Which SKS?

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giggitygiggity

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I've been looking at SKS rifles recently. Which SKS is the best? It seems like the Chinese are the most common, then the Yugoslavian, then the Russian. Is this correct? What other SKS's are available. Which is the best and what is a good price to pay? What are the differences between the SKS's from different countries? How does $280 for a Yugo with bayonet, grenade launcher sight, sling, and mag pounches sound? Thanks.
 
I paid $280 for my yugo and I think that's a fair price for one in very good condition. I've seen Chinese for $350 and Russians for $400, but I'm not sure if it's worth it.
 
The Russian is the a very nice one and worth $400.00. A very good one is the the Norinco SKS M as it takes AK mags. My favorite is the Yugo. Its a little heavier and can be finicky if the gas valve is corroded or dirty.

A Yugo for just under $300 in good shape is a good choice.
 
The yugos do not have chrome lined barrels. i own one of each
and prefer the norincos . the seem lighter and are reasonablaccurate. next russian and romanian.
russians go for about 350-400
in my are ad norincos around 225-300
 
How about the Romanian SKS's? How do they stack up in comparison to the Yugos, Russians, and Chinese? Is there a Romanian 59/66 or is it only a Yugo 59/66? Thanks.
 
Check the triggers, as a few Russians reportedly have rough triggers. Lots of Yugo were used in combat and don't know about their triggers, but many used ammo with corrosive primers (now sold by Ammoman).

The Yugo has the cg further out, due to the grenade launcher.
My Norinco seems to have better balance, no real bayonet, but the chrome-lined bore, and no useless launcher stuck to the muzzle.

For a similar price, with a decent trigger, the Russian might be the best package:
no grenade launcher, chrome-lined bore, Real (blade) bayonet, nice reddish-brown stock which is harder than Chinese choa wood.

Many people at "Sksboards" can also answer any questions. They even have separate forums for the Romanian and Albanian SKS, if that says something, and many of them live with their rifles.
 
IMO -

1. Russian - The orginal. The best period. Good consistant build quality and many that were imported here are refurbed to like new condition. Not imported for some time now they command semi-premium $$$ but IMO if you have it and want one they are well worth it.

2. Romanian - Build quality like the Russian. Only problem is they are all used.. and many well used. Some are flat just rough looking and numbers rarely match. Hard to find even thou a lot of them were imported in the 1990's and a small number were very recently imported. If you can find one at a reasonable price, buy it.

3. Chinese - Incosistant build quality, but generally very good. The Chinese made more variations of the SKS than anybody. Some of them great and some junk... like the stamped one (but awesome for collectors). 90% are true to the orginal and built well. Even the easier to produce (milled) pinned barrel SKS are great shooters. There was also ALOT (millions) of them imported here and they are easy to find and still usually cheap to buy 2nd hand.

4. Yugo 59 - Good build quality. A great little carbine almost true to the orginal. It's only draw back is a non crome lined bore. Many of these are well used and abused with a sewer pipe for a barrel. They also seem to be priced at a premium.

5. Yugo 59/66 - Same as above, but add the stupid grenade launcher and gas cut off that just adds unesscary complexity. At least there were alot of them imported here (and they keep finding more). At one time they were a good deal and new ones could be bought for $139.... These days condition varies but $280-$350 is over priced IMO.

6. Albanian - Wildly incosistant build quality, odd looking gas tube, Super Cool charging handle on the bolt and a few parts that do not interchange... not to mention very few of them were imported here in the mid 1990's and they command premium $$$ from collectors.

7. N Korean - You'll probally never see one for sale, let alone be willing to give $2500-$3000 to buy it when you do find one.

8. N Vietnam - See my comments for the N Korean.
Will
 
a recent Romanian import. metal was in great condition and matching. stock was not as good.
this came in the last batch that AIM had . .
.
romanian_sks_1958.jpg
 
In good condition - none of them are bad, imo. I would buy on condition 1st.

That said, if faced with a table of the 3 most common reasonably priced sks's, and all in very good condition.... I personally would go: (Going Price in Brackets, IMO)

1. Russian (350 +/-)
2. Chinese (300 +/-)
3. Yugo (300 +/-)


just my .02 (Own 2 Norincos)
 
Of those many nations that built the SKS Yugoslavia managed to turn out some of the best of the bunch (keeping in mind that “best” is almost always a subjective term). The Model 59/66A1 of this article is a good example of how seriously Yugoslavia took its small arms production the quality of the rifle in question easily rivals the manufacturing quality of anything produced in the west The 59/66 is simply a model of 1959 Yugo SKS that was arsenal upgraded to the 59/ 66A1 standards which were considered necessary for the militaries of the 1960s The most obvious of these is the NATO standard 22mm grenade launcher on the end of the barrel, and the accompanying flip up grenade launcher sight[/B][/B][/B]
 
Unlike most Communist Bloc nations, the Yugos did not chrome line the bore of the 59/66. Most agree the reason for this is economic, as Yugoslavia had no indigenous resources of chromium and importing i from the Soviets was probably cost prohibitive or came with too many strings The lack of chrome lining is undoubtedly an aid to accuracy as few chrome lined barrels of this era are plated evenly. The chroming process of the time tended to eave some spots that were thicker than others, which left high spots and low spots n the bore; something that’s never an aid to accuracy. This is not to say that the Yugo 59/66 is necessarily more accurate than other SKSs.
 
Don't let the lack of a chrome lined bore steer you away from a Zastava 59/66 (the "Yugo"). For 99+% of civilian shooters it makes zero difference to the quality, accuracy/precision, or durability of the SKS.

If the OP wants "the best", get a Russian SKS. If he wants the best value in a SKS, get a Yugo.

Check out the SKS boards forum before you buy.
 
Pay the money, and get a Russian SKS. I bought two in 1994 for $100 each. They are really nice rifles and worth the current prices.
 
It really doesn't matter which rifle. They are all fine rifles. I like my Yugo because the added weight makes it feel like an M1. The only drawback to the Yugo is the non-chromed bore. Which is really a non issue because most ammo on the market today is non corrosive......chris3
 
Why is a little weight...

a drawback? I said I like the Yugo rifle because it handles like a M1. If the weight difference between a Yugo and a Norinco is too much for anyone to handle, you better think about going to a gym and getting come conditioning training. The non-chrome bore is a non-issue except for the lazy shooters that will not clean their rifles, thus a rusty bore. I have both kinds of Yugo rifles and they are both accurate as any other SKS. A big advantage to the Yugo, that the other SKS don't have is night sights............chris3
 
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