Blue Force Gear’s Vickers slings are famous for their ingenious design, and simplicity. What started as a standard AR sling has been slowly adopted into a variety of platforms. This includes options for the SAW, the M240 and of course the AK series of rifles. This particular model is the Special edition AK Sling Version 6. It features a leather pull tab instead of webbing. It comes in a unique Olive Green color with a Red Star stamp. The result is something that looks nearly identical to the classic, old school AK web sling. Except the sling isn’t just a cheap communist piece of crap, but a functional multi-use sling.
The AK Sling – What’s New?
This special edition sling at its core isn’t much different from a standard AK sling, it’s mostly looks. How does the Vickers AK sling vary from the standard Vickers Blue Force Gear sling? They are similar in many ways, but you can tell Blue Force Gear and Larry Vickers knew they had to adopt a few things for the AK platform. First and foremost is the addition of a sewn-in U-loop for attaching to the Eastern Bloc standard sling point. The rear of the stock lacks a U Loop and is designed to be used for a rear sling point or to wrap around the actual stock and tightened down. While this is an AK sling I didn’t attach it to an AK, instead, I went to a more modern platform that’s still attached to the AK heritage.
The Platform
I used my SIG 556R for this review. The SIG 556R is a SIG rifle designed to replace the aging armories full of AK’s with a modern and modular platform. The SIG 556R utilizes the same ergonomics as an AK, including the sling points. The AK Sling mounts perfectly with an additional BFG U-Loop.
In Use
Once mounted it functions like a dream. The design of the sling allows me to wear it tight to my body when patrolling, climbing ladders, crawling, etc. With this sling, you can let the weapon hang comfortably when utilizing both arms. This allows you to help medevac a wounded or teammate, or more realistically when carrying something like a range bag with one hand and an ammo can with the other.
When it comes time to start shooting you grip the pull tab and push it forward to loosen the sling and weapon for greater maneuverability. The rapid pull tab on the AK Sling makes it easy to transition between combat and movement. You can run the sling loose when engaging targets and then tighten it back down when it comes to applying restraints to a surrendering enemy.
The Vickers slings is a great choice for any platform, but the AK has its own needs. The Vickers AK Sling is an outstanding option and one of the very few modern sling options for Kalashnikov’s rifle.
