Production of the PM md. 63 began in 1963 and it continued in manufacture in varied forms until 1994. The series provided Romanian troops with a solid, if unspectacular, automatic weapon in the same way as the celebrated Kalashnikovs did for the Soviet Army. The PM md family offered roughly the same strong inherent qualities as the original - they were efficient weapons that proved easy to operate (and train others on) and could be mass produced within Romania by the thousands.
As with the AKM, this assault rifle was also reborn as a short-barreled carbine weapon utilizing a 20-round magazine. The barrel and gas cylinder were both appropriately shortened for the product which made for a more compact profile and this was further helped by the introduction of a side-folding metal stock. The weapon was designated as "Pistol Mitraliera Model 1980 (PM md. 80) or "AIMR". In 1990, the "Pistol Mitraliera Model 1990" (PM md. 90) appeared as a modernized product and its short-barreled carbine form became the "Pistol Mitraliera Model 90 cu Teava Scurta".
The PM md guns went on to see service beyond Romania's borders for they were taken on in number by the forces of Afghanistan, Georgia, Iraq, Iran, India, Lebanon, Libya Syria, and Saudi Arabia among others. By now, the Romanian Army adopted the smaller Soviet 5.45x39mm cartridge and made the "Pusca Automata Model 1986" (PA md. 86) of 1986 its standard assault rifle.
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