SKS whats good for what?

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Buttons

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Ok, now that I've figured out that im in need of an SKS I am betwizzled by the differences in them. So far I know of Russion SKS (normal and paratrooper), Chineese SKS, sino soviet, Yugoslavian, Romainian, Albanian, East German, and the north Korean Vietnamese. I dont know how to identify, or which does what best, whats good for what, and which is most reliable.

All of these make a huge difference in which I'm gonna go out and buy, and naturally i'd like to have the best one for me.

Im new to the sport and i would like an accurate rifle to use on the range for fun shooting, and for hunting coyotes as well, another important subject is the toughness of the rifle itself since im new im sure i will do something wrong with it and i dont want to have it give up on me before i give up on it. ..... can you say run-on sentances!
 
My little brother hunts deer, hogs, and coyotes with his SKS and AK. The SKS is very fast-handling for the style of hunting he does and it sees the most use.

It also fits quite nicely behind the seat of his pickup.

Regards,
Rabbit
 
Right now it's pretty tough to beat the Yugos. They'll be the least expensive and second to none in toughness. Also the heaviest, I think, if that's a factor. If you don't find something locally, you can get a very good Yugo at aimsurplus.com.
 
The only SKS rifles with 16" barrels are the Chinese rifles that were mfg. for the US market. The name "paratrooper" was a name given them by the first importer of them Navy Arms. The Navy Arms advertising department came up with the name "paratrooper" as a sales gimmick and to make them stand out in the ads as something different from the standard SKS's that had 20" barrels.
 
I have a Yugo and a Norinco, and would buy the Norinco if I only wanted one rifle....you really don't need all that crap on the Yugo....in fact I am going to take off the grenade launcher on mine.......
 
There are no "Korean" or "Vietnamese" versions as such - they used the basic Chinese or Russian models.
The East German SKS were brought over awhile ago, but were few in number - very rarely seen outside collections now.
All the Romanian SKS's I've seen locally have been badly dogged out. I hear there are nice ones out there, but haven't been lucky enough to find one.
Between my Yugo M59/66 and Norinco - I like the Yugo best. It's by far the more accurate, but like was said above, is definitely heavier. The Norinco is petite in comparison.
Once in awhile, I hear rumors of a "Polish model", but haven't seen anything concrete yet.
Several commercial models were made by the Chinese and imported by different companies. The "Sporter", in standard sporter or thumbhole stocks are numerous. The "Cowboy's Companion" is rarer.
My Norinco is a commercial-produced SKS, but still looks "military", i.e. military stock, bayonet lug, etc. It got in before the first ban mandated the removal of the bayo lugs.
I could maybe put a bayo on it, being that it's "pre-ban", but I figure if I don't hit the target with ten rounds, I'm not hanging around to stick it with a glorified tentpeg. :D
 
I have a Yugo, Norinco, and a Russian. I like the Russian the best because of its history, and its the grandaddy of all SKS rifles. Next is the Norinco, good shooter, nice color stock (blonde) and easy to handle. Then next comes the Yugo, has its own personality, and is quite different than all the rest. You can't go wrong no matter which one you choose.
 
I really like my Yugo,...no, I'll probably never shoot a grenade out of it, but
I like the way it looks and shoots. It came in great shape "unissued", whatever that means, except for the pound of cosmoline on it. I had to learn what the insides were all about to get it clean again. :D
 
A $100 Yugo SKS is about the best deal going. The rifles are build sturdy, & I have yet to have a malfunction with either of mine.
 
Other than the sites everybodys listed above I don't know as much about them as I should. I own a Romanian and a Russian SKS and they're both great. I don't think you'll go wrong with either model.
 
I have a substantial SKS collection. My favorites are my two Romanains. They are lightweight, handy, reliable and accurate (at least as accurate as an SKS can be). They have chrome bores. One of mine has practically no finish, has light surface pitting, feels a bit loose and worn, yet outshoots almost every other SKS I have. Go figure. Unmolested examples are getting difficult to find now, but they still show up occasionally in the dusty corner rifle racks of your local gun store, pawn shop or gun show.

I have three Albainans. I don't recommend them. They are crudely manufactured and not all that accurate. They do have chrome bores. Mine are 100% reliable.

I have two Chinese. Pretty decent. My 20" is probably my third favorate after the two Romanians. Mine are 100% reliable. Quality can be spotty on these though. They have chrome bores, but bayonettes are a no-no due to federal law (don't ask, it's a long frustrating story).

I have one Russian. These are pretty decent, but can be pricy so probably not the best choice for a shooter. Mine had some problems, but its' working fine now. They have chrome bores.

