Buying an SKS. . . questions/ tips?

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nico

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I appologize in advance because I know this is probably redundant, but I searched on this site and SKSboards and haven't quite found everything I was looking for.

I'm going to buy a Yugo SKS this week or next. I've heard from a friend that the shop doesn't like you digging through their stock (they have about 7 guns right now) but that their guns are all in good shape. I'm not going to make a big stink, but I'm not going to buy a gun that has things obviously wrong with it either. What good and bad things should I look for on the gun?

I've done some searching online for ammo, and MidwayUSA doesn't have the best prices, but they're the only site I've found that will give you a shipping estimate before you're almost done placing an order. How much do places like Sportsman's guide typically charge for shipping 1000 rounds of 7.62X39?

How many stripper clips should I buy and where's a good place to buy them? I live in a state where loaded mags/clips are the same as loaded guns so I'll only be loading them at the range. Are there specific clips I should look for? I've seen Chinese clips mentioned in a few places but haven't read any info about them. Also, where's a good place to buy a reasonably priced sling?

I've done some reading about de-cosmoing a gun and have pretty much decided to soak the action in mineral spirits and maybe use boiling water on the small parts. I plan on using a heat gun/hair drier on the stock and maybe leaving it outside in the sun, but baking it in an oven isn't an option. Is this a good strategy, or will I end up with cosmo all over my hands the first time I shoot the gun? Finally, what parts of the gun need be lubricated, and is there anything I should do to the stock to protect it?

Any more tips or suggestions are more than welcome (I know about cleaning the bolt and not to mess with detachable magsbtw :) ). Thanks
 
nico,

There's really not much to worry about in looking at the SKSs......they are all pretty much the same from what I've seen while digging through them at the shows. Some stocks are in better shape than others and of course there are varying degrees of cosmoline included :p

Where are you looking at them? There's a show next month and Northeast Guns has had some SKSs for $100 in very good shape. You'll also be able to stock up on ammo....there has been a vendor there with Wolf at $78/1000 cash price.
 
I'm planning on buying it from On Target. The gun that I looked at actually didn't have all that much cosmoline on the exterior, although my hands had that distinct smell after handling the gun.

When is the show? The urge to buy the gun and go to the range is pushing me to buy now since I haven't been able to shoot in almost 3 months, but if it's in early June common sense may prevail. Even if I do buy the gun at On Target, maybe I'll just buy 500 (or fewer) rounds now so I'll have something to shoot and stock up when the show rolls around.
 
The Yugo SKS’s are fine little rifles, I have owned about a dozen SKS’s over the years (got 3 right now) and the Yugo’s are the best, they even have flip-up night sights. As to picking one out, pick out the one that looks nicest to you, about the only thing that I have noted on some is that a few have electric pencil marks on the metal that I found unsightly.

As far as stripper clips, get about 20, surplus seem to be a little bit better made than some commercial ones I have seen from China. Chinese GI clips have arsenal numbers on the back and are a gray parkerized (commercial were marked “China”), Russian clips have an inspectors mark on the back and are a matte black finish. Both Russian and Chinese clips work fine, never seen any Yugo clips but I expect that they are out there.

You can’t load stripper clips before going to the range? Sorry, sometimes I forget how good I have it up here. Guess that is part of the reward for putting up with six months of winter!

The rifle may come with a sling, but if not an AK sling works fine and are not difficult to find.

Don’t be put off by de-gunking the rifle, I can do one in about 45 minutes. Accept the fact that you are going to get your hands gooie, just dive in and have fun (I actually have 2 waiting for me to do at work, a M59 and a M59/66). Here is how I do it, all you need is a can of RemOil (or wd40 or similar) a toothbrush and about 6 paper towels. Strip the gun down (action out of the stock, bolt, gas piston, and magazine and trigger group removed. Grab a part (say the magazine) spray it down with the RemOil, don’t worry about letting it soak just rub it thoroughly with your hands and fingers, this will liquefy most of the grease, wipe it off with a paper towel (you just removed about 80% of the grease on it), spray it down again and rub it with your hands and use the toothbrush to get into corners, crevices and tight spots and wipe it off (95% gone now) and hit it one last time with the oil and toothbrush paying attention to the little corners and crevices where any grease remains (you now have a cleaned and lightly oiled part). Repeat with the other parts. I can do one in about 45 minutes, but I have had a lot of practice! Be sure to clean out the inside of the barrel, the gas tube and flow oil or bore solvent into the firing pin and work it to be sure it moves freely.

