It's actually a cheap POS we've grown to love :nerd:

 

Used to be cheap but never a POS!

 

SKS Matter! it's a shoot all day firearm :ack:

 

You know I heard that back in the day when they were $100 and under, importers were bring them in for like $29.

I wasn't even born yet. But if I had the right connections, I'd have bought them by the crate loads... But I guess we'd all agree, in hindsight.

 

SKS was the main issue rifle in the Soviet Army only for a few years until AK47 took over. It is still used in honor guard ceremonies. Close Order drill and so on.

 

I was under the impression that the SKS was never widely fielded in general service. Both it and the AK were designed around the intermediate M43 7.62x39 round that was first put into production near the end of WW2.

The story behind the development of both the SKS and AK are really interesting. Simonov was one of the premier Soviet arms designers, and his SKS design incorporated some features of his earlier PTRS anti tank rifle. In some ways, the basic design of the SKS represented the thinking of experienced arms designers which were used to having highly specialized factories build guns. Although the SKS did not see wide deployment, another gun designed around the same time using an intermediate round, a short stroke gas system and a tilting bolt did last a bit longer - the FAL of Saive.

Kalashnikov was a tank mechanic and crew member, and although he had less formal training in arms design he had a keen mind for design. His AK platform required much less complex machining than the SKS, using a receiver that is riveted together rather than being milled out of a steel forging. The long stroke piston on the AK means fewer parts to lose in the field, and the open design of the receiver makes the FCG group almost as easy to clean as the SKS.

 

I'm planning on doing a few SKS videos. I mean, I love my Yugo M59 (non-66) to death. Mismatched all over, but it is a beauty and I've only had 1 malfunction in 300 rounds. But with old bare steel S&B ammo that got rusty.

Shoots Tula, Wolf and everything else I feed it like a champ.

I kind of want to do a 1000 round torture test over a few months with only an initial cleaning and a firing pin cleaning every 300+ rounds and see how far it can go with steel cased... But I also don't want to ruin a good rifle. Maybe I should find a Chinese Type 56 beater to mess around with.

 

Chinese SKS Type 56 Semi Auto Rifle, 7.62x39, Military Surplus, Cracked Stock, C&R. Used.

 

Chinese SKS Type 56 Semi Auto Rifle, 7.62x39, Military Surplus, Cracked Stock, C&R. Used.

If only I had a C&R... Although, I've heard that's kind of ambiguous in NY anyway.

Have you guys seen any better prices in person for an SKS, because the lowest I've seen was $320 for a mutilated paratrooper. I actually shoulda' bought it to use detachable mags in... Meh.

 

It fills the same role as a semi-automatic AK/M

 

Oh, and thanks a lot for the link, much appreciated.

 

You're Welcome and C&R in NYS are great except as for CMP won't ship to your house :ack:

 

SKS can be NY compliant or not. Many came with a fixed magazine in which case they are compliant. Back in the mid to late 80s you could pick one up for under $100. There were some that shipped with a removable magazine. Those would not be compliant. The exception is if you C & R for collecting antique firearms AND the SKS in question was old enough to qualify as an antique.

 

SKS's are NOT antiques, many are Curios and Relics. There is a difference. One does NOT need an FFL to collect an antique firearm. However you need at least a C&R to get an SKS that date qualifies mailed to your door. The rifle has to be 50 years old to the date of purchase, but ALSO fit the criterion as listed in the ATF C&R Manual. SKSs made in the 70s are not C&Rs. To be an antique the receiver has to have been made pre-1899, 1898 and earlier. Case in point, The Mosin Nagants. Many folks seek out the Finn reworked Mosins, because many were built on pre 1898 receivers in Russia only to be captured or given to Finland, in which they reworked them all in the 1940s, 50s and 60s. So all you need is a valid drivers license for a very good, basic, cheap, hunting rifle. The Antiques I buy, DO NOT get entered into my FFL03 log book, because they are NOT C&Rs, nor did I use my FFL to purchase them.

Now, to answer the original question of what is an SKS...well, its a Carbine, some will call it an Intermediate Battle Rifle, but really, its just a semi-auto rifle that fires and intermediate rifle cartridge. Its a carbine, because its short, fires an intermediate round, only 10 rounds, and was used by "special troops", support personnel, etc etc. Its service life was so short lived within the Army as a main rifle, where SMGs ruled the roust until the AK came out.

The SKS is a carbine.

 

Not sure about the Chinese ones where I believe they get the reputation of being a POS rifle. But as far as the Yugo 59/66 they are very well made durable rifles. You could use the term weapon system with these. Gas block shut off, integral bayonet, launcher spigot and sight ladder, flip up night sights(A1) one of the cool features is the quick magazine dump. Hard beech wood stocks. Parts and ammo are readily available and they always go bang. Even at the prices now, if you get a matching unissued one it's all good. And also legal. So my answer to the OP's question; What exactly is the SKS? Around here it's the fully functional Simonov vs. the pathetically neutered wall hanger Kalashnikov that your allowed to have.

