They've been real plentiful on the milsurp market, and the Chinese have flooded our shores with them. They are not really rifles, not really carbines, and in spite of the fact that they fire an "assault rifle" cartridge, they are not assault rifles - no hi-cap mag, and no full-auto capability. The full metal jacket military rounds are no good for hunting, and they aren't all that accurate for target shooting. The chicoms aren't really collectible, although the Russian imports might have some claim in that direction. I have one, almost against my better judgment. This one was made at the Tula arsenal in the Soviet Union in 1951.



If you have one or more of these critters, to what use do you put it? Plinking? Home defense? Collecting? What's the charm of this interim Cold War relic?

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- Cogito, ergo armatus sum -

I bought one maybe a dozen years back for $80 with the remainder of a can of Chinese fmj ammo. I ran several ten rd strippers through it and sold it. Not very accurate, basically a fmj .30-30 so not very flat shooting, horrible sights to boot.

Same thing with the guys who simply love the Mosin Nagants!?!?! I don't think one could come up with an uglier rifle if you tried.

Surely there is historical signifigance to either platform. I think the main concern with many shooters is buying CHEAP and shooting CHEAP.

That said...I really like AK's and have several.

FN in MT

While I prefer the AK, I enjoy the SKS as well. All you say is true, but I still like them. If you can't stand that Tula anymore, I just happen to know of a place in Flagstaff that would give it a loving home....... : )

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In God We Trust

I bought mine for fun...range use. I've owned 7-8 but am down to one ( a Yugo) now and actually, would sell it if I got the chance...my tastes have changed.

Believe it or not, these rifles are used quite often to hunt deer. Hunting ammo is manufactured by Remington (probably several others) and if the hunter is willing to limit his/her shots to 100 yards or less, I've found all my SKSs to be quite effective at printing 5-6" groups at 100 yards...not a pretty cloverleaf, but certainly effective for Whitetail hunting.

In fact, I am quite happy that these inexpensive (or at least used to be inexpensive) guns have been available. Many hunters can not afford a Remington, Browning or Winchester. These SKSs have put plenty of food on the table for a number of hunters!!

I always snicker when I see a scope mounted on them...they are really 100 yard guns...but some hunters have to have a scope. Maybe a few manage to get a scope mounted securely to the gun.

Another useful purpose would be home defense. Ten rounds and a couple stripper clips in your pocket make these rifles more than capable of defending one's castle.

They are not generally fancy or suited for every purpose (no rifle fits every purpose), but I believe they have a place...charm? Well, that's in the eye of the beholder/shooter!



Bob

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"Onward thru the Fog"

I have a Russian "Royal Guard" model that looks almost identical to yours, Paladin, except that the wood on the handguard more closely matches that of the stock on mine. Mine shoots much more accurately than even my Steyr AK, which is an unusually accurate AK, and the SKS has a great trigger. Looking at the inside of my SKS receiver, the degree of fit and polish looks more like a Colt Python than a sovcom product. However, I rarely shoot my SKS, and it mostly languishes in my safe. I've thought of selling it, and may yet, but not because it isn't a good gun.

I have a couple of in-laws who use their SKSs on feral hogs, and are getting good kills, even with military ammo. Mine has never shot anything that bleeds.

I was at the range a couple of weeks ago and met a young man who had several rifles, including an SKS. He offered to let me shoot it and I kind of found it fun; almost no recoil. low muzzle report, ugly as sin and I understand, cheap to shoot. Good for what? I don't know, maybe carry behind the seat of the truck for targets of oportunity?

Julian

I picked up a Yugo some years back when $150 would buy a minty one and ammo was still cheap; sort of a Volksgun. Not a first choice as a defensive piece but reliable (good start, that) and way better than a handgun or scattergun if any distances are involved. Also better than the M1A back home in the safe.

After failing to improve the fairly awful trigger, I sent the trigger group off to a guy named Kivarii who helped it greatly--made the rifle much easier to shoot well. I am inclined to put on a set of M16-like 'Tech-Sights' but at 100 yards it's probably good enough as it sits.

I like it as a utility rifle. I don't want ten but I'm glad I got one. My son has another nice Yugo with a decent trigger to begin with for the same role. It's a bit of a bother to clean with the filthy Wolf ammo, but I guess there's no free lunch.

The SKS was the gun that killed the 94 Winchester.

