Norinco SKS...What have you heard??

badazwelder · September 12, 2010, 10:09 AM

I purchased a chinese Norinco SKS of course in 7.62 x .39. It has a synthetic monte carlo stock, and has been adapted to accept high capacity mags. I purchased 2 - 20 rd tapco mags. I broke this rifle down completely, lubed and cleaned everything. Took this weapon to the range and am very satisfied with the way it fires and its accuracy. I am shooting wolf hollow points. Just wanted to know about everyone elses experiences with the SKS rifle good or bad. I am a former marine, and really i love this rifle. Thanks everyone. D

farmer-dave · September 12, 2010, 10:29 AM

Their a good rifle, most people leave them stock for reliability but as long as yours works with the modifications then happy shooting. You can add tech sights to them to really improve their accuracy by adding a peep and longer sight radius. I modded mine with those sights and a big rubber butt pad to my stock rifle. I call it my cheap deer rifle and I bought some 154 grain soft points for it.

wnycollector · September 12, 2010, 10:42 AM

Quote:

You can add tech sights to them to really improve their accuracy by adding a peep and longer sight radius.

+1 for tech-sights. It is the best $45 I ever spent on a rifle upgrade.

I have had my norinco sks for 20 years. It has a great rifle. rugged, reliable and now accurate (3 moa @100 yards).

jhenry · September 12, 2010, 11:20 AM

Are the Tech sights the ones you have to remove every time you remove the dust cover to clean the thing?

wnycollector · September 12, 2010, 11:43 AM

Quote:

clean the thing

What's this cleaning thing you speak of?

Seriously, I don't take my dust cover off every time I clean my SKS. I squirt out the innards under the dust cover with gunscrubber and then some CLP. Everything else gets cleaned as normal. On the few occasions I have taken off the sights/dust cover, they have not lost zero. Tech-sights are a much more robust and stable setup than scopes mounted on the dust cover.

martin08 · September 12, 2010, 09:57 PM

You should continue to have good luck with the Tapco mags if they are functioning fine already. Not much to worry about at all. The SKS is one tough gun.

Clean the firing pin channel well and keep it free from oil so it won't gunk up and create a potential slam-fire situation, and then just fire away!

Rampant_Colt · September 12, 2010, 10:10 PM

Got my Norinco SK back in the early '90s when they were like $79

Ram-Line synthetic stock [i foolishly Dremel'd the evil cleaning rod and bayonet lugs off during the Klinton administration]

The only extended SK mag i've ever had positive feeding with was the chi-com 20rd fixed mag that's readily available and easily installed

jhenry · September 12, 2010, 10:21 PM

I am not OCD or anything but I am not going to clean my rifle like that. Rifles, with very few exceptions, get cleaned from the breach. The bolt comes out and gets cleaned as well. There is a reason why the dust cover comes off that easy, and the guts come out that easy. Because they are supposed to.

M4Sherman · September 12, 2010, 11:17 PM

I enjoy mine but if you want reliability stick to the stock mag...BUT they are tons of fun to tinker on and there are tons of modifications you can make to turn it into a sweet little toy

I have modded my bolt carrier, worked the trigger and added a cobray duck-bill-less conversion kit that I bought off a dude (been out of production for 20 years or so.

here are some pictures

HistoryJunky · September 13, 2010, 12:45 AM

Does your duckbill-less SKS just use standard AK magazines then? That'd be really cool. I always thought the SKS was a neat looking gun and even better if it could use AK magazines. Too bad they don't still make those kits eh?

Ignition Override · September 13, 2010, 02:45 AM

I've had my typical Norinco for over two years: all original and would never replace the magazine. Might someday add a Tech Sight.

The ergonomics beat those of any 'AK clone' and the magazine is always there. A very thorough friend from Germany, who plans things very well, somehow once forgot to bring his AR's mag. I've never considered selling my Norinco, though I sold four other rifles.

The "slam-fire" can be tragic. Look up an old article in "the Sacramento Bee" newspaper, about a guy who died at a gun range.

martin08 · September 13, 2010, 05:48 AM

Quote:

Does your duckbill-less SKS just use standard AK magazines then?

It is just a standard aftermarket SKS magazine with an adapter that goes in place of the duckbill. AK mags are too wide to fit in the receiver of an average SKS.