I have about five Yugos, IIRC. Yugos do not have chrome bores. Two of mine are early model 59s which are in standard SKS configuration very similar to the Russian or Romanian. These are almost always used and abused. The rest are 59/66 which are very common. These have a heavier stock, a rubber butt pad, a grenade launcher (sometimes with an integral muzzle brake), a gas valve switch to turn off semi-auto firing (to shoot grenades) and the GL sights. You can buy these cheaply and in practically brand new condition. IMO, they are slightly heavy and ungainly. My better condition examples are very accurate and all are 100% reliable.

East German, North Korean and Polish SKS are the holy grail. It's even debatable if some of these actually exist and if they do whether or not they are just one of the other varients purchased as a stopgap between M44 Mosins and AKs. I doubt very much that you will ever see one for sale and if you do, it will be very expensive.
 
Zark-9

Are you sure it was just a pound of cosmoline? I thought mine had about 10 pounds. Just kidding. After I took the stock off I used about 4 cans of brake cleaner to get the cosmoline off. Mines a Yugo, not sure if these are the best but they sure are alot of fun.
 
Mine's still oozing cosmoline and I have no idea where it's coming from, since I spent 6 hours completely tearing it down and soaking every part in mineral spirits, then WD40 then brake cleaner, wiping, and toothbrushing and qtipping etc.
 
Cosmoline sounds like a real pain to clean... are SKS's hard to get around when it comes to clean them or are the generally pretty simple?
I have done a bit of shooting before, much on .22's, ive put a few shots downrange on a .223 and a 12 guage shotgun. im quite comfortable with the kick of the .223 but i dont know what the recoil is like on an SKS, I've never shot with anything other than these three rifles, what is the recoil comparable to, and will it give me a flinch seeing as it will be my first gun?
 
SKS recoil is practically nothin', it's gas operated semi auto and most of what recoil it has is absorbed by the operation of the bolt. Plus it's heavy. It is mucho fun to shoot. Ammo is cheap and abundant. Try it, you'll like it.:)
 
Buttons, Riley got it right. The recoil is negligible.

But the cosmoline is a legitimate one-time removal issue. Do a search and you'll get the idea, and the solutions. Figure about 4 hours. Make sure you get the bolt/firing pin clean of the cosmo. Then just enjoy it.
 
My first SKS smoked and dripped cosmoline out of the upper handguard after rapid firing for the first year I had it. It was one of the new condition straight from military storage rifles. The Chinese really packed the rifle full for long term storage. It was so packed full of cosmoline that they must have put the rifles in a mold and pumped in cosmoline under high pressure,like lubing a bullet.:D
I used q-tips to get all of it out from between the handguard and the gas tube so I thought. So each time the rifle got hot it would melt the cosmoline and it woud drip down on to the barrel and smoke. Every SKS I bought since the first one I used "roller wash" that is used by printers to clean ink off of the rollers on a printing press. This stuff disolves cosmoline like water on a suger cube. Let it soak for 15 minutes then a spray can of brake parts cleaner with the little straw to blow/wash the cosmoline out from the gas tube/handguard. It will still smoke the first time the rifle gets hot but nothing drips out.
 
The ONLY cosmoline left in mine is what still sweats out of the stock out in the sun ....even after several days last spring of initial heating/washing/drying and then all over again, plus umpteen handrubbed coats of tung oil and paste wax to seal it.

I truly did learn what EVERY working part looked like all by itself, unattached from EVERY other working part ...and a feeling of great accomplishment when finished. (Yup, solvent, brushes, q-tips, rags, more solvent, more q-tips, more rags, lube, more rags, arrrgh!) But once that initial cleaning was done, it's been quite easy to clean up after a visit to the range. Make sure that firing pin shakes freely in the bolt!
 
I'm sure that when the lights go out, these little sks buggers multiply:p
They are sooo fun to shoot!
Do try simply boiling water to remove the cosmoline (remove wood first of course). Be sure that the firing pin is cleaned with brake cleaner as well.
I don't even oil my firing pin after cleaning to avoid possible full automatic discharges.:what:
When you first get to the range with a new sks, be sure to have a sling on it. Wrap the sling around your left hand. Load only two rounds and fire.
Then load one extra round for the next batch, ie., load only three rounds.
If it doesn't go into full auto by the time you reach a full ten round magazine, it probably never will.:scrutiny:
The sling wrapped around your wrist will keep the rifle from climbing and shooting your head off if it goes to full auto (which it sure as hell can:eek: ).
 
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