by selecting one of the four icons below:

M92

AKM

AKS

Classic AK

First Starting Point: Two Point Weapon Sling

For this article, we are going to stick to the two-point sling configuration. It is the modern standard and, while single point slings have their place for very specialized uses, we aren’t going to recommend them for the longer and heavier AK family. If you are rocking a Krink or a pistol configuration and have your heart set on a Single Point then give us a call and our CS team will get you set up. When it comes to two-point slings for the AK there are only two options. The famous Vickers Combat Application Sling or the Standard AK Sling. This will give you two points of contact on the rifle at both the front and the rear allowing maximum control and stability whether carrying or firing the rifle.

As far as color or hardware type – that is all up to you. Our bestselling sling color is almost always Black. Second runner up is Coyote Brown. Coyote Brown most closely matches the common surplus web AK / SKS / Mosin slings you see online. If those colors aren’t what you are looking for, we have several other solid and camouflage colors available on our Custom Sling Configurator and website. 

You also have a choice when it comes to the sling Hardware. High-Strength Polymer or good old American metal. Metal hardware is stronger but it is also heavier and gets hot. On a dare, we were able to pull a pickup truck with a metal hardware Vickers Sling. The Standard Issue Vickers Slings feature the plastic hardware and is our #1 seller worldwide.

Sling Front Attachment

After color and hardware type, the real work begins. Deciding on the front attachment method can be tricky. On most AKs, there are two common front sling attachment methods – a ‘wire loop’ and an eyelet. Notice we said “most?” Determining which you have will determine what front hardware attachment piece (sold separately) you will need.

Most common is the classic ‘wire loop’ on the left-side front handguard retaining ring as found on the basic “AKM”. Whether the AK-47 or AK-74 platform or the newer KP-9 / PSA AK-V 9mm variants. For these elongated wire loops, you have two great options – the ULoop or the UWL. Both fit through the wire loop and secure the front portion of your Vickers Sling to the AK. Can’t decide? Let’s walk through a few questions to narrow down your selection.

“Did you choose a metal hardware Vickers Sling and want to keep with all metal hardware?” If yes – Universal Wire Loop in either 3.25” or 6.25”

“Do you want the sling to be easy to remove and fit more rifles?” If yes – the ULoop

“Do you want to want to be able to use a sling with Push Buttons on it?” If yes – the Molded UWL with Push Button Sockets is for you

A much less common front sling attachment point is the smaller, round eyelet commonly seen on “Krinkovs” and their worldwide variants such as the Yugo M92 and M85s with a combined front sight base / gas block. These eyelets are often too small to comfortably ‘pinch’ a UWL wire through so we recommend the ULoop. The sling wire with the ball end easily slides through and secures back to give you a quiet and secure attachment. If you really want an “all metal” sling, a MASH hook will fit most eyelets.

Sling Rear Attachment

Not confused enough? Then let’s talk rear attachment options. Here is where the AK variations get especially tricky. Between fixed stocks, underfolders and side folders (plus pistol variants) there seems to be an identity crisis in the AK family as to the back half of the rifle. Good news, almost all stocks can be slung with NO additional hardware at the rear of the sling but instead using what is already there to loop through or around.

The easiest set up will be if you have a ‘wire loop’ (fixed or swiveling) on your stock. Common ‘wire looped’ rear stocks include but are not limited to:

• AK-100 series plastic fixed stocks with a wire loop on the bottom left hand side of the stock
• AK-74 style wood stocks with the same bottom left hand loop
• AK-74 / Krinkov “triangle folder” has a loop close to the rear of the receiver on the folding stock
• East German / Polish Tantal “wire folder” have a loop close to the rear receiver like the Krinkov triangle folders
• Chinese type folding stocks similar to the Krinkov and Tantal stocks
• Fixed wood stocks with a sling loop towards the bottom rear
• “Underfolders” that have a loop on either side towards the receiver

Any type of Vickers Sling can thread through and attach directly to any of these above loops. For those wanting quick removal of the sling – you can add a Uloop onto the rear of the sling and then use that to attach to the wire loop of the AK.

For those stocks without a wire loop at the rear – no problem there either. The sling can be wrapped around the wrist of the stock and attached tightly as shown here in the instruction. This same technique will work with a Tapco plastic folder, an ACE folding stock, fixed AR buffer tube stock, or most other types of ‘loop less’ stocks. For even more versatility for tight spots, try the 6.25” UWL to girth hitch around the stock wrist or other available spot to add a sling loop.

Now that we have the basics down, let’s take a look at some examples. (All of the below rifles belong to BFG Team Members. We don’t just sell weapons accessories at BFG, we use them, modify them and design them as well.) Remember, almost all AKs are different and there is not a ‘one size fits all’ solution. Just because you have the same Make or Model as the options listed below doesn’t necessarily mean the same attachment options will work. That being said, if you don’t find your solution here, call or email the BFG Customer Service team and they will get you set up.