Left-hand SKS modification for a partially disabled friend of mine
Hi folks, I posted this on Canadian Gunnutz, thought I could share it here too.
So, a friend of mine had a stroke in September 2013. In his 40's, three girls and a wife... it's been rough, and he sure isn't in shape as he used to be, but he worked really hard and now is back home, and able to take care of himself for the basic things. But, his right side is semi paralyzed... weak muscle strength, and limited fine motor skills. His left side works fine - he'll become a left-handed person, no choice. I told him that I've been left-handed for more than 40 years and I'm doing ok :)
I sold his Remington 700 rifle, and we got working on something which he could use to shoot. We figured that the rifle should have a pistol grip, which allows him to get good control with his left hand. Semi-auto, so he doesn't have to work a bolt repeatedly. Problem is, a semi-auto left-hand rifle isn't common. I was initially thinking of a Remington 740, I know there are some with the cocking handle on the left side, but, well, these aren't found everywhere all the time. ANd they are not really cheap. Still could get to that one someday, and add a thumbhole stock from Boyds. But this one was going to be a build on a tight budget so...
Here comes the SKS.
The donor rifle was your average, used Chinese SKS, whith a bonus Choate mount. Great, I needed one for this build anyways, and I don't mind too much drilling holes in a receiver when it's already been tampered with.
I got a Tapco stock for the pistol grip. My friend initially tried the feel of this stock on my son's Ruger 10/22 and it seemed to suit, so we went for it.
Second, I worked on the scope mount. Had to switch it to the right side because the left side will need to be clear for the bolt carrier knob... Easy enough to level the mount with the receiver, a few hours in the shop drilling and tapping; step 1 completed.
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...dc880ab0-1.jpg
Second, I needed to modify the safety lever, because with one hand on the pistol grip and the other hand not worth much, the safety would have to be operated with the index. For this delicate welding, I didn't trust my beginner's skills, so I went to my local welder who has seen everything and done everything. He welded a curved section of steel, then I spent a couple of hours carefully grinding the part into shape; testing it on, removing it, a bit more grinding, repeat cycle many times...
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...4f82bf50-1.jpg
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...c5753dcb-1.jpg
Step 2 completed, let's move to step 3: the bolt carrier.
I used a fine cut-off disk, removed the cocking handle, and went to my welder's shop again. Back at home, there was a lot of grinding and sanding and polishing involved. The end result isn't perfect, but it'll work! I blued the part, figuring that it may somewhat hide from you a bit of the aesthetic imperfection...
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...229fa37e-1.jpg
Step 3 completed. I had to grind a bit off the rear cover so that the cocking handle wouldn't bang on it (we'll call this one step 3 1/2):
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...e8a533a5-1.jpg
Well, there it is, I just have to put a scope on it, and we'll be testing this one out at the range. If the results are satisfactory, we'll see if theres something useful which could be attached to the forend - forward grip, or a brace of sorts; that'll be the fine tuning, if my friend likes the overall feel. I'm waiting for a buttstock with cheek riser, but other than that, it's pretty much done.
A few more pics:
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...7fafae79-1.jpg
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...16a5a429-1.jpg
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...1a47c0ed-1.jpg
Cheers!
Lou
