orangeninja
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SKS...if a Russian potato farmer with a first grade education can figure it out...so can you.
Mini or SKS-
- Thread starter Squidward
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berettashotgun
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get a mini 1st then the yugo sks. I like the sks, but really prefer the compactness and weight of the mini.
benEzra
Moderator Emeritus
IF price is no object, they both have their strengths and weaknesses.
(2) Both perform with absolute reliability, and accuracy is near-comparable, or maybe the SKS would be slightly better if high-quality ammunition is used. My mini-14 Ranch shoots about 5.5 inches at 100 yards with iron sights, from a benchrest; a quality scope that didn't shift zero might improve that a little. An inexpensive Simmons 3-9x variable actually shot worse than irons on my mini, due to zero shift (mini's are hard on scopes, so a fixed scope would be much better than a variable, in hindsight).
The mini-14 is shorter, lighter, and handier than an SKS, and you can legally put a pistol-grip stock or a folding stock on a new mini-14. To do so on an SKS would likely be a violation of 18 USC 922(r). The mini also uses detachable magazines; you may have to hunt around for a bit to find a good one, but they're out there. I have a 20-rounder and a couple of 30-rounders that have always fed flawlessly. The 20-round fixed magazines you sometimes see for SKS's sometimes work with a given rifle but usually don't, and converting an SKS to take detachable mags is generally a Federal felony, again 18 USC 922(r).
(3) Depends on what you want to do with it. For basic home defense, you have a lot more ammunition choices in .223/5.56x45mm than you do with 7.62x39mm, particularly when it comes to limiting penetration. On the other hand, 7.62x39mm is considered powerful enough to hunt deer with (inside 125 yards or so), whereas .223 generally is not.
Chinese SKS's can be had in the low-to-mid-200's, but the so-called "paratroopers" (probably the most desirable Chinese SKS's) are a bit more.
The variant currently being imported is the Yugoslavian, which is by all accounts a very high-quality rifle.
Here's mine:
Some other photos of my mini can be found here:
http://www.commongroundcommonsense....lery&cmd=user&user=260&op=view_album&album=23
(1) The mini is somewhat easier to work on. (I own a mini and occasionally clean my wife's Russian SKS for her.) Neither one is hard to clean, but the mini is slightly easier to disassemble, and the action pulls completely out of the stock after field-stripping.
(2) Both perform with absolute reliability, and accuracy is near-comparable, or maybe the SKS would be slightly better if high-quality ammunition is used. My mini-14 Ranch shoots about 5.5 inches at 100 yards with iron sights, from a benchrest; a quality scope that didn't shift zero might improve that a little. An inexpensive Simmons 3-9x variable actually shot worse than irons on my mini, due to zero shift (mini's are hard on scopes, so a fixed scope would be much better than a variable, in hindsight).
The mini-14 is shorter, lighter, and handier than an SKS, and you can legally put a pistol-grip stock or a folding stock on a new mini-14. To do so on an SKS would likely be a violation of 18 USC 922(r). The mini also uses detachable magazines; you may have to hunt around for a bit to find a good one, but they're out there. I have a 20-rounder and a couple of 30-rounders that have always fed flawlessly. The 20-round fixed magazines you sometimes see for SKS's sometimes work with a given rifle but usually don't, and converting an SKS to take detachable mags is generally a Federal felony, again 18 USC 922(r).
(3) Depends on what you want to do with it. For basic home defense, you have a lot more ammunition choices in .223/5.56x45mm than you do with 7.62x39mm, particularly when it comes to limiting penetration. On the other hand, 7.62x39mm is considered powerful enough to hunt deer with (inside 125 yards or so), whereas .223 generally is not.
Russian SKS's are very good, BUT also very expensive. My wife bought hers in the mid-1990's for $99, but the last one I saw in a gun store (in 2003) was a dog compared to hers, and they wanted $325 for it.
Chinese SKS's can be had in the low-to-mid-200's, but the so-called "paratroopers" (probably the most desirable Chinese SKS's) are a bit more.
The variant currently being imported is the Yugoslavian, which is by all accounts a very high-quality rifle.
If you don't plan on putting a traditional scope on it, the standard mini is better (better rear sight). If you want a traditional rear-mounted scope, the Ranch Rifle is better since it comes with scope rings and built-in bases. If you are planning on a forward-mount scout scope/red dot/holographic sight, either will work since the best way to do that is to replace the upper handguard with an UltiMak forward rail (www.ultimak.com).
Here's mine:
Some other photos of my mini can be found here:
http://www.commongroundcommonsense....lery&cmd=user&user=260&op=view_album&album=23
1 old 0311
member
Had one of each. If I got another it would be a SKS.
