The SKS rifles are all ex-Communist-bloc weapons that were built and issued to fight against the freedom and democracy that America has always represented. The first one was the Model 45, designed and built in Russia around an intermediate power .30 cartridge as a direct result of lessons that Russian arms designers learned in WW2. These rifles were subsequently copied by many Soviet allies after the war, and they've popped up in practically every conflict on every continent, from Europe to Africa, Korea to Vietnam, and most recently, the Middle East. It stood for many years as the symbol of Communist military power and oppression. But times changed and history proved us right and them wrong and now thanks to heroes like President Ronald Reagan and British PM Margaret Thatcher, the Soviet Union is gone. Russia is undergoing change into a more civil place, it's former satellite territories are free and joining NATO, and even the Comminust Chinese are sampling capitalism.
And an unintended result of all of this peace breaking out in countries once held captive behind the Iron Curtain of Communism is all of these former Eastern Bloc weapons taken out of military use and sold to American civilians as collectibles and hunting tools.
I began collecting SKS rifles back when the first ones came here from China in the 1980's. As a federally-licensed firearms dealer, I acquired a Chinese military SKS for $69.00 shipped to my door. Many military surplus arms were coming into the country at fire-sale prices and me and many others just bought them as cheap guns that we could take out on camping trips without worrying about beating them up. My $69.00 SKS accompanied me on several trips to Michigan's Keewenaw Peninsula. Then President Clinton took office and importation of surplus arms were restricted while Federal Firearms Licenses like mine fell victim to new requirements that by design resulted in the termination of most of the private gun dealer licenses in America.
Time went on, I obtained better competition and defensive arms, and my Chinese SKS went into the back of the locker where it remained for many years, undisturbed but for the periodic cleanings that all of my guns get whether or not they are taken out and shot.
Over the years, other SKS rifles came onto the market every now and again as other countries put their obsolete arms onto the market to get hard currency. I'd always meant to get one from every country that made them but it wasn't a priority so I didn't really focus on it until my friend Aaron (The Shekel) and I started buying up SKS rifles together. It didn't take long before a few others wound up in my locker and his, and as of last night, I finally have one version of every military SKS put onto the market.
Here they are on the rack in my gun room and out on my deck. They are in the same order in both pictures.
The one on the left is an Albanian SKS. This one was made in 1970 at the Umgramsh factory and probably shows the most wear from use. It's also the odd duck of the collection as the Albanians made a few changes that can be seen in the length of upper handguard, AK-47 style cocking handle, different magazine shape, and the cruciform bayonet. These rifles were called the "July 10th Rifle" in Albania after Albania's Independence Day. As SKS's on the market go, these are the rarest, as only about 17,000 of them were ever made, and the Albanian government destroyed over two thirds of them before finally releasing the last 5,700 to the commercial arms market. These rifles are also known for having horrible trigger pulls even for a military arm, and this one is no exception. It also has the initials "AR" carved into it's stock, presumably by an Albanian soldier who once carried it.
The second one is my old reliable Chinese SKS, known in China as the Type 56. It was made in government factory number 26 but I do not know when. Unlike the nicely-finished commercial SKS's manufactured in China for export to America, this one has the older relatively crude varnish finish.Center rifle is a Romanian SKS--also known as a Model 56--that was manufactured in Curgar, Romania in 1960. I just had it out on the range the other day for the first time, and it shoots well. I like it.
To the right of that one is an authentic Russian rifle, known as the Model 45. (the one with the prominent sling.)This was the one that started it all, and every other SKS is a license-built copy or knock-off of this one. This is the one that just came last night and I was very pleased when I opened the box. It has it's original finish (most imported Russian rifles have a nasty "re-arsenal" finish that's crude to say the least) and it was made in 1954 at the Tula factory outside Moscow. It appears almost pristine and I can't find any evidence that it was ever fired--no carbon or primer marks--not even wear that indicates that the action has operated.
And on the far right, is the Yugoslavian version known as the Model 59. This one came with a broken front sight post but is still has the best trigger pull of the bunch and it groups very nicely indeed at 100 yards. The Yugoslavian version is the only one made without a chrome-lined barrel, reportedly because the Yugoslavians could not obtain the chromium needed to manufacture them. But fortunately this one apparently wasn't shot much as the bore doesn't show the ravages of the corrosive ammunition that the eastern bloc has always used and the muzzle crown isn't all funneled out from the tragic over-use of steel cleaning rods that is so common to military rifles the world over.
One nice thing about these guns is that with the exception of the Albanian rifle, they are all so similar that replacement parts are interchangable between them. (And even the Albanian gun shares about 95% commonality with the others.) All take the same cheap and effective 7.62x39MM cartridge and can be maintained with the same tools. These rifles are an interesting addition to my historical collection due to their former roles are weapons on the other side of the Cold War and now they're also fun shooters for quick trips to the range.
Here's Lagniappe with my old Chinese SKS. Silly dog... When I suggested we go get Chinese, that's NOT what I had in mind!