Have fun, SKS’s are my favorite plinker!
 
Hello
Another vote for the yugo sks it's great. Just make sure not to bring it with you to california if you have the grenande launcher on it still. They made that felony here. They make an Kal legal version for sale here.

I use carb cleaner or some of the non-water based brake clean chemicals in spray cans to clean my.

Oh, yes make sure the area is well ventalated too.
 
Ah yes, cosmoline removal

I used Carburator or Brake cleaner on metal (keep off skin, and especially out of eyes) and Oven Cleaner for wood. Always worked well for me, and bever damaged anything.
 
nico,

If On Target still has the Yugos for $140, that's not a bad deal for Maryland right now if you don't want to gamble on the guy at the show having the $100 ones. That show isn't until June 25 or so....so your itch may need to be scratched before then :p

On Target had seven rifles? I only saw 1 when I was out there Tuesday.

I'll probably get some more Wolf if I go to the show in June and I need to get some more .308 as well. If you want to get some for now, I'll split a case with you of the Wolf if you decide not to go to the show.
 
yugo is crap. stay away from yugo cars and rifles. i had one and the issue is that bucause of the grenade launcher, the gas port has a cutoff for firing grenade rounds without cycling the action. the cutoff wears out and allows gas to leak. big cycling issues. if you must get an sks, get norinco. but you don't really want an sks, you want an ak and you're settling for an sks. i did that and i wasn't happy until i bought an ak. buy one, you'll love it.
 
The SKS is sturdy but not fancy. I've never seen one that was broken. The shop should stand behind any sale if you're really concerned. This rifle was intended for the masses, afterall, and is simple and durable.

Clips are cheap and plentiful. Much of the milsurp ammo offered will come loaded on clips.

Before pouring caustic chemicals all over yourself and the environment, hang the rifle up in a tree on a hot day with the muzzle pointed downward. Put a can or pan under it to catch the cosmoline that will melt and run out of the gun. Cosmoline has a very low melting point and a couple hours in the sunshine will remove the vast majority of it without the expense and side effects of chemicals. I just hang up any surplus rifles I buy and let them drain for a few hours before wiping them down with paper towels. I have never needed any solvents at all.
 
even in ca we can keep our ammo in clips. is there really even any point in loading the stripper clips, if you can't put 'em on until you're at the range? you might save time just throwing the rounds into the mag directly at that point.
 
On Target had seven rifles? I only saw 1 when I was out there Tuesday.

I'll probably get some more Wolf if I go to the show in June and I need to get some more .308 as well. If you want to get some for now, I'll split a case with you of the Wolf if you decide not to go to the show.
Click to expand...
uh oh, I was there a couple weeks ago and they had 7 plus the one on the rack. The guy there (new guy who doesn't seem to know a lot about guns) said they have a pretty steady stock of them. I guess I'd better get moving.

After hearing about the show, I was thinking I'd order 500 rounds of wolf HP (everything else is on backorder) and buy some more at the show, but if you want to split a case of 1000 ($110 shipped) that'd be fine. Just let me know in the next few days. I want to place the order this week so I can take advantage of my birthday discount
 
chopinbloc, didn't see anywhere where he said that he was settling for an SKS.

nico, I will not buy a rifle from a store's stock unseen. But that is just me. I figure, if they have it in stock, but refuse to open the box and let me see the one I may be buying, its not worth my time or money to buy it. Dunhams wanted me to do that the day after Thanksgiving with their $49 M44's, and it got left there. Obviously, special ordering is different, as is ordering on a C&R. But if they can't take the two minuets to open the box and inspect what I am buying, it gets left there.

