Chinese Star Cartouche on right side of wood stock

[Ghost51xxx]

Hello everyone! I'm new to the Forum but not new to sks rifles. My particular interest is in the early Chinese SKS rifles. More particularly the Sinos and Ghosts. I've read a lot of research here and various places but I can't find much on the star cartouche in the stock. My first questions are, What serial number range has the star on the right side of the Chinese stock been found? Has anyone documented the range? Thanks

[Loose}{Cannon]

No sir...  they are completely random. Some folks think they are original to rifle when it was made, and others think it 'could' indicate something entirely different... like a refurb stamp. Not necessarily the entire gun being refurbished, but it could easily be a marking applied by a stock producing factory at a later date and the stock is a replacement. 

The truth is.... we dont know, and anyone who tells you differently is a liar.   

[running-man]

You see them mainly on early guns, I've never seen one on a post 6 mil /26\ gun.  Of course I don't really go looking for them either, if I see them great, if not great.  It's interesting to note that not all early guns have them.  Like LC says, jury is still out on what it means, it's certainly not an acceptance stamp or every gun of that period would have one somewhere.  Sometimes you find them on the inside of the stock where the mortise for the receiver is, other times they are on the right side of the stock, I have also seen them on the left and bottom.  All the other wood acceptance stamps (circle 21, various triangle stamps, etc.) are all in common areas so it's hard to put much faith that these stamps were done when the guns came fresh off the line.