SKS -- worth it?

I can't speak to the trigger issue you mentioned, but the are replacement kits available if you want to get rid of the stock firing pin. I have handled a bunch of these rifles because they fit into the kind of shooting I do. But I can't get passed ergonomics of the rifle.

https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=sks%20firing%20pin%20replacement

For number 1, keep in mind that the M1, m14, and m16, to my knowledge, all use floating firing pins too. It's pretty typical of military rifles.

I bought one years ago when you could buy a rifle and 1000 rounds of ammo for $200. The rifles were $69. When they started selling for $120 I sold mine and wouldn't go back.

The type of mid 1950's SKS. What kind of money would you need to pay to get one? Much less than one of the many AK's right. AK's running around $450 to $500????

the floating firing pin and the possibility of slam fires if the bolt is not kept squeaky clean. This is especially concerning with all the grease, etc. that so many of these military rifles seem to be packed with.

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You are not planning on, as a matter of course, detail-stripping/cleaning/inspecting/"oiling"/re-assembling your SKS before shooting it?

Never had a serious problem with any SKS I've come across, with the exception of a Yugoslavian model, that developed a gas leak, however thanks to the people here I was able to repair it, and it fires just fine. Naturally you have to get all the crud out of the action (cosmoline etc.) prior to shooting it, which was already mentioned.

ACP said:

1) the floating firing pin and the possibility of slam fires if the bolt is not kept squeaky clean. This is especially concerning with all the grease, etc. that so many of these military rifles seem to be packed with.

2) the trigger, both in terms of trigger pull weight, length of pull, and the internal geometry of the hammer and sear.


With those two concerns in mind, what say you?

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1. I say, keep it reasonably clean and you should have no more problems with it than with a Garand or an M1A. Mil spec primers/ammo would be a good idea. I"m having a bit of difficulty understanding how a dirty bolt would cause a slam fire. I believe a more likely cause of a slam fire would be a dirty chamber or improperly sized ammo.

2. The trigger is pretty bad but that doesn't keep me from liking the gun.

Some other issues you may not have thought of:

1. There is no adjustment for windage unless you get a front sight pusher. This isn't a hard or expensive problem to solve.

2. The finish of the stock and metal may be a bit rough; kind of like it was done with a logging chain but that doesn't hurt the functionality.

3. No real good way to mount a scope if you care about optics.

I bought and sold a tula 1954 back in the summer. After cleaning all the cosmoline out of the rifle and stock it ran flawless with every ammo I fed it. As bad as I hate to, there is a video on YouTube by IV8888 where he does a trigger job on the SKS and it really solves the creep problem. They are great rifles for their intended purpose.

I believe wolf sells a spring kit that eliminates the concerns you have with the inertia driven firing pin.

I loved sks when they ranged between 100 and $250, I think 400-500 is high for what they are.

The Russian rifles generally have nicer wood.

I own 2 Chinese and 1 Yugo with no complaints.

I really, really have always wanted to like the SKS, I've owned a dozen of them. I cant stand the triggers (have had them worked on too), factory stocks are for gnomes, good stripper clips can be hard to find (detachable mags are goofy, except the M-D models).

This seems awfully silly to me... too much reading, not enough shooting.

Clean it and shoot it.

1) the floating firing pin and the possibility of slam fires if the bolt is not kept squeaky clean.This is especially concerning with all the grease, etc. that so many of these military rifles seem to be packed with.

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Any time you acquire any used firearm, thorough cleaning, inspection, and a safety/function check are all essential tasks that must be performed before any attempt is made to load or fire the weapon.

If you don't have the knowledge, tools and abilities necessary to perform these tasks, take the weapon to a gunsmith and have it done. You'll still need to learn enough about the weapon to keep it clean and perform basic safety and function tests, but once the preservative grease has been removed, it's no longer an issue.

As long as you keep the bolt reasonably clean (no squeaks needed ) so that the firing pin moves easily in it's channel, avoid ammunition with soft primers (Federal comes to mind) and avoid over lubrication and the use of lubricants that tend to gum up like WD40, you'll be fine.

2) the trigger, both in terms of trigger pull weight, length of pull, and the internal geometry of the hammer and sear.

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The internal geometry is what it is, unless you can design and build one with "geometry" that's more aesthetically appealing to you, you're pretty much stuck with it. Personally, I view that as a non issue as long as the trigger can be made to perform acceptably.

I think that Simonov's trigger design is pretty good, although it's overly complex by Soviet standards. This complexity made it harder to maintain good quality control under mass production, which caused problems with the triggers when they began to be produced in huge numbers. As a result of this, SKS triggers tend to be pretty gritty and creepy, with long travel and a heavy pull.

I've done trigger work on quite a few weapons, but I sent my SKS triggers to Bill Springfield www.triggerwork.net/sksrifles.html since they're fairly "unique" and IMHO not worth the time, trouble and effort required to learn to do them correctly.
Mr. Springfield did an EXCELLENT job and the triggers on both my rifles now break cleanly at about four pounds with very little creep.

I have no personal experience with the trigger work done by Kivaari www.kivaari.com/SKS Target Match.htm, but I've heard nothing but good things about it.

As to whether an SKS is "worth it", only you can answer that question.

I've got two 59/66 models that I paid $89 apiece for. After cleaning them up, having trigger jobs done and doing home bedding jobs on the stocks with epoxy, both my rifles shoot groups that are far better than I had ever hoped for.

They're also as reliable as crowbars (and only slightly less aesthetically pleasing).

An added bonus is that they shoot cast bullets very well, including suppressed subsonic loads.