Furthermore, the Yugo SKS's are generally determined to be more durable than the other SKS's. They were built a bit ehavier, and the Yugo's couldn't afford to continually rearsenal them as Russia and China could.

To Michigan, SG is usually about $15 in shipping costs. You can take the order to the very end, get the shipping amount, and not actually submit the order if you need an actual amount.

Heat works good for cosmo removal. POut it in a black bag inside a car on a hot day and watch the cosmo drip out (note - don't do this in a good, or your wife's, car). Brake/Carb cleaner works good on the metal. Oven cleaner works on the stock, if you want to take any finish off with it. Otherwise, I like the heat for teh stock. You already know, but it bears repeating that you need to get the firing pin clean.
 
get an unissued one and check the the flip up nite sites for condition. the cosmo removal already mentioned and make sure the firing pin is free moving, that is take the bolt out of the carrier and shake it and make sure the pin isnts sticking before firing the gun. a sticking pin will slam fire in any sks,dumping an mag automatically and its dangerous. Clean it good an you shouldnt have any problems.

As far as oiling it, I use a bit in the trigger housing and a drop at the back of the bolt,on the rails where it slides into the receiver, thats it.

for what its worth, yugo sks rifles are good guns, they, like any other varient has different features.The russian version I have was around 50 bucks when I got it and at that time, people didnt like them that much either and they looked bulky,boring and inaccurate. look at their populiarity now.

get an unissued one and look for a cherrys import...not familiar with import marks but cherrys seems to be good.
 
Yugo SKS

I like my Yugo SKS, it is a blast to shoot! :D

I used WD40 to remove the cosmoline from my Yugo SKS, it worked extremely well, a couple of things, mine didn't have much cosmo on the outside but the inside was loaded, so you need to take the rifle completely apart to get all the cosmo out of it, make sure you take the bolt apart, you need to clean the cosmo out of the channel the firing pin sits in.

The Surplus Rifle website has a tremendous amount of info on the SKS and how to take it apart, it's what I used to clean mine, the information was invaluable!!!!

http://www.surplusrifle.com/sks/index.asp
 
nico,

As I think about it, it was getting late that night that we were out there so maybe they had sold some but hadn't gotten anymore out of the safe to restock the display.

RE: Ammo.....sorry for the confusion....I meant that I could pick up a case of 1000 at the show (last time was $78.00) and we could split that. I just figured out that I was down to 1500 rounds so I need to stock up again :evil:
 
thanks for all the replies

jefnvk, it's not an issue of them not wanting to show the rifle you're going to buy. They keep one or two on the rack and don't like to open all the other boxed they have out for comparison. As far as I'm concerned, that's pretty reasonable, as long as there isn't anything wrong with the gun they have on the rack.

Norton, gotcha ;). I think I'm gonna start out by buying 500 rounds from MidwayUSA. Do you have any info on the show you mentioned? I've never been to a gun show and would like to go take a look.
 
The Yugos are great rifles. I have one, and I absolutely love it.

Fortunately, I bought it from a friend of mine -- he put almost no ammo through it, and had already taken all the cosmo off. I just sanded, refinished, and waxed the stock (looks REALLY good), oiled the metal, and throw lead downrange. It works great.

Check out http://www.outdoormarksman.com/ -- best ammo prices I've seen. Cheap, quick shipping, etc. Very good stuff. Huge selection. Wolf ammo works beautifuly.

I picked up a case of the Yugoslavian ammunition on stripper clips. It cane in a big wood box with sealed tin lining that hadn't been exposed to air since it was sealed in the 1970s. The primers are corrosive, so I just windex the metal parts of the gun during cleaning, then dry and oil them (wiping the appropriate parts completely dry) with CLP. Cheap, good ammunition, and when you're done shooting it all, you get 112 stripper clips to put more ammo on! Quite well-manufactured ones too.
 
nico,

Here's the next two shows.....I thought the schedule went PG County then Frederick, but obviously I had it backwards:

June 25 & 26, 2005
Frederick Fairgrounds
Exit 55 & 56 Off I-70 Frederick, MD


July 16 & 17, 2005
Showplace Arena (P.G. County)
Route 4 & 301 Upper Marlboro, MD
 
ok, I bought the gun today (I'll post pics later tonight). The trigger feels pretty lowsy, as I expected, and I was thinking about sending it to this guy <--link to have a trigger job done. Should I buy a new trigger assembly in the name of keeping the gun technically unmodified (I don't think it's all original as it is because the handguard is slightly darker than the stock), or just send him the factory trigger? Has anybody had work done by this guy? If so, would you say it was worth it?

