Russian SKS

[Emptymag]

Originally Posted by netw0rkpenguin

$130 in cabelas, pristine condition.

???

What does that MEAN?

What is $130?
(and if you're talkin' a Russian, what YEAR was it purchased, cuz you can't find a YUGO for $130 NOW.)

[Emptymag]

tec,
Here's a link to a good guy just across the border.
http://milsurpstuff.com

Reasonable prices and VERY fast shipping.(as well as very low S&H rates - compare before you buy)

I can't believe I just helped you butcher an SKS.

I can't help with the compliance parts make-up. That makes my head hurt, but if you check the sksboards link I gave you, there's a ton of info to be found on that subject.


Back to the topic of this thread...
Dave, if you get that Russian, you'll finally be able to say you made me jealous of you.

[Koli01]

Originally Posted by Emptymag

???

What does that MEAN?

What is $130?
(and if you're talkin' a Russian, what YEAR was it purchased, cuz you can't find a YUGO for $130 NOW.)

I have seen Yugo's at Cabela's for $168 or $186 something like that. That's where I almost bought one.

[tec]

Thanks a lot Emptymag. That SKS forum is a goldmine for information regarding the SKS. I visited a website that has compliance parts for the SKS so I should be OK in terms of the law. Although I am going to go down to my local police station sometime this week and ask them about it so I'm 100% sure what I'm doing is legal.

[Koli01]

Originally Posted by tec

Although I am going to go down to my local police station sometime this week and ask them about it so I'm 100% sure what I'm doing is legal.

From what I have read on this forum. Chances are your local police would not know.

[tec]

Originally Posted by Koli01

From what I have read on this forum. Chances are your local police would not know.

Yea, that may be so. From what I've read so far, as long as there are no more than ten pieces made outside the U.S.A. on a modified rifle, it is legal. There are kits from TAPCO that are relatively cheap that make the modifications legal. I figure I'll pick up one of them after I get the SKS.

[Jeep274]

I bought my Yugo from Cabelas in May and paid $149 for it. Give them a call and see if they have any in the store. I was on a wait list for 4 weeks but they did get a large shipment of them.

The local police are the last people I would ask about the legality of firearm mods. Heck, I don't even think the BATF knows all the answers, lol.

I am planning on doing the Tapco stock on mine as well. Rumor has it that American made hammers, sears and triggers will be available very soon making compliance a lot easier.

[dogngun]

I have owned 2 Russian, several Yugos.
Both Russians were pretty good shooters, well made, reliable -they were SKS's, after all.
My favorite, and the most accurate SKS of the 6 I have owned is my 1968 Chinese.
It has a better trigger and is extremely well made, a great shooter.
The price you mentioned is not out of line for a good quality Russian.

Mark

[Emptymag]

Hey tec,
I finally found that "required reading" I had mentioned before!

I found this on the SKSboards forum.
It should be required reading for anyone considering an SKS...

"The SKS Rifle: Tales from beyond the gun show!"
By JonBot007

The SKS rifle is a simple gas operated auto loader with some very strong attributes in it’s favor. For all it’s glory and simplicity few rifles have been surrounded by more confusion than the humble SKS. I have fired both Russian and Chinese versions and am very well versed in it’s use and maintenance. Let me say that I am a gun nut, I love guns, shooting, working on them, and anything related to shooting or working with or on guns. Having stated that it should be obvious that I am not a “the sks is the best rifle bar none” kind of guy but I will say that: A) For the money spent and knowledge required to own and become competent with one it is the best overall value. B) It is battle tested (the wise reader will never overlook this quality when choosing any firearm for survival purposes). C) Parts and amo are everywhere and cheap compared to many of it’s competitors. D) It is a tough son of a bitch in field E) you can go buy an SKS, some simple cleaning supply's, a bag of stripper clips, and a thousand rounds of quality FMJ amo for the same amount or less than the cheapest AK/Mack-90 type rifle on the market (that takes hi-cap. Mags). Remember that an SKS in the hand (or trunk or closet for that matter) is better than a Fal/L1A1, G3 or full auto H&K MP5 in fantasy land.(and yes- I have fired all of the above so I CAN say that and mean it)

