new member introduction

[gregsthe1]

Hello everyone! New member here from Michigan. A few of you may recognize my handle from the AK forums, but glad to be here now as I have just recently purchased my first two SKS's. I spent the last 10 years or so fully engulfed in all things AK, with the last few years concentrated exclusively on the Chinese variants as I like them the most. I reached the end of what my knowledge (and wallet) can handle as far as AK's go, so the next step naturally would be to extend my Chinese 7.62x39 affinity to the close (and cheaper) cousin of the AK... the SKS!

I spent my summer starting from scratch, having never even handled an SKS before. So I've been doing my homework and came up with a couple gems I wanted to share. First is a 1956 5-digit ghost that was imported by I.O. Palm Bay FL late in 2013. It is all matching and is typical of the Albanian used/imported SKS's: carried heavily and shot little. The insides are really clean and I think it will be a fun one to shoot. The other is a /26\ 11 mil 1966 that is not import marked and sold to me as a Vietnam bring back. No papers but the patina is spot on for something of that era. Also all matching, but I don't think I will be shooting this one very often. I had never disassembled an SKS before but was pleased at how everything came apart and went back together. They are really cool guns.

Got a couple bfpu Chinese slings on the way and once I get a few more "correct" accessories I will post some more detailed pics of their features and numbers.




Anyway, happy to be here and looking forward to learning a lot and sharing as much as I can.

Thanks guys!

[Phosphorus32]

Welcome from WA!

Looks like you've got a great start!  Looking forward to more detailed spreads on either or both of those Type 56s  Looks like there's some trench art on the Albanian export.

[gregsthe1]

Thank you! I just picked them up over the weekend and didn't have time for any glamour shots. Once I get a few spare hours I will strip them down so you guys can see their insides. The 11 mil was clearly never shot or disassembled since being brought back as I found a few interesting surprises inside, and considering I had never taken one apart before I was scratching my head a little. Fortunately I also had the ghost example to take apart and was able to easily identify the discrepancies.

And yes, there is a little trench art on the Alby import. Nothing but a few letters/initials. And it appears the flat directly beneath the serial number on the stock was used as a hammer of some kind at one time, it's dented slightly from what appears to be several impacts to that area. Definitely cool though.

[running-man]

Very nice!  Welcome from NM!  Hope you enjoy the boards!  Starting off the SKS collection with some nice type 56s is a pretty good way to go!  My first sino-banian was similar looking with the different colored handguard.




I wound up refinishing the handguard to better match the reddish alby replacement stock.

[Loose}{Cannon]

Trading out one habit forming addiction for another.....  I can dig it!   

Welcome to the Files.   

[gregsthe1]

Trading out one habit forming addiction for another.....  I can dig it!   

Welcome to the Files.   

I am looking forward to where my new addiction takes me, it has been fun so far. I do really enjoy the AK platform, it's just too expensive anymore. Especially if you love the Chicoms like I do. I've owned over 20 different Chinese variants from preban to post ban to military clones. Stamped receiver to milled receiver, sidfolders, underfolders, you name it so there wasn't really anyplace else to go. I recently got married and we bought our first house together so needless to say, I purged a few to help with all that.

I did keep my two favorites and plan to show them off here as well, when time allows. I also got them out momentarily  for a few pictures at the same time as the new SKS's. They both have some rich war history so I'm looking forward to showing them off. Here are a few teaser pics, you /26\ guys can enjoy the spiker:

[carls sks]

hi Greg and welcome. good to have you here. nice start to sks collection. 

[Stoned_Oli]

Good to see you here!
Me love ur Chinese long time! :D

[gregsthe1]

I was fondling the /26\ 11 mil again last night and noticed some side-to-side wiggle of the receiver while in the stock. I've found threads where people will complain about forward/backward and up/down movement but nothing on side-to-side. Something else mentioned in those threads was the fact that while in the jungle climate the stocks would absorb moisture and then once brought stateside and kept in a dry climate the wood would shrink creating some gaps.

Does that sound logical? It does not seem like it will affect the function like it would from being loose forward/backward or up/down so I'm not worried about it, was more wondering if anyone else may have experienced the same issue.

[Phosphorus32]

I guess I'd shoot your 11 mil to see if the side-to-side looseness of the receiver presents an accuracy or precision issue. If it doesn't compare favorably with your other SKS in those categories then you could shim with paper or cork, depending on the degree of the problem. With a Vietnam bring back I certainly wouldn't permanently add or remove any material.


Those AKs are sweet!  We'll need a spread on those too  I only have a couple of AKs but I like them. There are bigger AK collectors hanging around whose names you'll likely recognize depending on which of the boards you frequent(ed), like Bunker.

[Loose}{Cannon]

I would think your side/side wobble of the receiver may stem from the trigger housing not clamping against the stock and drawing it up and into the bottom of the receiver. 

Is there up/down play are the rear of the receiver?

[gregsthe1]

Haven't completely disassembled it yet. Just took a moment to field strip it to wipe down the insides and ran a few oily patches down the bore till I got some time to sit down and do it the right way. I will be looking closely once I do to see if it may happen to be anything obvious.

