How reliable is the drum as far as jams and such? Generally the larger the mag, the operation suffers.
Have not had any issues, so far. The thing with a drum mag is to not wind up the spring until necessary - takes several turns. Unlike a 30-round banana mag, if you keep a drum mag wound tight, it will give you problems. Depends on the ammo too. Stay away from “lacquered” ammo. Under constant fire conditions, the lacquer melts, gums up the receiver, and jams the weapon. I use zinc-coated steel cartridges, they work great, and are much cheaper than brass. You can’t reload them, but who the heck wants to reload several thousand rounds of 7.62x39 anyway? It’s an AK, not a Remington or Winchester.