The AK 56 assault rifle is a Chinese copy of the Kalashnikov AK-47. AK 56 is likely the most widely proliferated AK-47 type rifle in the world having shown up on battlefields in Asia, Africa, Eastern Europe,

South America, etc.

AK 56 variants Assault Rifle

• AK 56 – Basic variant introduced in 1956. Chinese copy of AK-47 with fixed wooden stock and permanently attached spike bayonet. Beginning in the mid 1960’s, the guns were manufactured with stamped receivers, mimicking the improved URSS AKM, while the permanently attached bayonet became optional.
• AK 56-I – Copy of the AKS-47, with an under-folding steel shoulder stock & the bayonet removed. Like the original Type 56, milled receivers were replaced by stamped receivers in the mid-1960s, which made the Type 56-1 an equivalent to the Russian AKMS.
• AK 56-II – Improved variant introduced in 1980, with a side-folding stock. For export only.
• AK 56C (QBZ56C) – Shortened barrel version introduced in 1991 for domestic & export market. The QBZ56C began development in 1988, shortly after it was discovered that Type 81 assault rifle was too difficult to shorten.  The barrel length has been reduced to 280mm & the overall length of the rifle has been reduced to 557mm long with the stock folded and 764mm long with the stock extended. The QBZ56C weighs only 2.85kg & has an effective range of up to 300m.