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Old May 26, 2020, 10:34 AM   #1
BJung
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Loading your SKS

Just out of curiosity, how do you prefer to load your SKS? I prefer to open the bottom and drop the rounds in.
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Old May 26, 2020, 10:42 AM   #2
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How about Stripper-Clips ??

Quote:
Just out of curiosity, how do you prefer to load your SKS? I prefer to open the bottom and drop the rounds in.
Kind of depends on what you have to work with. Stripper Clips are pretty handy, at times. ……

I find it a bit humorous that when they talk about limited capacity magazines, nothing is said about stripper-clips. …..

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Old May 26, 2020, 01:10 PM   #3
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Quote:
I find it a bit humorous that when they talk about limited capacity magazines, nothing is said about stripper-clips. …..
First off, NEVER point out to an anti something they have previously missed!

and second, they do talk about "feed strips" if it happens to have a capacity that trips their limit. Most stripper clips don't.

10rnds on a single stripper is about the biggest you see, and 5rnds is the common amount. The long 30rnd feed strips for Hotchkiss machine guns (while not a stripper clip) is covered under "high capacity feeding devices" where those laws exist.
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Old May 26, 2020, 01:44 PM   #4
JJ45
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The weapon was designed and expected to be loaded via 10 round stripper clips so thats how I have always done it.

Plus if you ever need your SKS in an emergency, it's best to be familiar with the fastest and most practical way to charge the weapon. The way it was expected to be done by troops that were issued the SKS for combat.
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Old May 26, 2020, 04:06 PM   #5
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Quote:
I prefer to open the bottom and drop the rounds in.
Isn't that how you dump your mag contents? I don't see how you can load it that way at all.

SKS load from the top, either by stripper clip or 1 round at a time, pushing down into the fixed mag that is in place, through the locked back, open bolt.
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Old May 26, 2020, 04:26 PM   #6
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I remember back before the Brady Bill (Handgun Violence Prevention Act), that there were SKS's for sale at gun shows that were commercially converted to accept AK removable magazines. It made the SKS's a whole lot more useful.

I find it interesting that since the "Handgun Violence Prevention Act" has expired that no such conversions have re-emerged.
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Old May 26, 2020, 05:19 PM   #7
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Beware of the Antis

I live in CA. And once upon a time, you could shoot an sks with a detachable magazine. Then, CA banned it promising to grandfather in those who already owned such rifles if you recorded ( registered ) them with the State. A friend of mine who shoots but didn't own an SKS thought this was reasonable. He wasn't going to complain. After a few years, the Antis changed the law, had list, and went after the owners. Lesson: Beware of the Antis.
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Old May 26, 2020, 05:21 PM   #8
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Unless I'm taking my time, I always load from the bottom. I don't have to fiddle with the stripper clips or feed them individually through the top.
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Old May 26, 2020, 07:53 PM   #9
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I load one round at a time from the top. Usually, 5 rounds since I enjoy 5 round grouping. Russian SKS -- nice military rifle. Built for Siberia.

.02 David
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Old May 27, 2020, 05:25 AM   #10
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I've never loaded my SKS from the bottom. Only time I open the mag is to dump the ammo that's in it, otherwise is always loaded from the top.
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Old May 27, 2020, 08:57 AM   #11
BillM
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I never even considered loading from the bottom---until I saw Jerry Miculek do it on
TV. Actually works pretty well. Flip rifle over, hinge back magazine/follower, dump
in some rounds and shut the magazine. Sort of like loading a Krag sideways.
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Old May 27, 2020, 09:13 AM   #12
mr bolo
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I usually use stripper clips or load them by hand from the top one at a time

Ive seen Jerry Miculek load them from the bottom in his sks demo
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Old May 27, 2020, 11:18 AM   #13
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Just saw the Jerry Miculek video. That's pretty trick, loading from the bottom. Fun/easy to do at the range. If I ever intended to use an SKS for SD, I'd want to practice using stripper clips, then top-loading. Even Jerry fumbled a little when bottom loading.
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Old May 27, 2020, 12:28 PM   #14
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Stripper clips.
I had hundreds when I had my SKS.
When bored and watching TV, I'd grab the ammo and load the clips.
When it was time to shoot, everything was ready to go.

If single-loading, they went in the top.
I only opened the magazine for cleaning, disassembly, or to dump the magazine.
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Old May 30, 2020, 11:30 AM   #15
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Stripper clips. Seems to be the best way to load the rifle.

--Wag--
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Old May 31, 2020, 10:07 AM   #16
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Just watched the Miculek video. Never occurred to me that I could load the magazine that way. I shall have to give it a try.
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Old May 31, 2020, 02:14 PM   #17
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I used to load my sks with 10 round strippers. Even after the rifle moved on, I saved the strippers. Very handy with a vz58.
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Old June 1, 2020, 09:18 AM   #18
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And stripper clips are cheap and efficient. Events of this past weekend make it clear that fast reloading has its place. Novelty reloading from the bottom is a range trick. Jerry Miculek impresses me with EVERYTHING else he does, but this loading method is just a casual way to load, and a little trick too.
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Old June 1, 2020, 10:04 AM   #19
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I'll need to buy some later. I miss that bandoleer too. That and a VC style hat with the sks looks cool.
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Old June 1, 2020, 12:25 PM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by seanc
And stripper clips are cheap and efficient. Events of this past weekend make it clear that fast reloading has its place. Novelty reloading from the bottom is a range trick. Jerry Miculek impresses me with EVERYTHING else he does, but this loading method is just a casual way to load, and a little trick too.
It's a valid technique when 'topping off' or adding another cartridge or two for the next targets, while moving between shooting positions in certain shooting disciplines - like 2-gun or 3-gun.
But it doesn't save time when reloading from empty, unless you are only allowed to use loose cartridges.
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Old June 1, 2020, 04:13 PM   #21
seanc
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I no longer have an SKS, but bottom loading does have some appeal, to be able to just drop the rounds in the mag and pop the mag back together.
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Old June 4, 2020, 05:02 PM   #22
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I always use stripper clips with an SKS unless I'm just shooting 3 or 5 rounds sighting in.
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Old July 2, 2020, 09:52 PM   #23
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Stripper clip with index finger curled over top round and in between top round and second round while pushing down top round with thumb on same hand. Relieves tension and the rounds slide in quicker.
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Old July 9, 2020, 11:23 PM   #24
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One of mine is uses the aftermarket SKS 30 round mags, so that's what I use. My other two are stock and I almost always load via stripper clips. Until today I didn't know loading from the bottom was even possible.
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Old July 12, 2020, 05:06 AM   #25
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dahermit View Post
I remember back before the Brady Bill (Handgun Violence Prevention Act), that there were SKS's for sale at gun shows that were commercially converted to accept AK removable magazines. It made the SKS's a whole lot more useful.

I find it interesting that since the "Handgun Violence Prevention Act" has expired that no such conversions have re-emerged.
I believe it's because the SKS is much less popular now. Back then, every gun store had a stack of SKS's in the corner for ~$100 each. Now they are much harder to find and prices look to be around $350+.

Just my guess, but I don't see many SKS's anymore. Glad I still have mine, I don't shoot it often as I prefer my other rifles and pistols, but it's always a conversation piece when it does come out these days.
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