Commercial serial number data

[XXXSKS]

   After reading some posts on another thread I discovered that there is a hidden serial number data base in this section (Commercial). The data includes information I have collected. This is a request to the moderators of this board to make this information public. Please this request is not about me seeing this information it is about EVERYBODY seeing this information. That is why I include sn data in the Commercial section of the Chinese SKS Guide. It never bothered me that a person only posted a few times. asking the same old question "when was it made and did I get a good deal. What bothers me is we my loose their information for ever. On the guide I have a public email and I receive serial numbers and pictures of readers rifles all the time.  I have several that need to be added to the list. Having serial number data in different locations is ridiculous. You guys want this to be the master list that is OK. Please make it public so everybody can see it and everybody can contribute.

......................Joe

[Power Surge]

I agree with Joe...I didn't know you had to have 100 posts to see that info.

[Loose}{Cannon]

Wait..   Whats wrong with contributing 100 posts before accessing many peoples hard work?

Serious question ∆

Whats the down side?

[Power Surge]

Wait..   Whats wrong with contributing 100 posts before accessing many peoples hard work?

Serious question ∆

Whats the down side?

This is just me speaking on a personal level here...

When I have an interest in something, I will search out a forum or enthusiast site. I like to find an absorb as much info as I can on a subject. I like to interact with questions and whatnot from the get go. I don't like joining forums where I have to come up with "x" amount of useless posts before I can access information that I have questions about. (This excludes for sale sections...I do understand the reasons for that post limit.) I will be quickly turned off by a forum that hides info until I have spent time posting there. Don't get me wrong...I have been an admin and moderator of many forums over the years, so I do see the point, but I'm just saying that from a member level, it's a turn off for me and I'll go elsewhere when I run across that. 

[running-man]

We've had various issues with guests, non-members, and 10 post wonders actively accessing the S/N board data and 'free riding' w/o helping to compile one single entry.  Then they utilize the information on other boards to bash the admin of these boards.  What we're intending with the data boards is that the people who access them simply be contributing members of SKS-Files.  That's really all we're asking here.  The intent is not to have secret boards, or to hide anything.  We openly talk about the Serial Boards (each and every single section has one) and we have links to the Serial boards in many of the FAQ/HOWTO/Guides like this one: Chinese SKS FAQ, HOWTOs, & Guides in Chinese SKS (Military) - Page 1 of 1

Contributing members post.  They let people see their unique firearms.  They share information.  They spend time here and they make this place their home. 

I'd certainly love to see all the Serial Data boards be 100% public, but unfortunately the behavior we've seen simply doesn't allow this at this time (Try to post a link to SKS-Files or chinesesks.weebly.com over at SKSboards (oh look you can actually type that web address here) and see how fast the link is ****'d out, the post removed, and yourself given a warning or banishment).  Maybe we can revisit it later, but for now we need some sort of firewall to filter out this kind of ridiculousness. 

As for ownership of the S/N stuff, as far as I'm concerned, XXXSKS has the official list.  I have zero verifying photos of any commercial models, and as I've seen many times previous, a list w/o photos is often useless as the data is corrupted and cannot be verified.  They are simply not what I've been interested in and I haven't bothered to record the ones that have passed across my screen.  Whether they are kept here or the guide doesn't matter to me, PS seems to have taken up the mantle here so you'll have to work that out with him.  I will say that I think the lists should be sanitized, explicit information of who owns what should be removed, and at least the last digit of *every* S/N should be X'd to help anonymize things a bit. 

If the threshold to be a contributing member (100 posts) is too high, we can certainly revisit that, but I agree with LC 100% on this one, compiling the S/N databases is hard work.  I'm happy to share it with any members of this board, but they darn well need to be contributing members that are going to give as well as take.

[CARBINE]

I have to agree 100 posts seems ok too me, why give the hard work of everyone out to everyone who is not a contributed member, but I do believe it should be more clear in the rules and info section what is the post count of when you can see things and why.

[Loose}{Cannon]

I have to agree 100 posts seems ok too me, why give the hard work of everyone out to everyone who is not a contributed member, but I do believe it should be more clear in the rules and info section what is the post count of when you can see things and why.

Noted, and we will try to make these parameters more clear in the board info section.   

We dabeated many many times as to how to handle this conundrum, and at the time, it pertained to the non commercial sections and the serial data associated to them.  When PS wanted to collect commercial serials, it just made sense to duplicate the same method in which we handle the others.  As RM says, these boards are not secret at all but quite the opposite. 

[XXXSKS]

Wait..   Whats wrong with contributing 100 posts before accessing many peoples hard work?

Its my hard work and I can't even see it am I not a contributing member of this board

Whats the down side?