I have two Chicom models that have Kivaari trigger jobs. The triggers are good for a military weapon, but not match grade. I believe Kivaari uses factory spring weights to ensure reliable ignition with all ammo.

I have also had good luck, accuracy-wise, with making sure that the action fits tight to the stock. The trigger group should take a lot of pressure to seat. I have used cardboard shims to good effect at the front of the stock where it mates with the action. The trigger group should be hard to seat and the recoil lug should be tight against it's seat as well.

A lot of SKS slamfires are caused by cosmoline stuck in the action. If the rifle is clean, it should be a non-issue. And yes the trigger is crappy, but for surplus Communist arms, that's par for the course. It you want one, don't let those two things stop you from buying it.

If you do get an SKS, I'd suggest that you buy a cheap recoil pad to go along with it. The kick on an SKS is nearly non-existant, but you'll probably need it to extend the length of pull. The stock is probably an inch shorter than your average rifle today, and it's kind of awkward to shoot.

I've got three SKS rifles. Two are Chinese and one is a Yugoslavian. Buy them while you can. I bought mine from Southern Ohio Gun in July and they are out of stock, at least with the Yugos. The prices have only gone up and there are less and less being sold. They're reliable, no-nonsense rifles. Not great ergonomics, but very functional. Buy one or two or three and if you find that you don't like them, you can probably sell them five years from you for a good deal more than what you will pay today.

I had an SKS back in the 90s. Cheap to own, cheap to shoot, and that is where the fun was. Worth it now? IMHO probably not considering the current price point and other offerings. A bad investment? Nope, they are a dandy rifle. Not for me any more, but still pretty fun. Godspeed.

Murray's makes a floating firing pin and has reduced power springs for the trigger assembly. IMHO if you want a detach mag and other tacticool stuff, get an AK.

I had a SKS back in the late eighties and sold it for no particular reason. Fast forward to last year and I ran into a deal on a Russian model and I bought it on impulse. Once I started shooting it, I finally realized where these fit in. They are just fun to shoot.

Don't get all serious about one and try to turn it into some kind of target rifle, that's not what they were designed for. It is not a long range sniper nor are they designed to be some kind of wannabe AK. The original design was for a robust battle rifle that could be maintained in the field by illiterate peasants with minimal care.

I suspect that a lot of those that have bought, and then sold them are those that only sit on their butts and shoot off of a bench. A relaxing way to shoot, but not what they were designed for. I quit sitting down to shoot years ago and do all my shooting either from offhand or improvised positions.

No, they won't shoot tiny groups at fixed ranges, but I find that kind of shooting as exciting as watching paint dry. I would rather shoot at unknown ranges and test my skill at hitting targets of opportunity. When used in that manner they are fun little plinkers.

Don't be lazy, when you get a new rifle you should detail strip it and clean out the inside of the bolt and all the nooks and cranny's where cosmoline can hide. One of the rifles I picked up last year was beat to snot from having been stored behind the seat of a ranch truck for god knows how many years, yet when I pulled the bolt apart, there was tons of petrified cosmoline inside of it because it had never been cleaned.

I have two Russians now and had a third, but my son liked it so much I gave it to him.

The SKS is what it is: One of thw worlds classic military carbines. Love it for what it is, and live with it. It's not a target rifle, it's not an AK-47, and it's not an aesthetic beauty. It happens to be one of the most significant rifle designs of all time, from number produced and arenas fielded in, and belongs in the collection of any serious student of small arms design. Your "improvements" aren't. Clean one well, and shoot it as-is. Depreserving the bolt (removal of storage grease) is all it takes to alleviate the slamfire possibility. From there, just enjoy the experience of shooting them.


Willie

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I bought two Russian SKS's in 1993, and have been shooting them ever since. They are bone stock, and have been ultra reliable, more accurate than they should be with cheap surplus or Wolf ammo, and just a lot of fun to shoot. With stripper clips, they are fast to reload with a little practice. I prefer my Russian SKS's over my AK's by a pretty wide margin as with a rubber butt plate the LOP is better, the rifle shoulders well, and they are more accurate for me.

I have never had any problems with slam fires or any other reliability issues, or function with the SKS. It is one of the better all around home defense, or range rifle.

I own a SKS and enjoy shooting it. I've never worried about the possibility of a slam fire, but I will say that the trigger sucks. I'm not going to win National Match with it, but you get used to the trigger after a while.

I've owned a pair of Russian SKS with laminated stocks, a Romanian, a Yugo Model 59, a pair of Model 59/66s, an Albanian, a Chinese "D", and a pair of Chinese pieces. NONE of them, with even bare maintenance, have exhibited the stuck firing pin that comes from either corrosion in the channel, or dirt build-up. The slam fire occurs when the firing pin ends up stuck and protruding from the bolt.

It's a simple procedure to drive out a pin, remove the firing pin, and clean both the firing pin, and the channel it rides in.

The triggers can be lightened and made crisper, and two groups that do that have been mentioned.

Those who live in colder areas of the country often end up appreciating the shorter LOP of the SKS in the winter. They are stout, reliable, and capable of hitting COM on a man-sized target out to 100yards, plus, with about any ammunition you can find.

Why some insist upon buying guns that are not target weapons, and aren't advertised as such, and then lamenting their "lack of accuracy" is absurd. To most users, they are fun plinkers, and that's about it.

Are they worth it? That is a personal decision. For accuracy, a bolt-action gun can't be beat. Especially when you're talking paper punching. Want an accurate, reliable, gun with a great trigger? Look at a savage bolt-action in the price range of today's SKS. Of course, you'll need that de rigeur optic, and Match ammunition, too.

The SKS is an old weapon, designed for a different time, and to be used by smaller people. If that attracts you, then they will probably be a good deal.