$395 for an SKS?!?!??!! Did I miss something?

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Was out enjoying a nice afternoon with the wife yesterday, and after bopping into a few antique stores, I got to take her into the local pawn shop to do some looking at MY kind of collectable.

Well, there in the display rack, they had 3 Norinco SKS's. All of them were in decent shape(not 100%, but better than some SKS's I've seen)and all of them had bayonet's on them, which caught my attention, because I don't own any guns with bayonet's yet.

Then, I looked at the price tag...and no kidding, they wanted $395 a piece for these SKS's. Now, I don't own an SKS, but I thought they were supposed to be considered good deals in the $180 to $200 range. Does having a bayonet make that much of a difference?

I just know that for $400+, there are a lot of other guns I would pick for before an SKS. Like 2 Saiga's!

greg
 
They may have been genuine Russian SKS's, which are highly collectible and fairly scarce. I saw a dog of a Russian SKS in a gun store about eight months ago, and it was around $400, if I remember correctly.

My wife bought a beautiful 1952 Tula (Russia) SKS in 1995 or so for $99. She suggested getting one for me also, and I passed it up. Been kicking myself every since.
 
Nah...

I didn't look at the barrel that close for markings, but I know for a fact that the price tag itself said Norinco on it...
 
There are pre-Norinco-import-china-whatever ban SKS's that were allowed to have the bayonets.

Excellent condition Norinco's and Russians with laminated stocks will easily command $350 these days at a gunshow, so it's high, but not totally outrageous.

If you want a cheap SKS, Yugoslavian ones with the cool looking grenade launcher, folding ladder site and a bayonet go as little as $99 mail-order.
 
It depends on your location. I've passed up nice Russian sks's around here for $200.00. I tried to buy a nice Russian Saturday at a show that was mint for $200.00, but the dealer wouldn't drop below $225.00.
 
Pass on the Chicom for more than $200.
Go for the Yugo...it appears in fact, that they are drying-up.
diyj98, you must be in Heaven or something because Russians have been going for $400 for over a year here in Tennessee!
 
Yugo in Virginia Beach - told it was unissued... bayonet, cosmoline, furniture looked kind of rough - $150 7.62x39. Do they have these in 7.62x54? Or is it usable in .39's (since I don't know any better)?
 
7.62x54R(R stands for Rimmed) and 7.62x39 are two totally different animals. One will not fit in the other rifle. The SVT40 is a semi--automatic 7.62x54R rifle and is supposed to be a good shooter and not kick that muc, but original mags go for 70-100 bucks and repros are around 30-50 bucks, the rifle itself will run from 400-1200 depending on condition and type. As for power the 7.62x54R is roughly equivalent to 30-06 and .308 where as the 7.62x39 is roughly comparable to the 30-30 Winchester.

Scott
 
Banix, I'm in VA. I'll be glad to ship them to TN for $300! You do find some jacked up high here, but it's normally not a big deal to find them in VA or southern WV for $200.00
 
Wow, I thought it was just us California gunowners that get screwed on SKS prices. In the shops around here you can get Yugo SKS for about $175-$225 depending on condition. The Norincos are usually about $350 and the Russians are about $400-$450. I would be interested in a Paratrooper SKS (shorter 16" barrel) but not for 2-3x what I could pay for the Yugo.
 
It's ridiculous here too.. I've been shopping around for an SKS... local quotes are starting at $300 for a Norinco, and I found a Yugo with splintered stock and bolt rusted 90% shut selling for $225 at a local shop. I'm holding out for a better deal.
 
pawn shops are ridiculously high on everything as are flea markets.if you want an sks..like mentioned earlier..get the unissued yugo rifles.local ffl in ohio has these and is selling a bunch of them for 129 plus tax out the door.the funny thing is alot of folks didnt care for the sks really(espec since the ak47 semi only version was around 125 bucks then) when they first started being available so they were cheap..now..theyre quite popular and people are finding out they are a great gun.I think I paid around 60 bucks for the russian one I have and it was like new then.I would pick one of them(an sks of any make) up if you can but not for some ridiculously high price.shop around.get a copy of shotgun news and keep in mind..they list dealer price usually and add markup to that to get the nonffl holder cost.theres good buys out there.
 
Just out to "my" gun shop ("my" as in where I'm usually buying) to check out in better detail the Yugo SKS (above) for $149.95.

The furniture is a lighter shade wood; hooded front sight/height-adjust rear sight, a slotted muzzle brake (I think), folding bayonet, and grenade (launcher??). Serial numbers stamped in the stock match that on the receiver. Metal areas had cosmoline throughout.

I suppose that there's no way to inspect it further until cleaned so I guess it's bought on faith, huh? Again, this is sold as Unissued.

Since the FFL fee for transfers is $25 - (forgetting to ask) I assume that the retail is $125 - this seems to give the shop a reasonable gross profit considering overhead, shipping, etc.

I was close to buying it, but I have considerations re cleaning it properly. My physical work area has bench space of about 2x4 feet in a utility shed full of "things" - for those here who live in townhouses, you know what I mean. So my questions are:

What does it take to really service this rifle to where it's ready to go?

Is there a takedown guide anywhere on the net - or maybe one of you have put one together??