I was also thinking about ordering a sling, but realized the one I was looking at was cotton. Should I look for a leather one or does it really make a difference?

Also, what do you folks think about the Williams fire sight/peep sight combo?

I know somebody is bound to comment on bubbaizing the gun, but the trigger job and sights are the extent of what I'd want to do.

thanks for all the help.
 
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Should I buy a new trigger assembly in the name of keeping the gun technically unmodified
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Just an observation, but it seems as though there are WAY too many $100 Yugo sks's in the world to ever hold any real value for at least another 100 years.

I wouldn't worry about keeping it original at all. Just the the heck out of it and have fun!


Uh oh...I just realized that I'm being completely hypocritical.....I just remembered that I bought a second sks and decided to leave it in the box to save it.....not exactly sure why I'm saving it. But I've had it for about 6 months and haven't even cleaned to cosmo off of it. Maybe I'm just waiting until my current shooter is too beat to fire anymore..... :confused:


And isn't it cool when you have enough guns that you start forgetting about what you have? :evil:
 
There are lots of $100 Yugo's, unfortunately you can't find them easily any more. In the last Harriburg pa show there was one guy with a stack of them. Otherwise everyone else wanted $200 plus for there's. Scranton show had 3 sks's period. None worth having a the price/verses condition. Prices on non-issue Yugo's are going up. Forget about the Russians, put a bid on one in A.A with a good(i thought) reserve of 425 and the guy wants more. Sorry not for me. So my veiw is buy-em when you can. Never know and you wont lose money.It isn't the same thing as pre-ban ar's. Used S&W's were cheap once. Economies of scale dictate that although the SKS were made in the millions, attrition, lose and hoarding will make them 1. scarcer 2. costly-er. I guess I'm trying to say is get-em while they're cheap. Personally I have 3. 2 to shoot and a non-issue to look at.
good shootin
kid
 
well, mine was definitely issued as it has a few dings in the stock. I bought it as a shooter grade so I don't expect it to be a museum piece. After feeling the trigger a few times, I'm pretty sure I'm gonna have it worked on. I'm going to shoot it first, but it has so much creep I can really see how accuracy could suffer (not that I expect it to be a tack driver). I'm also considering the William's firesight/peep set, but I want to see how I like the factory sights first.
 
Hi nico the (Tech Sight) works well on my Chinese Para and for a scope mount I have a (Scout scope mount) replaces the iron sight.
I got lucky the Para was for sale at my dealer no cosmo and unfired, bore was perfect.
 
Just an observation, but it seems as though there are WAY too many $100 Yugo sks's in the world to ever hold any real value for at least another 100 years.
Click to expand...

And I'm told that not many years ago, you could pick up GI M1 carbines for $150. Now they seem to be $700-900.

On the Yugos, I'd check that the gas cut-off switch works. It's a knurled button at the gas block which keeps the grenade sights from unfolding. You should be able to push it in and shift it to the other side. I have one soaking in Kroil, and still haven't gotten it to move yet.

Also, I'd highly recommend disassembling the bolt to clean it. Knock the one pin out, and it comes apart, but that pin is a dickens to knock out. That firing pin may seem free, but you may be surprised at how much gunk is still in there when you take it apart.

I cleaned mine with just a can of mineral spirits and paper towels. It didn't seem that hard, and didn't take much time. I put it up in the attic to see if any more cosmo will leach out of the stock. Car gets hot, too, but I didn't want my car to smell like cosmo.
 
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