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Lost it all in a boat accident

My dad tricked out a couple Chinese versions with everything he could find in the Cheaper Than Dirt Catalog. One is now mine and my son has the other. I'm going to use it for plinking and general fun. I have ammo. Do you have to use a stripper clip or can you just shove the cartridges in there one at a time?

Bob, I'm sure that is true of the Chinese ones and other run-of-the mill SKSs, but mine will stay under 2" at 100 yards with any ammo I've tried, and will not go much over 1.5" with some Russian hollowpoint ammo I bought about 17-18 years ago. I'll never scope mine, but it has the accuracy to justify glass.

Great looking pic! Can you tell me how you took the shot? I'm guessing it's on the floor and you're shooting above... with flash or floor photo flood lights?

I'm having a problem shooting long guns... I've been balancing on a ladder and shooting down, with a flash.

Thanks!

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Linda
SWCA #1965, SWHF #245

They make good blasters. Send a bunch of rounds downrange at largish, sometimes reactive targets and have some fun.

Yeah I know, some people cry, 'waste of ammo', 'no real purpose', yada yada.

But sometimes a person needs to step out of the stuffy worlds of the collector or highly disciplined 'target shooter' and let loose with some not-so-serious recreational shooting.

That's the beauty of firearms, they have so many applications/uses based on an individuals desire.

Sir, as has been noted, the SKS fills the same niche as a .30-30 lever-action, only cheaper and uglier. Lots of people use them as beaters, truck guns, short-range deer rifles, that sort of thing. The SKS is also an alternative for the guy who can't get an AK for whatever reason, either financial or political.

I'd kinda like to have one, but my Garands would probably pick on it.

Hope this helps, and Semper Fi.

Ron H.

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Wishin' don't make it so.

i have the russian version sks....have had no problem finding 30 and 60 round hi cap.mags for it...mine was still sealed up and new,dated 1951 for ninety bucks....whats not to like?

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SWCA#2208
KK4EMO

I have a couple of Russian Tula Arsenal, Laminated Stock, SKSs that I bought from SOG for $119.00 each when they first started comming in Country.

I have mine for addational rifles since I have a couple of AKs and since I have a couple of boxes of 7.62X39mm ammo......

Too, I got shot with one once and it always makes me remember.

Rule 303

I would agree. When I bought my Russian Tula in the middle '90's they could be had for 70 bucks. Tons of them were sold at gunshows as the poor man's .30-30, and semi-auto to boot. Lots of young folks were buying and tricking them out for a whole lot cheaper than they could by Winchester or Marlin .30-30.

I've taken a couple of whitetails with mine, and both my sons have carried it on the deer stand. Despite some earlier comments to the contrary, hollow or soft point ammo for it is pretty plentiful these days. I've not shot mine in years, but with the flooding of the market with cheap SKS's it's a inexpensive way to get into deer hunting.

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- Change it back -

And there is hardly any recoil. Years ago, my sister from NYC was visiting, and I took her to the club to introduce her to .22 revolvers. A friend happened to be there with a $100 SKS, and he invited her to try it out. She found it user-friendly and accurate (to her standards), and posted the target at work when she returned home.

Hard to bad-mouth a .30-30 class rifle that a female beginner can shoot well.

Never had one, never wanted one, but they always seemed like a pretty decent old beater truck gun to me.

38-44HD45,
Wow, sounds like you have a keeper. I'd not sell that SKS...wanna trade for a sweet looking Yugo????

I've not really grouped this one as it was one of the last one's I purchased...it may shoot better than some of my others...but who knows until I take it to the range.

Model520fan,
I guarantee she'd have felt my Model 94 or 336 if she'd have shot either one of those. Lever-carbines and 30-30 factory ammo...a sure fire way to "experience" recoil!!...almost as bad as my 1903-A3!!

Bob

Bob

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"Onward thru the Fog"

Here's to never forgetting to bring your bayonet along. :-)

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NRA Life Member

I bought a new Norinco several years ago for $59, and enough ammo to give you a hernia for ten cents a round. Mine prints very good groups at 100 yards. For the price, I figured it could do double duty as a tomato stake, sledge hammer, or boat paddle if I so desired. It's no beautiful work of art, but I enjoy shooting it from time to time. That's good enough for me.