The SKS-M and D models are built to accept AK mags. They are usually a bit pricier by $100 or more per gun.

blume357 · September 13, 2010, 06:22 AM

20 round non-detachable magazines... Not as tech-no-cool looking as the standard 20 or 30 round mags but I don't have to fight with the duck bill mags either.

in reference to the tech sights.... what's the deal with some one saying you have to remove them to clean the rifle?

badazwelder · September 13, 2010, 08:07 AM

Hey Rampant Colt, did u steal my gun??? just kidding..thats exactly what mine looks like,but i put on a cheap muzzle break...makes it look pretty mean and i believe it helps...just wanted to let everyone know thanks for all the positive replies and advice...and im gonna look into those sights as soon as i log off....stay safe and happy shooting!!!!

Rampant_Colt · September 13, 2010, 10:26 AM

Welder - my new slant muzzle break went downrange after 3 or 4 shots LoL.. Guess it wasn't on tight enough. I presume you welded yours on.. LoL

I intend on installing a receiver-mounted peep sight to help offset the short 16" barrel sighting radius for long range shots

Oh, and Semper Fi!

M4Sherman · September 13, 2010, 04:16 PM

Quote:

t is just a standard aftermarket SKS magazine with an adapter that goes in place of the duckbill. AK mags are too wide to fit in the receiver of an average SKS

NO it is an AK magazine that met Mr.grinder,MR.file and MR welder. it took time but it is fun

martin08 · September 13, 2010, 10:30 PM

That is cool! I suppose that I should give that a try as well. I've got plenty of spare AK mags to experiment.

I've got a home-made duckbilless of my own, but it utilizes modified Tapco mags and a ledge that I built into a thumbhole stock. This is really a standard SKS, not an SKS-M.

Magnum Wheel Man · September 14, 2010, 07:19 AM

I'm not really a semi auto kinda guy, being a handloader, & only using single stage presses, but my 10-22, & my SKS get shot more than any of my other semi autos...

RAMPANT... your's looks pretty close to the same as mine...

a long time ago ( probably giving up my age here ), I got an early Norinco SKS... one of those $89.00 ones... I proceaded to make it "even more evil", adding a flash hider, folding stock, removable magazines, scope & mount, etc... but a purchased old Mauser a couple years ago, inspired me to rebuild my old SKS ( which I really didn't care for in the form it had taken, inspired by the Clinton era ) into my "ultimate $200.00 SKS" the bayonette & lug were removed, along with the flash hider & 2" of barrel to smooth out the original stepped barrel look of the front end of the gun, the original front sight was relocated to where the bayonette lug was originally on the barrel, & the new barrel end ( 1/2" in front of the sight ), was target crowned ( the gun started life as a long barrel early Chinese SKS, which has the chrome lined barrel ), a $35.00 ATI Black plastic Monte Carlo stock was fitted, replacing what was the original "orange wood" stock, & the cheap Ram Line Folder, which I always hated, a thinner target front sight post was fitted to the original but relocated front sight, & a Tech Sights rear sight was added 8" back from the original rear sight ( which was also removed ), a custom keeper was added to hold the original rear sight spring in place, protecting the gas piston extension, & the rear sight block was ground down in the front center to increase the available sight picture, the attached cleaning rod removed, & the keepers on the front sight were also removed, as was the front welded on the side sling mount to smooth the look, ( a traditional sling stud was added to the front of the stock ), a 20 round fixed box magazine was swapped in place of the stock 10 round fixed box... ( I had previously added the removable magazines, but found them a pain to change out, & found the rifle difficult to shoot in several positions with those long mags... the 20 round fixed box is much shorter than a 20 round removable mag, but after fighting with reliability, I swapped back to the stock fixed 10 round magazine...

here is the rifle pictured about 3/4 of the way through the conversion...

savage1r · September 14, 2010, 10:12 AM

Where can you find those 20 round fixed mags?

Magnum Wheel Man · September 14, 2010, 10:19 AM

I think they've been out of circulation for quite a while... I sold mine at a gun show two years ago... not sure if anyone still lists them or not ???

wnycollector · September 14, 2010, 04:57 PM

Quote:

Where can you find those 20 round fixed mags?

There are several on gunbroker in the $40-60 range. Here is the link to the $40 example http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/Vie...Item=189993441

I just sold one a few months ago for $55, so $40 is not a bad price!