Kevin
Kevin
Bartholomew Roberts
Member
I'd vote for the SKS.
benEzra, I didn't know you were a member of "The A-Team"
benEzra, I didn't know you were a member of "The A-Team"
benEzra
Moderator Emeritus
LOL! Now I just need a van, a mohawk, and the ability to construct a main battle tank from a dumpster.benEzra, I didn't know you were a member of "The A-Team"
I think theirs were AC556's with factory folders, though...
MachIVshooter
Member
Unless you're on a tight budget, I'd say mini. Here's why:
-American made (don't think I need to outline the superiority here, not to mention supporting American workers)
-Reliability: the mini is far less finicky with magazines; SKS's often don't like high-caps (especially detachable ones). I don't recall ever having a failure in my mini, but every SKS I have used with hi-cap mags has suffered failures. However, with the stock fixed magazine they are quite reliable.
-reload speed: Even the detachable SKS mags take far longer to change than a mini.
-fit and finish: self explanatory
-accessories: you can do just about anything you want to your mini without breaking laws
-weight and length: as others have said, the mini is just plain handier.
-breakdown: The mini is easier, period
Accuracy of the two is comparable. My mini shoots about 2.5 MOA with decent ammo, many people never get under 3 MOA. ASI in Texas will accurize mini's (<1 MOA), but it ain't cheap. They will also convert them to just about any chambering that fits in the action (.17 Rem, .204 Ruger, 6x45, etc.)
Of course, you can get 3 or 4 SKS's for the price of a stainless mini.
-American made (don't think I need to outline the superiority here, not to mention supporting American workers)
-Reliability: the mini is far less finicky with magazines; SKS's often don't like high-caps (especially detachable ones). I don't recall ever having a failure in my mini, but every SKS I have used with hi-cap mags has suffered failures. However, with the stock fixed magazine they are quite reliable.
-reload speed: Even the detachable SKS mags take far longer to change than a mini.
-fit and finish: self explanatory
-accessories: you can do just about anything you want to your mini without breaking laws
-weight and length: as others have said, the mini is just plain handier.
-breakdown: The mini is easier, period
Accuracy of the two is comparable. My mini shoots about 2.5 MOA with decent ammo, many people never get under 3 MOA. ASI in Texas will accurize mini's (<1 MOA), but it ain't cheap. They will also convert them to just about any chambering that fits in the action (.17 Rem, .204 Ruger, 6x45, etc.)
Of course, you can get 3 or 4 SKS's for the price of a stainless mini.
rbernie
Contributing Member
Every single one of my SKSs was made more than 30 years ago - I think that the economic benefit to the Yugo or Chinese government/workers has long since been OBE.
You must have some really excellent hi-cap Mini mags. Every hi-cap I ever tried in my Mini was doomed to a life of FTF's.
And the moral to this is to stick with the stock SKS 10-rounder. It's boringly reliable.
I can usually drop in a stripper clip and recharge the SKS factory fixed ten-rounder in about the same time that it takes to drop and replace the Mini's detachable mag or an AK mag, but an AR will beat me every time. YMMV.
I dunno - my Yugo's has an excellent fit-n-finish, and my Norinco had fewer tooling marks than any Mini. Both come with cheezy furniture.
It's really not hard to play the 10-parts-or-less game with the SKS. Last I counted, getting a TAPCO op rod and gas piston plus an aftermarket mag and replacement stock got you there. Other than the op rod and gas piston, chances are that the stock and mag were gonna get swapped out anyway. Certainly, there are a whole lotta bits-n-pieces out there for the SKS if you're so inclined to tinker.
That's a fact, although the non-Yugo SKS's are really pretty handy in their own right (and handier if you'e willing to carve some unecessary metal off of them).
This has me scratching my head - I don't have a clue how you could arrive at this conclusion. I could field-strip my SKS faster than I could my Mini under just about any conditions.
True for the most part, but I suspect that the SKS is more consistant in its performance than the Mini. I've shot many friends Mini's and owned one, and it just seemed that you never knew what you were gonna get (a good one or a bad one) when you bought it.
MachIVshooter
Member
rbernie said:
USA mags. I was advised to be sure any mini mag I bought had a welded catch rather than a stamped one. I stuck to that advise and have had zero problems.
Cheap mags can (will) plague even the best guns with problems. It is my observation that the SKS was simply designed around the fixed 10 rounder and no detachable or high-cap can feed quite right all the time. perhaps the severe taper of 7.62x39 cases plays into this problem(?) I dunno, but I trust my mini with USA 30-rounders unequivocally. Never tried any of the 40 rounders, but have not heard good things about them.
They have that new Mini 30 out now that shoots 7.62x39 rounds. It has my interest peaked. I have an SKS and like the idea of having two rifles in the same caliber. The Yugo SKS is a bit of a beast to lug around all day. Love the Yugo though, haven't shot a Mini-14 so I can't say nething about it. All I can say is that you won't be dissapointed with a Sks, can't be beat for the price, reliable as heck, and battle proven. It makes a great SHTF rifle and parts/ammo are ubiquitous.
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