Linda -

No high tech lighting here. The gun was placed on a large sheet of white countertop fiber-based plastic, laid out on the ground, that I bought specifically for photographing rifles. I shot it outdoors on a cloudy day in the shade to get the diffused light with soft shadows. The rifle was propped up on its back side with a glob of modeling clay to hold it, slightly angled towards the camera, in place. I shot it at aperture priority f/8 to get good depth of focus, at 1/20th of a second, ISO 100. My camera, a Pentax K200D with 10.2 megapixel capacity, has a shake reduction feature that's worth +2 stops, so I was able to stand over it and take the shot hand-held. I used spot metering on the dark metal to be sure there was enough exposure. The lens was a Pentax 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6, set at around 26mm. The picture was then cropped and reduced in size via CompuPic software to post here. I use a smaller sheet of the same countertop material and the same technique for handguns. Seems to work pretty well at very low cost and little setup bother.

Hope this helps.

John

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- Cogito, ergo armatus sum -

Shot a few and enjoyed it,,never owned one personally though.
If people find them affordable and gets them into shooting and hunting,, that's a good thing for the sports over all I think.

I could think of worse things to be armed with in a bad situation. They seem to do what they were intended to do.

Certain makes/models seem to be getting pretty fair money lately too.

You can load the magazine with single cartridges, one at a time, if you lack the stripper clip.

John

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- Cogito, ergo armatus sum -

I have a Norinco (pic included) that will shoot inside 3" at 100 yards if I do my part. Better with some ammo. Worse with others.

I REALLY like shooting SKS'. I started, like many, when the rifle and 1k rounds of ammo cost $100 each. As you can see, mine is not in the original stock and I ground off the bayonet lug in order to add a high cap mag (Clinton years).

I also had two Yugo's but, when the Obamanation drove the prices up to over three times what I paid for them, I let them go to finance some handgun purchases.

I have two friends that started their youngsters deer hunting with SKS'. Mine is just for fun and would serve nicely if I ever need a 20 round SD rifle.

I really like your Tula, Paladin. Nice pic.

Just wanted to add, no FTF's, EVER.

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" I don't recall, senator."

Cheap, nicely balanced carbine, built like a tank and shooting an effective battle round. What's to ask for?

I laughed at them when a friend told me about it until I shot it....

I had three gave one to a friend. I recomended everyone have at least one and a tuna can of ammo back when they could be had cheapo and ammo was cheap n plentful. Even if you are not a end of the world type it is cheap insurence to many situations.

Perfect- not by any means but better than a sharp stick- oh but many even had "sharp sticks" mounted on em

Easier to shoot and hit with at a distance than a pistol- light recoil etc. I still say they make a great farm or cabin gun.

IIRC the SKS was designed to be the Soviet VolksRifle. They were designed to be shot and maintained by uneducated and illiterate "peasants" of the USSR. Thus they work flawlessly with little or no maintenance and don't require a large carbon footprint manual of arms. ;-)

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NRA Life Member

The SKS, the gun that won the east....

I bought one and so did a friend around 1993. Brand new, unfired, Chinese, chrome lined barrel, $129. We bought them because there was no cheaper centerfire rifle ammo available than 7.62x39 ammo. We bought 1000 rounds each at 9 cents a round. That was $90 for 1000 rounds!

After we shot it all up, shooting bowling pins and pumpkins and what have you, we sold the guns. That was a few years later and we actually sold them for more than we paid.

They were neat and fun. That's all.

You could easily say the same thing about the U.S. M1 Carbine except it was/is made in the U.S. and fires a much less powerful cartridge, but they are incredibly popular - and expensive.

For me a SKS would be a 'collectable', I don't hunt. However since the ballistics of the 7.62X39 are very similar to a 30/30 which around here is still a fairly popular deer rifle, I don't see why a SKS wouldn't work OK with SP's.

A good man with an SKS can whip some serious butt. I'm a former grunt and wouldn't feel poorly armed taking one into battle. They're easy and fun to shoot, affordable and chambered in an adequate caliber.

A friend of mine brought one back from Vietnam. The charlie that he took it off of (KIA ) had done some serious damage to his platoon, including killing the G.I. walking right in front of him. Like I said, put one in the hands of a good warrior............

I like mine for the qualities it posseses as a weapon as well as it's historical significance.

As far as the SKS killing the Winchester 94, I'd never heard that, but it makes sense to me. I do think, however, that the clowns at Winchester deserve some of the credit.

Like pretty much everybody else, I bought one of the eighty buck ones way back when. I shot it a few times, stuck it away, and finally gave it to my wife's cousin a couple of years ago. I don't think I'll get another - its just too heavy for what it does.