September 12, 2010, 10:09 AM	#1
badazwelder Member Join Date: January 10, 2010 Location: Middleburg,Florida Posts: 39	Norinco SKS...What have you heard?? I purchased a chinese Norinco SKS of course in 7.62 x .39. It has a synthetic monte carlo stock, and has been adapted to accept high capacity mags. I purchased 2 - 20 rd tapco mags. I broke this rifle down completely, lubed and cleaned everything. Took this weapon to the range and am very satisfied with the way it fires and its accuracy. I am shooting wolf hollow points. Just wanted to know about everyone elses experiences with the SKS rifle good or bad. I am a former marine, and really i love this rifle. Thanks everyone. D __________________ Murphys Law

September 12, 2010, 11:20 AM	#4
jhenry Senior Member Join Date: May 27, 2006 Location: Ozarks Posts: 1,840	Are the Tech sights the ones you have to remove every time you remove the dust cover to clean the thing? __________________ "A Liberal is someone who doesn't care what you do, as long as it's mandatory". - Charles Krauthammer

September 12, 2010, 10:10 PM	#7
Rampant_Colt Senior Member Join Date: March 17, 2006 Location: Parts Unknown Posts: 1,478	Got my Norinco SK back in the early '90s when they were like $79 Ram-Line synthetic stock [i foolishly Dremel'd the evil cleaning rod and bayonet lugs off during the Klinton administration] The only extended SK mag i've ever had positive feeding with was the chi-com 20rd fixed mag that's readily available and easily installed __________________ member of an elite paramilitary organization: Eagle Scouts

September 12, 2010, 10:21 PM	#8
jhenry Senior Member Join Date: May 27, 2006 Location: Ozarks Posts: 1,840	I am not OCD or anything but I am not going to clean my rifle like that. Rifles, with very few exceptions, get cleaned from the breach. The bolt comes out and gets cleaned as well. There is a reason why the dust cover comes off that easy, and the guts come out that easy. Because they are supposed to. __________________ "A Liberal is someone who doesn't care what you do, as long as it's mandatory". - Charles Krauthammer

September 13, 2010, 12:45 AM	#10
HistoryJunky Senior Member Join Date: April 7, 2010 Location: Freeport, IL Posts: 833	So.. Does your duckbill-less SKS just use standard AK magazines then? That'd be really cool. I always thought the SKS was a neat looking gun and even better if it could use AK magazines. Too bad they don't still make those kits eh?

September 12, 2010, 10:29 AM	#2
farmer-dave Senior Member Join Date: May 4, 2006 Location: Solomon, Kansas Posts: 127	Their a good rifle, most people leave them stock for reliability but as long as yours works with the modifications then happy shooting. You can add tech sights to them to really improve their accuracy by adding a peep and longer sight radius. I modded mine with those sights and a big rubber butt pad to my stock rifle. I call it my cheap deer rifle and I bought some 154 grain soft points for it.

September 12, 2010, 09:57 PM	#6
martin08 Senior Member Join Date: February 2, 2009 Posts: 181	You should continue to have good luck with the Tapco mags if they are functioning fine already. Not much to worry about at all. The SKS is one tough gun. Clean the firing pin channel well and keep it free from oil so it won't gunk up and create a potential slam-fire situation, and then just fire away!

September 12, 2010, 11:17 PM	#9
M4Sherman Senior Member Join Date: February 15, 2009 Posts: 408	I enjoy mine but if you want reliability stick to the stock mag...BUT they are tons of fun to tinker on and there are tons of modifications you can make to turn it into a sweet little toy I have modded my bolt carrier, worked the trigger and added a cobray duck-bill-less conversion kit that I bought off a dude (been out of production for 20 years or so. here are some pictures

September 13, 2010, 02:45 AM	#11
Ignition Override Senior Member Join Date: February 18, 2008 Location: About 20 nm from the Big Muddy Posts: 2,887	I've had my typical Norinco for over two years: all original and would never replace the magazine. Might someday add a Tech Sight. The ergonomics beat those of any 'AK clone' and the magazine is always there. A very thorough friend from Germany, who plans things very well, somehow once forgot to bring his AR's mag. I've never considered selling my Norinco, though I sold four other rifles. The "slam-fire" can be tragic. Look up an old article in "the Sacramento Bee" newspaper, about a guy who died at a gun range.