And BTW: Do you owners normally remove the grenade fitting(s). Also, should I be concerned about the bayonet in public?

Thank IA

-Andy
 
Yo dude, I bought one of those 99 dollar russkie sks's and now smile. At the same time I roll around in bed at night, wondering why I did not get a Swedish Mauser around then for the same price. Surprising the chinese ones are up in price, they were considered junk back then. Quit making excuses, get off your arse and BUY!!! Just like then, now is a buyer's market. Just picked up a m48 today. It is in great shape( only negative line out on mag) $90. This year I also got a m44 and a k31. Probably done for a while. Nothing else seems to perk my interest. The rumor mill has it that there is some new stuff on the way, have to wait and see. $300 bucks, 3 new rifles. What would have I got from Walmart for 3 bills?
Just buy the damn gun or regret not doing so later!!!!
 
andy,I wouldnt worry about removing that stuff from the gun.Personally,I have no use for them either but they are what makes the gun different and interesting(an maybe some more weight)so Im leaving it alone.I am a cheap person who hates to spend what little money i do have on needless things anyhow so to clean it,I just bought the cheapest car motor carberator cleaner and removed the stock and all the metal springs and assemblies.sprayed it and let it set 10 minutes and wiped off the gunk.ran a few patches of hoppes bore solvent through the bore and reassembled it.lubed the trigger asembly and the channels the bolt rides in in the receiver...spray the cleaner in a well ventilated area and dont get it on the stock or your skin..it eats the laquer fuinish and burns the skin.they should include a dissassembly manual with the gun.the firing pin in the bolt needs to move freely so make sure you get that area well.
 
To the individual who stated that Norinco SKSs can not have bayonets:

You are wrong sir.....Norincos imported after the ban can not have bayonets, Norincos in country and in that configuration prior to the ban are perfectly legal with a bayonet installed. Of course the burden of proof in this case is on the owner to prove his rifle was in country and so configured prior to the ban date.

Both of my Chicoms have bayos and I can prove that both are pre-ban imports.

$395 is WAY too much for a Chicom, that's even high for a Russian in this area.
 
it seems to me that I must have a C&R for this rifle since it has so many "evil" items.
Click to expand...
You don't need a C&R license to own C&R firearms. It merely allows you to buy C&R guns without paying a local 01-FFL to do the transfer.

It is the "evil" items on the Yugo that make it a C&R. If you (permanently)remove them, the firearm loses its C&R status. It is perfectly legal for you to do so, if you desire. All that losing C&R status means is that should you sell the gun later, someone cannot use their C&R license to purchase it across state lines. It reverts back to needing an 01-FFL for the transfer.
 
There is a lot of controversy about Norinco's and Bayonet legality. If you look at TFL archives, there are several good threads about the subject.

I pulled out one post by Gewehr98, which I think summarized the issue well:

Gewehr98
Senior Member


Join Date: 06-30-2000
Location: Satellite Beach, FL
Posts: 2,207 I've only had my FFL for three years...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

But I bought a Norinco SKS in 1989, then a Yugoslavian SKS last year. Here's another way to look at the problem.

There are three groups of Chinese SKS's you have to deal with:

1. definite pre-ban, bayonet allowed

2. The "fuzzy years" between the bayonet ban and at least 1992

3. 1992+ imports through to Bubba Clinton's import ban on all Chinese munitions and
materials under the guise of punishing them for human rights abuses.

The group (3) 1992 and beyond is easy...many have bayonet lugs ground off, and
all serial numbers start with (usually) a 92xxxxxx. I dont remember any other
prefix years other than 92 though I vaguely recall maybe seeing a 91. Bayonets
on these, provided there is something to attach one to, makes u an instant
crimminal...not that I've heard of anyone ever getting busted for that alone.
Play with these at highest risk

The (1) and (2) groups are where the question lies, as often they are
indistinguishable without a bayonet attached. The only way FOR SURE, is to do a
serial number trace with ATF importation records.

In general though, if you know the rifle was bought originally with a bayonet
prior to '90 or so, or it has little or no markings other than in chinese (i.e.
no "Norinco" stamping) and no year prefix on the serial number, you can fairly
safely assume it is a preban and can have a bayonet and all the other evil stuff
like detach mags, folding stocks & whatever. Most SKS's sold after say 1990
thru the Chinese import ban, saw the bayonets being removed regardless of when
they were actually imported. A similar thing was going on with "assault
weapons" during this period which is where the hybrid "Dock Guns" (intermediates
between true '89 pre-ban "AW's" and later PC versions) came from. This was done
via negotiations with ATF on release of these from customs, and it took 2 or 3+
years before Dock Guns began to appear. Anyway, this is the result of stupid
unclear laws and dumbing down to the path of least resistance (no SKS bayonet).
This is why there are 10's of thousands of chinese sks bayonets out there
forsale; they were stripped off groups 1 and (mainly) 2 SKS's before leaving
commercial warehouses and/or customs warehouses.

If this sounds confusing it is, because the laws and guidelines are.
__________________


Now, at issue here is the fact that the guns in question were at a pawn shop. What is the liklihood that a pawn shop is going to have paperwork certifying that these guns are legal Pre-bans?
 
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