Absolutely no forward/backward or up/down movement at all. But when I hold the barrel end of the stock in one hand and the barrel itself in the other it wiggles side to side 1/4 inch at least.

[Loose}{Cannon]

Thats odd.

I would think if the trigger snapped in tight against the stock, it wouldn't do that.

[gregsthe1]

Trigger seems like it is installed properly, though I still haven't had the time to completely disassemble it yet. The play at the barrel end of the stock is around 1/4 inch, but is secure and without play at the receiver end. That combination realizes about a 1/16" gap on either side of where the barrel meets the receiver for total play in that spot of about 1/8". That amount of movement is at the end of the spectrum, when the cleaning rod is installed and the bayo folded into it's closed position it helps to reduce the wiggle somewhat.

I was able to snap a couple quick pics before work. With the cleaning rod removed and the bayonet folded up you can see the total amount of play at the barrel end of the stock, though the newly discovered crack may be a clue as to what is going on. Didn't notice it before, and I suppose it is likely that some hidden wood damage may be to blame. I'll know for sure once I get the time to take it all apart. It's really not a big deal to me as I honestly won't be shooting it all that often. And once I get it tore down, it may be likely that a strategically placed piece of cork may fix it right up. I will detail my findings once I start a new topic dedicated to this rifle.




Anyway, thanks for the kind words. Sorry my introduction thread turned into a Dr. Who mystery, but I am grateful for the help and happy to be here. Hopefully I will be able to snag a few more awesome SKS's in the near future!

[Loose}{Cannon]

Ah....  I see now.

Could be an easy fix with a careful build up of epoxy and carefully re-fitting.

[Stoned_Oli]

Anyway, thanks for the kind words. Sorry my introduction thread turned into a Dr. Who mystery, but I am grateful for the help and happy to be here. Hopefully I will be able to snag a few more awesome SKS's in the near future!

Clara, Amy, or Zoey? 

[gregsthe1]

Clara, Amy, or Zoey? 

Since my wife is a ginger I suppose I would pick Amy... got a thing for red-heads 

[Justin Hell]

Does that huge crack in the stock visible from the outside through to the bayonet groove seem to have anything to do with it or is it just sitting there pointing out that issue?    Is there any wood missing on the inside?  It may be possible the movement actually caused it when firing...due to an ill shaped stock. Pics of that without the rifle might help.  If anything obvious isn't seen...folks with micrometers could check and see if the stock was just bunk from the factory. I wonder if you could get a decent recording of firing it, you would hear a sound similar to swinging for the bleachers with a cracked bat.

Who knows, this might be the reason it was a bring back...if accuracy is affected by this, the previous owner might have lost a duel.

Something I would try, swap out the stocks and see if the problem translates over to the other gun. That will at least tell you whether it is the stock that is the problem, or the stock retainer.  Granted there is quite a few years between the two, and variances in tolerances with the SKS are well known...it shouldn't be THAT much of a variance. Of course you can only do this with the bayonets extended, but those probably wouldn't have anything to do with it.

For a non damaging/permanent fix, you might try plumbers putty packed into the stock retainer.  It won't alter the historical rifle, and should eliminate the movement....just don't use too much or it will squish out and be visible.  It shouldn't discolor anything, and should harden a little over time. Heck, you could even try staining the putty before use to try match the stock color even if it does show a little...  I don't know if staining the putty is possible...but you will have plenty left over. I have never seen the bottom of a tub of that stuff.

Oh...and welcome from Montana!
 

[gregsthe1]

Thanks Justin, good advise. I do really want to take it apart to see but the more I think about it, the more I may just leave it alone. When I shoot it I will learn more and hopefully it won't affect function and accuracy too much. And then I'll field strip it to clean, but I could tell when I field stripped it the first time that it hadn't been taken apart since it was brought back.

The top cover and bolt/carrier had been removed since because the recoil spring was in backwards. The guy I bought it from didn't know SKS's and I'm sure he put the spring in backwards. I could tell something was weird because when I pulled the carrier handle back it made noise and was binding up. But when I took the gas tube off I found a rusty spring on the gas tube shaft that is identical to the plunger spring located in the rear sight. So basically I got two of the same springs but one was in the wrong spot and didn't belong there obviously. Based on the rust on both the spring and where it had been riding on the gas piston shaft I could tell it had been there for a long time. Not sure if it would even fire correctly with a plunger spring in the gas tube, has anyone ever seen that before. Bubba mistake maybe? Vietnamese Bubba mistake maybe? Could be a unintelligent NVA soldier didn't know any better during its last field strip during the war and whoever brought it back never removed the tube. It was at that point I realized it probably was an actual bring back.

Long story short I would like to figure out what is going on with the stock, but another part of me wants to leave it be and just enjoy occasionally as-is. Believe me if i decide to figure it out and take it apart to see, I'll take some good pics and let you guys know.

[Loose}{Cannon]

Spring on the piston?   

 The stock....  Heck, you can just bend a toothpick to the same curve at the end if the stock, trim, and glue in place... Both sides.  File down if need be.