Oddly enough, my kids gave me a $99 Big-5 Mosin Nagant M44 for father's day last year, and I love that ugly little thing.

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Rule of law, not a man.

I like 'em just fine.





Best SKS board around:
Survivor's SKS Boards - Index

I'd like to have one in a twenty rnd configuration. Sounds like it's right down my alley.

Po' man's AK/AR/zombie blaster.

I'm gonna have to keep my eyes on the prices while we got this here recession goin' on...

I spy a Rashid Carbine in that bunch of SKS's.

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" I don't recall, senator."

I've got one a buddy gave me about 12 years ago. It's a Chinese (Norinco?) with an orange colored stock. I shot it without a problem for 5 years before I figured out how to take the gas tube off. It was full of cosmoline!! I cleaned off the gas piston and the tube and put it back together. I can't tell any difference.

It's fun as a plinker or as a truck gun, but it is slightly over one minute of beer can at 100 yds.

About the same as a mini-14 as far as accuracy. Price 1/2 or less than the mini.

Paladin:

There's so many statements in your thread starter that I just cannot agree with, that I wonder if you made them just to stir up a variety or responses. My comments are in bold font:

They've been real plentiful on the milsurp market, and the Chinese have flooded our shores with them. True. But many tens of thousands more came from Russia, Yugoslavia, Romania, and Albania. Still more were made in East Germany and North Korea, but those variants are unobtanium in the US. Pretty ubiquitous weapon, having such widespread acceptance in so many ComBloc countries, no?


They are not really rifles, not really carbines . . . Uh, by my tape measure the SKS is a carbine.


. . . and in spite of the fact that they fire an "assault rifle" cartridge, they are not assault rifles . . . Agreed, but the term "assault rifle" applies to the weapon, not the cartridge. My Savage bolt action is aslo chambered for an assault rifle cartridge, the 308/7.62 NATO used in the G3, FAL, CETME, and M14. That doesn't make the Savage an assault rifle, because it, and the SKS, do not have assault rifle features.


- no hi-cap mag . . . The Chinese made and issued a 20 rd fixed mag for the SKS. That's hi-cap in a number of states.


and no full-auto capability . . . True, but an assault rifle need not be select fire to be an assault rifle.


The full metal jacket military rounds are no good for hunting True, but the 7.62x39 is available in SP and HP loadings from a number of ammo manufacturers, not to mention all manner of boolits for reloading. As others have mentioned, there were a spate of articles in the popular gun press in the late 80s and throughout the 90s about the SKS being the "poor man's semi-auto deer rifle," and in those states that allow hunting with a semi-auto rifle, the SKS has acquitted itself well as a mid-sized game getter.


and they aren't all that accurate for target shooting . . . Whoa, Hoss!! That's just plain wrong. I have a few SKS that are sub 2.0 MOA. In my experience with the SKS and the AK clones, the SKS generally hands-down beats the AK clones in the accuracy department, and I've been shooting the SKS and AK since I maintained captured examples as a Marine armorer (2111) from the early 70s through the mid-80s. The captured weapons were used for familiarization training. Accuracy was a big function of individual weapon condition, but in general the SKSs were more accurate than the AKs. That holds true for the SKSs and AK clones in my personal collection.


The chicoms aren't really collectible, although the Russian imports might have some claim in that direction . . . Tell that to collectors who are looking for SKSs made by particular Chinese arsenals (there seem to be 15 or 20 that made the SKS, and certain models of Chinese SKS, such as the early Chinese SKS that was more Russian than Chinese. Or the late model Chinese SKS with the plastic upper HG. Or the so-called shorter "Paratrooper" model which was purely for the US market, or the M and D models that accept hi-cap AK mags . . . Then there's the low-production Albanian SKS, the low-production Yugo 59 SKS without the grenade spigot that predated the 59/66 that comes with the grenade spigot, and the Russian SKSs made at Izhevsk, which are vastly outnumbered by those made at Tula . . . I could go on.


I have one, almost against my better judgment. This one was made at the Tula arsenal in the Soviet Union in 1951. That's a great example, and your photo is outstanding. Congratulations!


What's the charm of this interim Cold War relic? I collect and plink, but to me the interest is in the historical significance of the SKS. The SKS is the Soviet answer to the German Mp 44, and is the short-term "bridge weapon" that took the Red Army from the Mosin-Nagant to the AK series of weapons.

