canoeguy
US Veteran
I have enjoyed owning and shooting SKS rifles since the Great Surplus Rifle Days of the 1990's when unissued SKS's where under $100, a 1000 round case of ammo was $79. I had Chinese, Russian, even Albanian SKS, but wound up selling them as the prices rose to fund other gun buys.
About two years ago, 2014, as gun prices came back to normal after the 2012 panic and shortages, I bought a nice original Chinese SKS for $325 from a local pawn shop, I thought that was a fair price at the time. Lately, it seems SKS prices are on the move again, most gun shops around here (Southwest Virginia) seem to price them at $450 to $600, gun shows the same. More for Russian ones...
So I was excited to see another nice, original condition Chinese SKS the other day at the pawn shop for the same $325. Done deal!
This one shows by serial number to have been manufactured in 1974 at Chinese Rifle Factory "26", the other one I have was made at the same factory in 1967. All original and numbers matching:
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With it's 1967 brother:
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The slings and chest bandoliers that were once so common here in the USA, given away free with rifle purchase are not as easy to get. Gun shops and gun shows used to be full of them, slings for $2.00 were not uncommon. Ebay however, is full of vendors in China who have warehouses full of slings and bandoliers who love to sell them to us shooters in the good ole USA.
Anyway, it's almost hard to believe that I now feel excited when I see an SKS for $325, but that much money doesn't buy much in the way of guns any more. More to follow as we see how prices move after the election.....
About two years ago, 2014, as gun prices came back to normal after the 2012 panic and shortages, I bought a nice original Chinese SKS for $325 from a local pawn shop, I thought that was a fair price at the time. Lately, it seems SKS prices are on the move again, most gun shops around here (Southwest Virginia) seem to price them at $450 to $600, gun shows the same. More for Russian ones...
So I was excited to see another nice, original condition Chinese SKS the other day at the pawn shop for the same $325. Done deal!
This one shows by serial number to have been manufactured in 1974 at Chinese Rifle Factory "26", the other one I have was made at the same factory in 1967. All original and numbers matching:
[img[
[/img]
With it's 1967 brother:
The slings and chest bandoliers that were once so common here in the USA, given away free with rifle purchase are not as easy to get. Gun shops and gun shows used to be full of them, slings for $2.00 were not uncommon. Ebay however, is full of vendors in China who have warehouses full of slings and bandoliers who love to sell them to us shooters in the good ole USA.
Anyway, it's almost hard to believe that I now feel excited when I see an SKS for $325, but that much money doesn't buy much in the way of guns any more. More to follow as we see how prices move after the election.....
