Reloading an SKS

[DragonFire]

My local gun club is starting to host some rifle side matches to the "IDPA like" pistol matches. At the few I've been to, most guys shoot some type of AR.

Not having an AR, and not wanting to be even tempted to get into an equipment war I was thinking of using my SKS.

My dealer/friend just got me a couple of 30 round detachable mags. They didn't quite fit, and he's tweaking them a bit. So, I have tried the gun with them yet.

They seem quite large, compared to say the AR mags. (they are very wide/long at the very top where they attach to the rifle) How easy or difficult are they to use? Though sometimes a reload is mandated by the course, most times it's up to the user. Instead of swapping mags, would it be possible to use the stripper clips to load 10 more rounds into the mag? Would I want to try something like that?

What's the best/easiest method to carry extra mags? Seems like they'd be awkward to carry is a regular pocket or mag holder. Are there special ones for SKS mags?

 

[itgoesboom]

The problem with those mags are not only are they cumbersome and clumsy, but they don't fit very well, and they aren't very reliable to begin with.

Most people try them out, get frustrated, put back in the old magazine and use the 30rd ones as targets.

The SKS is a reliable rifle, as long as it has its 10 round magazine, and is fed either singlely or with stripper clips.

I.G.B.

 

[Sleeping Dog]

If the 30-round is the kind with just the big top, then it's not the kind you can swap mags to reload during a course of fire. You have to pop the trigger group to switch mags. Like the original 10-round mag, it's only loadable when it's in the gun, pushing rounds in one at a time or from a 10-round stripper clip. Carrying loaded extras in your belt is kinda pointless.

Itgoesboom sez you're probably better off with the original mag, and just put up with feeding from a stripper clip every ten shots. I agree with that.

Plus, a 30-round mag can sometimes get in the way in prone shooting.

Regards.

 

[Rexrider]

You need to practice with stripper clips.

You will have a very hard time finding anyone who used 20/30 rd mags who did not have trouble with them.

They are also awkward to reload. They have to go in just right. Another problem is the bolt must be locked back in order to remove and insert another mag. Not all aftermarket mags will lock the bolt back and the ones that do may not do it all the time. If the bolt does not lock back you will need three hands to reload.

A detachable mag may be illegal as well. Unless the SKS was already imported prior to '89, you can't use detachable mags (someone may come along here and provide the actual law/rule...but I believe it falls under 922r).

I would go up against anyone who is using detachable mags with my stripper clips. Yes, you can shoot 30 rds faster then I can.....but I bet I can shoot 31 rounds faster than you.

Good luck with whatever setup you go with.

 

[MrTuffPaws]

There are some detachable mags out there for the SKS. Rifletech or some such that I hear, after some tweaking will work fine, and for $70 a pop, they better work fine.

Also, strippers will be faster than a mag change on a SKS. A mag change is a two handed job due to you having to pull the release away from the mag instead of into it.

You might want to get on gunbroker and look for a 20 fixed mag. The Chinese made them, they look ugly, will cost a bundle, are hard to find, and look ugly...Oh yeah, I alread said that.

Oh yeah, one last thing. If you change your SKS to use removable mags, you are in violation of federal law for changing the C&R status of the rifle. Check out SKS compliancy on the web for details. You can get around it if you replace more than just the mags.

 

[MrTuffPaws]

You also might want to try and find a SKS-D. They were made to accept AK mags. Good luck though. I have never seen one.

 

[The Drew]

check out www.sksboards.com for all the low down as to why the 30rd detachables are illegal.

That aside... they don't work well, are unreliable and are a PITA to change...

the same goes for the SKS D (or M) The AK mags are a PITA to change too

Use strippers, You may want to look into one of the 20 round chinese fixed mags, (that are of the same design as the original 10 but larger) These once tweaked to your rifle can work very well.

 

[Omaha-BeenGlockin]

Get some stripper clips---a case of ammo---and practice practice practice--------you'll have that SKS humming darn near like an AK in no time.

 

[VorpalSpork]

A detachable mag may be illegal as well. Unless the SKS was already imported prior to '89, you can't use detachable mags (someone may come along here and provide the actual law/rule...but I believe it falls under 922r).

Yes becuase it was imported as a "sporting" weapon, it didn't have to comply with the foreign parts limit. 18 § 922r makes it illegal to alter these weapons so that they are not sporting and contain more than 10 imported parts. So long as it remains in a configuration that the ATF considers "sporting" it can have as many imported parts as you want. These rifle matches sound like a sport to me, but the ATF doesn't agree. It is not illegal to posses "non-sporting" weapons with more than 10 imported parts, only altering a weapon to become one is illegal. So, good move getting the gunsmith to install it for you. This law doesn't get enforced, and it would be neigh impossible to enforce it in many cases. So while it's a stupid, and I would say unconstitunal law, I don't want to be a test case. You are more than welcome to be one though.

It may be more fun, and better practice to reload more often with the 10 round fixed magazine anyway, although your score will suffer some. I kind of enjoy the 10rd magazine limit in IDPA, as it results in more practice changing magazines. In the event that you ever get attacked by unending hoards of Zombie-Ninja-Terrorists, you really will be wishing you had something like an AR15

 

[dfaugh]

Good advice from all

To recap:

You can reload REALLY fast from stripper clips, with practice.

Most "high capacity" mags for standard SKSs aren't very reliable, and there's potential legal issues.

The only viable SKS-detachable mag options is an SKS-D or SKS-M which uses AK magazines(I have an SKS-M, which has shot a few thousand rounds with only 1 malfunction.) As mentioned, they're a bit hard to find, but about 1/2 the price of an AR (and shoot a better round ) I paid $325 for mine with a scope, and synthetic "Dragunov-style" stock at a gun show. You can get 30 or 40 round mags real cheap.

 

[Commissar Gribb]

my suggestion would be to keep the 10 rounder and use stripper clips.

oil em up a little bit to make them strip faster before the match.