"New" SKS vs. AR Thread

Status
Not open for further replies.
So I have to ask the Canadians.......are there any differences in the currently available SKS from China and the ones from the 1980's? Has there ammo improved?
Still corrosive as all get out?

Chinese ammo was the WORST available although for a bit practaclly the only available M43 ammo in the US. The Czech I had before the Chinese began imports seemed better later the Russian commercial stuff seemed better, but for me the best ever was Lapua which I just don't see anymore.

It seemed to me accuracy increased when the cleaning rod and bayonet were removed. Some said remove the cleaning kit as well......so like Chicharrones I spent a minute or two wondering if I had just put my finger into some sort of Red Chinese plot to de digitize America via the cleaning kit butt "TRAP"

I keep meaning to spring for an apperature rear sight, but other things take priority. Funny thing is a buddy and I played with a fixed rear peep to test the concept back in the early 1990's before one was on the market. As I had the sight adjustment tool that could push the front sight as well as unscrew the post this fixed was all I felt I needed. Free tip, duct tape only works for a few rounds.....but proved the concept.

Back during the first AW ban fight SKSs sold like hot cakes and one local gunshop offered a special on a SKS and two cans of ammo. Ran into a guy that I had seen across the street getting such a deal later in the hardware store......where he was buying a brand new shovel and a roll of heavy duty trash bags. Humorous, eh?

-kBob
Chinese norinco 308 ammo shot 3 inches at 200 yds in my M1A at $3.95 a box. their 7.62x39 was also good. I don't think you will find many people that would bother with lapua ammo for an sks. in the CZ bolt gun I can see it
 
And in the eastern Ukraine insurgency, or in the early 1990's Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia, Herzo- conflicts (as a basic SKS rifle, Not as a grenade-launcher)?

Some Ukrainian military/militia prisoners were photographed marching under guard by people with SKS rifles.
How well did the rifle function on either side in that urban environment?

Did either side use it as a primary rifle, or only where AK 74s or 47s were not available? Looking fwd. to any info, if any such info is somehow available.

After the Euro-Maiden protests and the rebellion popped off against Yanukovych's government the protestors and rebels were armed with shields and clubs, pellet rifles, Molotov cocktails, gas pistols converted to fire live ammo, air soft guns, occasionally pistols from God knows where, side-by-side and over-and-under shotguns, civilian and former military bolt action rifles such as sporterized Mauser's and Mosin's and occasionally scavenged/stolen AKM's and AK-74's.



So in the first stages of the conflict in the Ukraine both sides were just happy to have an actual semi-auto rifle that worked and was purpose-made for war.



http://www.forgottenweapons.com/guns-in-ukraine/



----------

Pro-Ukraine Militia
31575406822_f1ac11ef0d_b_d.jpg


Pro-Russian DPR paramilitary soldiers
31606709921_d1cb449f68_z_d.jpg

31606709341_be8dd8614a_z_d.jpg

31575564032_56bfa85de9_z_d.jpg


They've caught up now though, so they're actually doing something else with the SKS's and other outdated rifles.

Be prepared to cry a bit...(skip to 3:22 if you want to see what I mean)...


I've kept up with what's been going on with Ukraine since the beginning of the protests and while I'm sure that many of the SKS's are being hidden away somewhere, the ones that the Ukrainian government has collected are being melted down for scrap to satisfy the EU/NATO in exchange for military and humanitarian aid.

I haven't seen anything but an AK for awhile now.
 
Last edited:
Salt & Battery

Keep in mind I am speaking only of the US market here.

I was speaking of when the US market first opened to China and the M43 ammo was all steel core and smelled like urine when fired. The yellow box (bet yours were green) Norinco of back then was just repackaged mil surp steel core.

Keng's was one of the big importers and they had Lapua for less than new US ammo and actually closer to Chinese ammo in price at that time. The Lapua litterally cut my SKS group sizes by more than half at that time, so I bought a bit of it. The reloadable brass more than made up the price difference in my mind.....not that I ever got around to reloading it. These days I am working on some Wolf from a decade or so ago that out shoots the last of my Chinese steel core easily.

Now before the Chinese got access to US markets M43 was scarce.....you should have tried feeding a Styer marked Maadi AKMs.....was not cheap. Actually those 1983 Maadis were some of the nicest AKMs to come in and I wonder why later Maadis did not seem so well finished. But that isn't what we were discussing. Believe it or not folks would actually purchase 6.5 Carcano WWII Military berdan and work the cases to make a shell that took a lot of effort to make that basically could not be reloaded and some paid real money for 6.5 M-S to make reloadable M43 Brass. Once in a great while a bring back SKS would turn up along with some Commie Made ammo as a few guys did do bring back with the allotted 200 rounds of ammo before 1970 or so when the US started messing with guys trying to do such.

