As Otis Technology expanded to the international market, there was a need to expand its systems to cover former Warsaw Pact weapon systems, with the AK-47 series at the top of the list. There has never been a truly dedicated AK-47 cleaning kit. AK-47-style rifles come with a rod (which were often lost) and fixed-stock models had a compartment in the back of the stock which held a bore brush made of nylon, a T-handle for the rod (kit body), slotted tip, punch and sight tool.
Otis wanted to develop a better option at a reasonable cost. The customers who would buy these would be countries with a very low defense budget. The new family of kits would be called the Global Weapons Cleaning Systems. These are manufactured in 7.62x39 mm, 5.45x39 mm, 5.56 NATO and 7.62 NATO. The 5.56 NATO kits would work for any 5.56 NATO weapon that did not use the familiar M16 barrel extension. They could be used to clean 5.56 mm versions of the AK-47. The 7.62 NATO kits could be used to clean Dragunov or PKM machine guns.
The kit comes with a 30-inch Memory-Flex cable. This would allow it to clean everything from the short Krinkov to the longer RPK/RPD variations. The kit comes with two all-purpose brushes. The first is nylon for routine maintenance and the second is a bronze all-purpose brush. This brush is for cleaning the carbon off the piston, which does accumulate. The kit comes with a brass scraper which is used to scrape primer lacquer residue off of the breech face.
The most unique features are the Flex Adapter and the chamber brush. Nobody manufactures a proper chamber brush for the SKS/AK-47-series rifles. This seems odd, due to the lacquer on the steel cartridge cases and the heavy use of sealants on the primer and mouth of the cartridge case used in the production of 5.45x39 mm, 7.62x39 mm and 7.62x54 mm R ammunition. The mouth sealant can build up in the lead of the chamber. Otis developed actual chamber brushes for 5.45x39 mm and 7.62x39 mm, which are bi-metal. This is a combination of copper and stainless steel. In addition, the chamber brush extends into the lead of the chamber to scrape out any mouth sealant or lead/carbon, ensuring no bore obstruction from buildup of fouling.
But how do you get the chamber brush into the chamber? The barrel on an AK-47 sits below the ejection port. You would bend a rod or the brush, right? To solve this problem, Otis developed the Flex Adapter, which is a multi-braided cable attached to a male and a female adapter. There is a single short brass rod attached to a T-handle on one side and the chamber brush to the other. The chamber brush is inserted into the chamber, and the adapter is bent in a way so that the entire unit can be rotated.
The Global Weapon Cleaning System for 7.62x39 mm (FG-2474-762), 5.45x39 mm (FG-2474-545), 5.56 NATO (FG-2474-G-556) and 7.62 NATO (FG-2474-G-762) are available direct from Otis Technology with an MSRP of $34.99 and they are 100 percent made in the USA.