Not everybody wants to live here. They just want to know about the rifle in their hand?
If they can't see it they won't contribute.  I will NEVER understand this you have to be a contributing member crap.

HOW MUCH DO YOU HAVE TO GIVE TO BE A CONTRIBUTING MEMBER

[KILLDOZER]

I dunno, I'm thinking a hunnerd posts is kinda high !!    I've been pretty active since being invited here, and i'm surely no info-stealing troll, but I've only got 30 posts, and I may NEVER get to a hundred, without just posting to be posting ! 
( which,of course, is troll-like behavior      )

[CARBINE]

I see both sides I guess, I have been a active member on the other forum for years and still can't see things and it does suck, maybe 50 posts would be better with a rule of no posts just to bump your count......no good answer on this I guess.

[Loose}{Cannon]

Easy there killer....

There are positives and negatives in most situations and we are only weighing the scales here.  Its not like there isn't any information available to owners about said guns. I would think you, me, and everyone else here are dedicated to document all aspects of these rifles in an easy to access/find way. 

We are not however amused by being used by arrogant boards whom intentionally shun sksfiles but yet benifit from it without so much as a reference as to where the research data came from. Make sense?

I also dont have much skin in the commercial serial lists and don't care as much as the others which are far more elaborate and ongoing information resources liable to be stolen by wouldbe 'book writers'.  There are many angles of this situation you may not be up to speed on and likely not appropriate to discus in open forum.

I agree that one location for said serial list makes the most sense.  Are you apposed to a compromised 'meet in the middle' solution, or is this an 'all or nothing' proposal?

[Greatguns]

My observation. Joe's profile under his avatar say Contributing member even though he is under 100 posts. Sounds like maybe something is awry here as in a little programing fopa. Isn't there an override for members who 'contribute' to negate the 100 post count? Kind of like the trader limit on 'the other board'. If something is not in place maybe something should be. Meaning, if someone supports financially they become a contributing member thus making them eligible for everything that normally would have to wait until they reached 100 posts.  Just sayin'

[Loose}{Cannon]

No... 100 posts access to serial data is not contributor controled for the sole purpose of gaining access with a simple $5 contribution.  Board Contributor opens the club house and P/R

We gave BC to ALL members joining in the first few months, including xxxsks and the serial boards were not even conceived yet. 

[Greatguns]

No... 100 posts access to serial data is not contributor controled for the sole purpose of gaining access with a simple $5 contribution.  Board Contributor opens the club house and P/R

We gave BC to ALL members joining in the first few months, including xxxsks and the serial boards were not even conceived yet.

Ah, okay.

[Power Surge]

I will say that I think the lists should be sanitized, explicit information of who owns what should be removed, and at least the last digit of *every* S/N should be X'd to help anonymize things a bit. 

Here is what I'm thinking ..... let the member decide if he wants to have his forum name next his owned gun. And if so, then XX the last two of the serial on those guns.

The reason for this idea is because many times people have guns that other members have questions about or have a similar gun, and it allows people to interact and share information. If it's just a serial on a list, the information ends there.

[XXXSKS]

If you x out the last number or two numbers (or hide the list completely) you don't learn anything at all. Take the Poly Tech Hunter as an example if you x out the last two numbers you don't know for a fact there is 985 known to be in the hands of collectors or when by serial number the changes to the Sporter happen. I can get it close but I for one would like to know the exact serial number break when changes happen. I agree I my never find this information but a public serial number list is a start.

Power surge
If you want to encourage interaction an open sticky thread on say the Type 84 as an example. Will encourage the sharing and interaction of that rifle. Instead of three separate threads, have only one labeled Navy Arms Type 84 post your pics here.

....................Joe

[Loose}{Cannon]

The only reason to have the entire serial shown is the Hunter.... Other then that particular variant the last 1-2 digits of the serial is completely irrelevant.  The research does not 'stop there' nor does it keep people from discussing said rifles. 

With the amount of serials we are and will be collecting, its best to prevent possible issues that may arise by eliminating the equation all together.   You already see an example right here in this thread of someone that does not wish to have a full serial nor their name attached to it within a list.  Times this by the thousands of serials taken from all over the interweb and your asking for problems by not xx the last digits. 

The other side to the situation you guys may be over looking is....   A list full of complete serials may deter people from wanting to add/share their example in the first place.

Again...  This issue has been beat to death by the Admins and the scales have been weighed. 

If you want to record the entire serial on the Hunter thats fine, but you need a disclosure stating its not necessary and you can/will remove or xx if someone has an issue with it.  You also need to state that if anyone finds their serial on said list and they did not contribute it (found on GB etc)...you will take it down or xx at their request.