That brings us to the most important thing you can learn about the SKS….Leave it alone! There are dozens of accessories available for an SKS but most do nothing to improve the performance of the weapon and some can really screw you up if you are not careful. I have seen so many go out and get a good SKS and then spend money left and right: a scope mount here (now it’s a sniper rifle), a folding stock there (hey what do you mean it’s not legal) and of course the biggest scam the hi-cap. magazines. In a word, save your money-that is the main reason to own a SKS over an AK or FAL ect. ect. None of the Hellfire type gadgets are worth a damn or they would be illegal, some hi capacity mags are better than others but none are as reliable as the stock fixed 10 round magazine. Don’t even think about a full auto conversion (unless you really like concrete walls and steel bars) the SKS is best left in semi auto and you don’t need full auto anyway. If you think you need full auto then you need more time at the range or maybe trade in on a shotgun if your just that bad. The SKS is reasonably accurate but will never be a sniper grade rifle and is not designed for use with a scope. Don’t waste your time and money (by the time you get a scope zeroed in TEOTWAWKI will already have come and gone and then it will just shift anyway). Even if you do get it stable enough you will have traded in quick target acquisition for a crappy scope that will get you killed when you can’t get that stripper clip out of the way fast enough anymore. Yes,the thirty round detachable mags do make it look ten times better and I have several (mostly for fun...there is just no better setup to shoot stacks of #10 cans and keep them rolling down range) The twenty round fixed will be your next stop on the “how much money can I waste” express. With some minor filing mine now works and no you can’t reliably get two stripper clips loaded in a timely manner (one stripper clip will load fine). On the up side it is made out of crappy pot metal! (it now resides in the bottom of my closet-somewhere!!) The 75 round drum (I don’t even want to talk about it), DO NOT even think about wasting that much money. Do we see a trend developing yet???

Repeat this ten times out loud before you go to the next gun show and buy some stuff you really need instead (ammo anyone?): My SKS is a solid semi-auto battle rifle with a ten round fixed magazine, it uses stripper clips, when I pull the trigger it goes “BANG”- that is the purpose for which it was designed. It is NOT a poor man’s AK-47 anymore than it is a sniper rifle. I will not waste my next two paychecks making it look like either. I will leave it the way it was designed to function and move on with my life. Now that we have settled that issue, let me close with the following argument. You may own several firearms, many of which will seem better than the SKS in various aspects of their performance BUT everyone can afford a decent SKS and learn how to shoot it. The ammo is as cheap as it gets and when the sh*t hits the fan- it is comforting to know that everyone on your team has parts and ammo that will work in your gun. Personally, I REALLY like the FN/FAL. I’m a big guy and the larger powerful rifle is just tailor made to my hands. I love the Fal so much that the odds I’m going to abuse the hell out of one training and screwing around in the field are not very big. The SKS is a junk yard dog. Drop it, scratch it, see how much crud it can digest and still fire, it likes it (well…sort of) the experience you can get because you are not afraid to hurt it are worth far more than the rifle it self. Smaller framed team mates usually find it comfortable and with the addition of the $5-$10 rubber but pad/spacer so do I (at 6’4” and over 250lbs. with a large frame I’d say that’s versatile). Go get one, buy a thousand rounds for it, shoot the hell out of it, clean it up really good and stick it in the closet you may be very glad you did one day -even if you can afford something better (hey, there is nothing wrong with the AK/Mack90). You can never have too many good cheap rifles that eat up good cheap ammo. Hey one day you may want to cache something somewhere for undisclosed reasons (vague enough??). So just keep this in mind “friends don’t let friends waste money” leave the plastic crap at the table and and move down to the next table and buy some more ammo, the life you save may be your own !! P.S. I still take my SKS hunting with me once in a while if it's one of those cold rainy "I'm nuts for going out in this" kind of weekends...it serves as a fine little brush carbine in the deer woods and is one of the few semi-auto rifles that doesn't fear Alabama mud!!!-(if you've ever dealt with that un-godly muck you know how impressive a feat that is!!!

- JonBot007

Oh, and to keep this related to the original topic...
Don't EVER butcher(bubba)a RUSSIAN SKS!!!


p.s.
Glad you found the sksboards.com forum helpful!

[tec]

Thanks Emptymag. After reading that, if I end up getting an SKS I probably won't do anything to it. I might put on a compliance kit made by TAPCO, but who knows. As of right now I am debating on whether to purchase a Glock or spend a bit more and get an AR kit. Either way I come out a winner