1. The AK-47 was made simple for uneducated peasants.
This is probably the most common myth surrounding the AK. It is true that the AK has a very simple design and is, especially compared to contemporary weapons, incredibly easy to field strip and clean. This however, is not due to the supposed requirement that illiterate peasants should be able to use it (as the USSR had pretty good education rates at the time of its creation), but simply because experience has taught that complex things tend to fail during war. Kalashnikov drew inspiration from common complaints about weapons during WWII, for example about the Tokarev SVT-40 which, despite having the advantage of being a semi-automatic, was wildly unpopular for being difficult to field-strip and clean.
Famous weapon designer John Moses Browning did the same thing when he modernized his 1911 design into the Browning HP, simplifying the notoriously complex take-down system and removing as many pins and small parts as possible. Modern weapons continue this trend, especially with military firearms making easy maintenance and fewer moving parts a priority.
2. The AK-47 is inaccurate.
When talking about accuracy, it's important to remember what this firearm was designed to do. During WWII, the Soviets noticed that most engagements took place under the range of 400m, with urban combat often including shots at nearly point blank. The requirement for a new weapon would be one that defined the assault rifle: a maximum effective range of approximately 400m, while being controllable when firing automatic at close range.
This rifle isn't designed to score flawless tight groups while shooting from a bench at a shooting competition, it's designed to hit a man-sized target at anywhere from 1m up to 400m when fired by a highly stressed soldier in a less-than-ideal shooting position. The point is, the shooter will very likely not be more accurate than the rifle, and the accuracy of the AK suffices for most combat scenarios.
That being said, there are different qualities of AKs, the best ones are able to shoot 1 MOA groups or less (2.7cm at 100m), with the average one getting 2-3 MOA groups. Not particularly bad when compared to other general issue assault rifles. (Yes yes, I am aware that your highly customized, free-floated bull-barrel AR will shoot a lot better).
3. An AK doesn't need to be cleaned.
Every firearm needs to be cleaned. That's only to be expected when gases containing powder residue and carbon pass through the rifle. Any rifle that's not properly maintained, will not function optimally, as a foul barrel will affect the bullet, a dirty extractor won't reliably pull out the casing or a dirty magazine might not feed the next round.
That's not to say the Kalashnikov design isn't robust, it absolutely deserves its reputation of being very reliable. A dirty AK will most likely work, if it doesn't, its design makes it pretty easy to clear the jam and continue shooting. However, a clean and well-maintained AK will work better and work longer, as do all other weapons.
4. All AK variants are assault rifles.
The definition of an assault rifle is a weapon that has a rifled barrel, a shoulder stock and a detachable magazine, fires an intermediate round with a range of at least 300m and has the possibility to choose between semi-auto and automatic fire. (selective fire)
The original AK-47 was developed as an assault rifle, as are all of its derivative models in service in various armies. Most countries don't permit civilians to own automatic firearms without special permits though (the notable exceptions being some third-world countries), so to satisfy the large appeal of the AK to the civilian market, lots of companies convert or produce AK-type rifles without the automatic fire selector option. While these AKs look mostly the same as their automatic counterparts, this effectively makes them a carbine instead of an assault rifle.
The Kalashnikov design has become very popular in the civilian market, with different types being designed to conform to specific gun laws in different countries. All of these are still very much AKs, but are not assault rifles.
5. The AK is a copy of the German Sturmgewehr 44.
To anyone who has ever seen one disassembled, it should be pretty obvious that they are not mechanically similar. They are however, very similar in concept. This shouldn't really be surprising, considering both were developed from the same lessons learnt in the WWII Eastern Front. The concept of assault rifles even predates the StG 44, but there's no denying that the Germans were the first to fine-tune it into a usable weapon.
They share most similarity through their munition, as the 7.62x39mm round the AK-47 uses, was developed during WWII as response to the appearance of the StG 44 with its intermediate 7.92x33mm round. Mechanically though, the AK-47 with its one-piece receiver and two-lug rotary bolt barely resembles the StG's two part receiver and canting breech block.
In short, the StG was more complex, used different operating mechanisms and was produced differently. -
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