September 13, 2010, 06:22 AM	#13
blume357 Senior Member Join Date: August 2, 2005 Location: Greenville, SC Posts: 3,943	I got lucky on mine many years back and found the 20 round non-detachable magazines... Not as tech-no-cool looking as the standard 20 or 30 round mags but I don't have to fight with the duck bill mags either. in reference to the tech sights.... what's the deal with some one saying you have to remove them to clean the rifle?

September 13, 2010, 08:07 AM	#14
badazwelder Member Join Date: January 10, 2010 Location: Middleburg,Florida Posts: 39	Thanks guys Hey Rampant Colt, did u steal my gun??? just kidding..thats exactly what mine looks like,but i put on a cheap muzzle break...makes it look pretty mean and i believe it helps...just wanted to let everyone know thanks for all the positive replies and advice...and im gonna look into those sights as soon as i log off....stay safe and happy shooting!!!! __________________ Murphys Law

September 13, 2010, 10:26 AM	#15
Rampant_Colt Senior Member Join Date: March 17, 2006 Location: Parts Unknown Posts: 1,478	Welder - my new slant muzzle break went downrange after 3 or 4 shots LoL.. Guess it wasn't on tight enough. I presume you welded yours on.. LoL I intend on installing a receiver-mounted peep sight to help offset the short 16" barrel sighting radius for long range shots Oh, and Semper Fi! __________________ member of an elite paramilitary organization: Eagle Scouts

September 13, 2010, 10:30 PM	#17
martin08 Senior Member Join Date: February 2, 2009 Posts: 181	That is cool! I suppose that I should give that a try as well. I've got plenty of spare AK mags to experiment. I've got a home-made duckbilless of my own, but it utilizes modified Tapco mags and a ledge that I built into a thumbhole stock. This is really a standard SKS, not an SKS-M.

September 14, 2010, 07:19 AM	#18
Magnum Wheel Man Senior Member Join Date: July 26, 2006 Location: Southern Minnesota Posts: 9,333	I'm not really a semi auto kinda guy, being a handloader, & only using single stage presses, but my 10-22, & my SKS get shot more than any of my other semi autos... RAMPANT... your's looks pretty close to the same as mine... a long time ago ( probably giving up my age here ), I got an early Norinco SKS... one of those $89.00 ones... I proceaded to make it "even more evil", adding a flash hider, folding stock, removable magazines, scope & mount, etc... but a purchased old Mauser a couple years ago, inspired me to rebuild my old SKS ( which I really didn't care for in the form it had taken, inspired by the Clinton era ) into my "ultimate $200.00 SKS" the bayonette & lug were removed, along with the flash hider & 2" of barrel to smooth out the original stepped barrel look of the front end of the gun, the original front sight was relocated to where the bayonette lug was originally on the barrel, & the new barrel end ( 1/2" in front of the sight ), was target crowned ( the gun started life as a long barrel early Chinese SKS, which has the chrome lined barrel ), a $35.00 ATI Black plastic Monte Carlo stock was fitted, replacing what was the original "orange wood" stock, & the cheap Ram Line Folder, which I always hated, a thinner target front sight post was fitted to the original but relocated front sight, & a Tech Sights rear sight was added 8" back from the original rear sight ( which was also removed ), a custom keeper was added to hold the original rear sight spring in place, protecting the gas piston extension, & the rear sight block was ground down in the front center to increase the available sight picture, the attached cleaning rod removed, & the keepers on the front sight were also removed, as was the front welded on the side sling mount to smooth the look, ( a traditional sling stud was added to the front of the stock ), a 20 round fixed box magazine was swapped in place of the stock 10 round fixed box... ( I had previously added the removable magazines, but found them a pain to change out, & found the rifle difficult to shoot in several positions with those long mags... the 20 round fixed box is much shorter than a 20 round removable mag, but after fighting with reliability, I swapped back to the stock fixed 10 round magazine... here is the rifle pictured about 3/4 of the way through the conversion... __________________ In life you either make dust or eat dust...

September 14, 2010, 10:12 AM	#19
savage1r Senior Member Join Date: March 17, 2009 Posts: 313	Where can you find those 20 round fixed mags?

September 14, 2010, 10:19 AM	#20
Magnum Wheel Man Senior Member Join Date: July 26, 2006 Location: Southern Minnesota Posts: 9,333	I think they've been out of circulation for quite a while... I sold mine at a gun show two years ago... not sure if anyone still lists them or not ??? __________________ In life you either make dust or eat dust...