Later US manufacturers got around to making 7.62x39.....well Midway was selling brass and ammo before them, but initially only Chinese steel core stinky ammo was available. Later the Russians and the former Commie Com countries and South Africa got involved and today is today. Then, wasn't.

-kBob
 
Browning,

Thanks for the photos. That shot of the PTRS really shows off the SKS's Daddy's size better than any of the gun books were it is pictured alone. I was shocked by the size of the one at Aberdeen PG. SKS really does look like his Dad though, eh?

-kBob
 
Salt & Battery

Keep in mind I am speaking only of the US market here.

I was speaking of when the US market first opened to China and the M43 ammo was all steel core and smelled like urine when fired. The yellow box (bet yours were green) Norinco of back then was just repackaged mil surp steel core.

Keng's was one of the big importers and they had Lapua for less than new US ammo and actually closer to Chinese ammo in price at that time. The Lapua litterally cut my SKS group sizes by more than half at that time, so I bought a bit of it. The reloadable brass more than made up the price difference in my mind.....not that I ever got around to reloading it. These days I am working on some Wolf from a decade or so ago that out shoots the last of my Chinese steel core easily.

Now before the Chinese got access to US markets M43 was scarce.....you should have tried feeding a Styer marked Maadi AKMs.....was not cheap. Actually those 1983 Maadis were some of the nicest AKMs to come in and I wonder why later Maadis did not seem so well finished. But that isn't what we were discussing. Believe it or not folks would actually purchase 6.5 Carcano WWII Military berdan and work the cases to make a shell that took a lot of effort to make that basically could not be reloaded and some paid real money for 6.5 M-S to make reloadable M43 Brass. Once in a great while a bring back SKS would turn up along with some Commie Made ammo as a few guys did do bring back with the allotted 200 rounds of ammo before 1970 or so when the US started messing with guys trying to do such.

Later US manufacturers got around to making 7.62x39.....well Midway was selling brass and ammo before them, but initially only Chinese steel core stinky ammo was available. Later the Russians and the former Commie Com countries and South Africa got involved and today is today. Then, wasn't.

-kBob
yep mine were green I remember some of the yellow box but it was before I had an AK or SKS. I got a .223 AK in early 80's before I saw any ak in the 39 promply traded it for the 39
 
Chinese norinco 308 ammo shot 3 inches at 200 yds in my M1A at $3.95 a box. their 7.62x39 was also good. I don't think you will find many people that would bother with lapua ammo for an sks. in the CZ bolt gun I can see it

Hello:
You might have planned the info for somebody else (sold off my .308 ammo), but always enjoying learning from others' experiences.

Merry Christmas out there,
David.
 
Very interesting info and photos. Thanks very much.
Are you from the Ukraine, by chance? I've been as far east as Prague and Budapest.

Well, as long as they were not harsh towards the prisoners....

Those (Kopfe aus Holz) Dummkopf/'doof'/geistigverhinderte west Europeans make totally irrational decisions when they destroy small arms which might help to prevent a smaller conflict, next time.
Even the Ukrainians might one day want to export some for a Hard Currency to buy more modern anti-armor weapons..

Sorry, I did not know that this pm was linked back to the main topic.



After the Euro-Maiden protests and the rebellion popped off against Yanukovych's government the protestors and rebels were armed with shields and clubs, pellet rifles, Molotov cocktails, gas pistols converted to fire live ammo, air soft guns, occasionally pistols from God knows where, side-by-side and over-and-under shotguns, civilian and former military bolt action rifles such as sporterized Mauser's and Mosin's and occasionally scavenged/stolen AKM's and AK-74's.



So in the first stages of the conflict in the Ukraine both sides were just happy to have an actual semi-auto rifle that worked and was purpose-made for war.



http://www.forgottenweapons.com/guns-in-ukraine/



----------

Pro-Ukraine Militia
31575406822_f1ac11ef0d_b_d.jpg


Pro-Russian DPR paramilitary soldiers
31606709921_d1cb449f68_z_d.jpg

31606709341_be8dd8614a_z_d.jpg

31575564032_56bfa85de9_z_d.jpg


They've caught up now though, so they're actually doing something else with the SKS's and other outdated rifles.

Be prepared to cry a bit...(skip to 3:22 if you want to see what I mean)...


I've kept up with what's been going on with Ukraine since the beginning of the protests and while I'm sure that many of the SKS's are being hidden away somewhere, the ones that the Ukrainian government has collected are being melted down for scrap to satisfy the EU/NATO in exchange for military and humanitarian aid.

I haven't seen anything but an AK for awhile now.
 
Last edited:
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top