Yugoslavian SKS

[Thor67]

Anyone with 1st hand Yugoslavian SKS experience out there?

The Internet ramblings I've read seem positive, but I'm looking more for "I've got one, shoot it often" comments. I have a close personal friend who shoots one often is OK too.

Reliable?
How much maintenance?
Accurate?

They're cheap, so I'm looking to possibly pick one up. A thumbs up or thumbs down would be helpful.

Thanks!

 

[Pilgrim]

All SKS's are good, just some better than others.

As I remember it, the Yugo is the only one that does not have a chrome lined barrel. They typically run a little less than other mfgs.

Reliable? You betcha
Maintenance? clean it like any other gun
Accurate? It's not a match rifle but at 200 yds and under it's as good as any old milsurp.

Evereyone should have one. THey're a good gun.

 

[LoginName]

Part of the appeal of the SKS is not only is it an inexpensive firearm, it's also inexpensive to shoot (well, at least it used to be).

I haven't had any reliability or FTF problems with mine with 3-4k rounds through it. Stripping it down for cleaning is similar to an AK-47... IOW, it's as simple as it can get. As mentioned, the Yugos don't have a chrome lined barrel, but as long as you don't use corrosive ammo and swab the bore down every now and then it shouldn't be an issue.

Do yourself a favor; if you decide to buy one, try to find one that has already been cleaned up, otherwise plan on spending a good part of the day getting all the cosmoline out of it. You'll also probably have to spend some time refinishing the stock.

Buy a few packs of stripper clips also. You can buy packs of 10-20 for less than $5.00 - $7.00


Here's a couple of good websites to get you started...

http://www.surplusrifle.com/sks/index.asp

http://www.yooperj.com/SKS.htm

 

[SKS Ray]

I recently sold one and have another that I shoot often. Last 3 times i've gone shooting I've taken it with me. They're more accurate than AK47s and probably more so than any semi auto 7.62x39 out there. I've heard some say the Yugo ones are the most accurate of any SKS and while mine have always been able to put at least one round on the X out of 10 shots at 100 yards, I have a Norinco one that will do the same.
Best feature about the Yugo rifles is the rubber butt pad. Theres not much recoil with the 7.62x39 round but the butt pad makes for some real comfortable shooting. They also have flip up night sights that you can always touch up if you ever want the true tactical glow in the dark sights. Most of the un-issued ones haven't seen much daylight and still glow with a charge and these are visible in darkness.
Just a nice feature to have if theres ever a SHTF situation and i'm fighting at night with no lights.
Biggest thing on these rifles is making sure every bit of cosmolene is gone. The last one I did had a problem with the bolt holding open after the last shot. I realized that I had left some cosmolene in the trigger mechanism and it prevented the catch from coming up after the last shot and holding the bolt back. A quick removal of teh trigger assembly and a spray with Break Free along with some scrubbing did the trick. Now it works flawlessly.