I looked for a used SKS yesterday at the pawn, he had both chineses and russian made, but told me the russian made were "more" collectible and he wanted about 30% more for the ruskie. I am seeking you guys' opinion. What do you think??
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I looked for a used SKS yesterday at the pawn, he had both chineses and russian made, but told me the russian made were "more" collectible and he wanted about 30% more for the ruskie. I am seeking you guys' opinion. What do you think??
Functionally, no difference! No real accuracy difference, either. Somehow, I get the feeling the Soviets built the SKS's for eyewash and maybe export rather more than for front line use, as the AK program was well under way in the fifties, which is the manufacture date of most all Soviet SKS rifles ever seen. The SKS was brought out for parades and other public duties, keeping the AK hidden as long as possible. Similar story w/ the AK-74.
Anyway, get whatever is the most original and has the best bore for shooting purposes. (some folks have managed to ruin even chrome lined bores!)
For collecting, well, logic has nothing to do w/ it!
A lot of the Chinese SKS's have pinned barrels, and some people don't like that.
Get the Russian.....they invented the rifle, not Hop Sing or One Hung Lo.
MIke
Now if it's a Russian vs a Romanian, I'd vote for the Romanian. A lot less Romanian's exist and they are the first direct clone of the Russian rifle.
And the pinned barrels make no difference unless you are fitting a new stock.
And if you covered the markings on the receiver, you wouldn't notice how the Russian is supposedly better.
I would personally pick a Chinese over a Russian because they are less collectible, shoot the same, cost less, and I don't feel bad about beating it up a bit. I would only pick a Russian if it was the same cost as a run of the mill Norinco.
With the recent flood of Russian SKSs into Canada, I'd say that an early original Chinese military SKS is more collectible than it was before.
My blade bayoneted Factory 26 is a far nicer rifle than the refurb Russian I purchased.