JMO, but keep in mind that my perception is my reality. YMMV.

Noah

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Nicht mehr als 30 Zeichen

One thing they are good for is to arm the populace. I think the local NAPA sold more than five thousand of them when they were $79.95 to $119.95. If half of those stayed in my county, with a population of close to 9000, that's roughly one for every three to four people. I have two, and practically everyone I know has at least one. I remember High School kids telling me their granddads were buying several for them. The local shop usually has several pallets of 7.62x39. I bought my Yugo last October for $275 with 600-plus rounds of ammo, much of it in stripper clips. What I'm saying is that we could field a battalion of riflemen, complete with spares and probably enough ammo for sighting in and a couple hundred rounds per rifle. These old boys around here have been buying ammo by the case for years. I think I have more than three thousand rounds, and I would bet there are people here who have ten thousand rounds or more.

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Georgia On My Mind

Yeah... I included it in my SKS pics since it's sort of a hybrid.
From the top, those are a Yugo, Romy, Rashid, Russian, Albanian, Norinco.

I suppose I could throw in the Czech VZ-52 as well - it looks just like an SKS but is totally different internally, and is the only rifle ever chambered in 7.62x45.

The SKS is what it is. It is a very good utility rifle, inexpensive, plentiful and easy to use. It's not the best at anything, but will do a lot of things at least OK.

They are a good bang for the buck. I have two now, one Chinese and one Yugo. Since I've got plenty of other firearms, probably won't buy any more, but would sure urge anyone that doesn't have a couple to go out and at least find one.

Like a previous poster stated, they would be a great gun just to arm the populous.

I have a number of firearms, that if we get to a SHTF situation...I'll give them away to friends and neighbors.

You can't have too many guns...and a stock of SKSs will never go wrong.

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G.P. Charlie

I've got a bunch of cheap ammo for my AK, and when offered a Chinese SKS for a good price a few weeks ago, I picked one up. I prefer the AK with the high cap mags for aound the house, but the SKS is fun to shoot also. Did I mention cheap? I see the gang bangers buying and accessorizing this things a lot at the gun shows. I still haven't figured out why they would put a high cap mag on one. It seems like for the extra$ they could just get an AK ready to go. I guess one of the appeals of this gun is if you have to throw it down and run you haven't lost as much as you would have with an AR. There was a guy a couple of years ago at one of the Jackson,Ms. shows that had pallets of the Yugo's still in cosmoline for $89.95. He was selling them as fast as he could do NICS checks.

I've never really understood the aftermarket mags either. Much faster to load with stripper clips.

Weren't there two methods for barrel attachment with these? Some with barrels screwed into the recieve and others with barrels pinned. I seem to remember something about the method of barrel attachment effecting the price.

Nice write-up there Noah.

And the #1 reason for, "what good are they"?


Ammo available at Waly-World....

Having been down range on the receiving end of those rice propelled people it’s an attention getter. The SKS was referred to as a “Lifers Dream” for war trophy purposes. Lets say I don’t get warm and fuzzy thinking about the SKS.

I've owned 3 but sold my Yugo '59 so I have a early 1950 Tula Russian in perfect condition and an Albanian, a rare bird. I understand only about 15,000 Albanians were ever made. It's really ugly but accurate and functions perfectly. I found both of mine pretty accurate, handy and fun rifles to shoot. The break down quickly and easily for cleaning and some have chrome bores like AKs. They were a communist people's rifle for some of the poorer countries.

The Russian Tula and the Albanian SKS

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I bought a Russian SKS about 10 years ago, it was ok, but I think I had more fun with my M1 Carbine. Granted I know what the rate of fire is like in a semi auto, but I would rather have a lever in a pistol caliber like .44 Mag or .45 Colt. Here in NY you can't hunt with an SKS that has the 10 round mag or any other semi auto centerfire over 7 rounds I believe.

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Vaya con Dios

I have a Norinco that I bought back when I could get one for $85 at CTD. I think it's a nice gun to introduce young shooters to a semi-auto rifle. It's a great truck or trunk gun. It's reliable and simple, that's a good thing. I don't think it killed the 94. If 94s were still the price of an SKS they would still be selling. My main complaint is that the handguard on mine has so much varnish on it that it must have been dipped in the bucket of it. What good is it? Well, it goes bang, every time you pull the trigger. That's pretty good for starters.

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Wayne
Torn & Frayed