 

they were put into place before the AK...then the AK took over the main fighting rifle for Russia shortly after.

 

Real nice Yugo's
https://www.classicfirearms.com/yugo-sks-semi-auto-excellent

 

i had one for awhile on my C&R....bought it for 219 sold it for 225...fun rifle. But i got a saiga so it was not as appealing anymore.

 

An SKS is a badassed FUAC approved fixed magazine 7.62x39 rifle with a 10 rd capacity that has the reliability to go bang each and every time. It is designed to be fired with steel cased ammunition. I never had a malfunction when I had mine. I had 2 inch groups at 100 yards using crap Tula ammo. It is capable of going further than 300, but 300 yards is the max you can be reliably accurate with on man sized targets. It is loaded quickly using stripper clips just as fast as a regular mag change. The tolerances are loose and can take a beating and still fire without ever cleaning it. The only maintenance you need is making sure the firing pin moves freely to prevent slam fires. A few drops of oil in the firing pin channel is all that is needed. It is easily convertible to take detachable magazines and there are tons of aftermarket parts for it to turn it into a more modern configuration. I once had it in a bullpup configuration.

To this day you see them still being used in Afghanistan. It is a peasants rifle that can take a beating. Besides the stock, all moving parts are big and made of tough metal unlike an AR with small parts that have to be babied to keep functioning. A shoestring with knots and used motor oil keeps them running over there.

So I would guess the role it plays is a great SHTF/ Deer rifle that you do not have to care for much when cleaning supplies run out. And when the ammo runs dry, you have a spear with the big bayonet that folds underneath the barrel. The bayonet can also be used as a makeshift monopod. I

This guy in the video below has it in an inexpensive Tapco polymer stock that would handle adverse weather conditions better than wood does. Even better, it is NY legal with any evil feature you want due to it having a fixed magazine.

 

Love my matching norinco sks in its choate dragunov OD green stock. Used to run the detachable tapcos and the detachable 5 rnder for deer (encons loved me haha) now i have to the fixed 10rnd mag with a wooden block in the mag for deer season.

 

To answer the original question, the SKS is not what would normally be called an Assault Rifle, because it is not select fire.

In its usual form, it is also not an Assault Weapon, since it has a fixed magazine with a 10-round capacity (note: it is an AW in Rochester in that form and probably NYC, but I'm not sure about the latter.) You can even switch to a pistol grip and adjustable stock (as in the video above) without a problem. Once you are used to them, stripped clips are pretty quick. With a detachable magazine conversion, you generally only have to worry about removing the bayonet (and, of course, using 10-rounders), since they have fixed stocks, no pistol grips and usually no muzzle devices (or threads to accept one.) Of course, then you can't switch to a pistol grip or adjustable stock.

 

Saw the above USMC225G had posted. I pull up a chair and listen. Knows his stuff.

 

Thanks for the kind words Frankie.

To add more information about the SKS. The Soviets toyed with the battle rifle idea way back in the 20s and eventually after a few trials and many years, they came up with the AVS-36 then the SVTs. They wanted to add sustained firepower to the line infantry which supported their idea of deep battle doctrine which essentially is slam head long into your enemies front, find the weak point, exploit it, feint along it, break it and Flood in everyone else, including the reserves. How these rifles helped that doctrine is that they were constantly moving forward and volume of fire needs are met. Throw in a few thousand high ROF SMGs and powerful MGs with massive artillery, and you nearly have most adversaries outgunned. Now...with that said, the SKS came about when they developed the 7.62x39 for the RPD which replaced the DP-28s. They realized how effective the 7.92 kurz for the STG was and they wanted a powerful .30 cal round that performed better than the 54r, since they wouldn't have to re-die much of their machines and they had tons of .311 bullet laying about. The SKS was really a day late and a dollar short since it was to replace the SVTs and 91/30s. It was simple to use and easy to maintain, without sacrificing firepower. The intent was to issue it to all their infantryman, much like the 91/30s. It was made to fight the Germans, but took until after the war to get it produced and it wasn't until the 7.62x39 was developed and issued that this rifle arrived for use, sometime around 1949. This would mean that the reports of the first SKS types that were supposedly tested in WW2 in combat are that of the 54r flavor. Which I think there is one in the Museum in Moscow.

Its just that the AK was designed at the same time as the SKS and the AK exceeded the needs of the Red Army for the obvious reasons. The SKS became a support troops rifle and was also the Main Rifle for many Warsaw pact armies until they got the AK at which point, the SKS fell back into a support roll.