SKS Question

[Brandi]

Recently I've seen advertised on various sites, SKS's with "matching numbers" along with a corresponding premium price. I don't know enough about SKS's to know if matching numbers actually make the gun more valuable, does it matter?

What, in addition to or other than (depending on the answer to the above question) would set an SKS apart from all the others and justify the higher prices?

I should have bought one years ago when they were $70 but I didn't and now they are just too expensive from what I've seen but if I come across an especially good deal or something special I might take interest. What is a reasonable price for a standard/nothing special/good condition SKS these days?

Thanks!

 

[christ0pher]

Bear in mind I am no expert on SKSs but I can give you some limited info before a more knowledgeable person answers...

Recently there have been quite a few sino-Soviet SKSs showing up, most places letting them go for 275-315 shipped... I bought one from Atlantic firearms for 299... Most seem to be all matching from what I've read elsewhere... The metal is in decent/good shape and the stocks are nowhere near pretty... They just show moderate use, a little trench art, etc.. These would be what I would call nothing a special good condition SKS and that price seems to be the average now (from what I've seen with my limited experience)

I don't think they are by any means rare.. Rarer and more expensive would be a variant of a Yugo SKS, or another eastern bloc country..

As for matching numbers, if you are solely collecting I would say yes that increases the value/price of the gun...



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[cjjtulsa]

Yes - matching numbers increase the value of the SKS, particularly those that are considered collectable. Non-matching Russians can drop in value much more than a non-matching Chinese, though. Same with the Yugos.

As far as justifying higher prices, the SKS has really taken off over the last few years for collectors, with Russians leading the pack. First year rifles (1949), ex-DDR rifles, "Izzy" rifles, among others. Then you have refurbs, non-refurbs, and "as-issued" rifles, with big jumps in price and collectability between the three. For the refurbs, there are "light refurbs", which didn't get too much work when being re-arsenaled, and still have all matching numbers and blued steel. Then there are rifles with more involved refurbishment, which can include force-matched numbers and "BBQ" paint over the bluing. Naturally, the closer to "as-issued" or "non-refurb" you get, the higher the price. And add in the more rare/unusual examples I listed above, the more valuable. The average refurbed Russian in good shape will likely run anywhere from $400-$500 these days, with some higher and some lower, especially if they've been "bubba'd" or are missing original parts.

Chinese rifles that can bring money are any of the 16" "paratrooper" models, with the highest priced rifles being the "SKS-D" and "M" or "Sporter" models that were modified to take AK mags. The "D" is worth the most, as it was an early import, and is typically a full-length rifle that retained the bayonet. One I'm looking out for is the "Chinese Security Forces" rifle, which is very rare, and the majority of people know nothing of it. That's good for me, if I run onto one! The Chinese also seem to rapidly loose value when someone swaps stocks, changes/loses the factory mag, removes the bayonet, swaps the top cover for a "tacticool" one with a scope mount, or worse - drills the receiver for a scope mount. The upside is you can find lots of Chinese rifles, usually at pretty good prices once you weed out the Tapco bubbas who think their gussied-up Chicom is worth a fortune. Edit to mention: there are threaded barrels and pinned, and some prefer one or the other, and some don't care. And then there are the different arsenals some prefer, but most don't care. Depending on condition, I see "standard" Chinese anywhere from $250 to $400 on the used market, paras run usually from $350-$500.

As for Yugos, I don't have much experience with them, other than to know that they are a nice, desirable variant. The most valuable of any SKS you will likely never see, and that's the North Vietnamese, the East German Karabiner-S. Only a handful of those ever made it state-side, and they are stupid expensive in the rare event that they do come up.

Sorry for the novel, but as you can see - I like the SKS! It gets an undeserved bad rap for legions of cheap rifles years ago. The Russian guns are well built, quality rifles.

 

[MP43]

Matching numbers indicates that the rifle is still in its original configuration with the same parts it left the factory with. Non-matching means that someone, maybe a military arsenal, maybe Bubba, assembled a pile of mis-matched parts into something that looks like an SKS, but may or may not function as intended. SKSes are actually pretty forgiving of this sort of thing, as they were designed with relatively loose tolerances from the start. So its not as big of a deal as it is for more precision-made weapons like Lugers and broomhandle Mausers. But its still a factor, and prices reflect this. Of course, which parts are mis-matched is important also. A non-matching triggerguard or buttplate isn't likely to impact reliability or accuracy, so shouldn't be much of a factor if you're looking for a shooter. A mis-matched bolt assembly, on the other hand, requires more caution.
Also be aware that some guns may be advertised as matching numbers based on electro-penciled numbers that were added after the rifle left the factory. "Force-matching" parts with an electro-pencil is a common technique at Eastern Block arsenals. From a collector standpoint, only factory stamped-in markings count toward "matching numbers."

A variant to look for, if collectability is a factor, is the Albanian SKS. They weren't produced in large numbers and only a couple thousand were imported into the US. Its been reported that those remaining in Albania were destroyed by the UN, so there won't be any more coming. Right now they're priced about the same as a nice Russian SKS, but are much, much rarer. I believe that the price differential will increase as more people view the SKS as a collectable and start looking for pieces to fill out their displays. Albanian SKSes have several unique features, with an AK47-style bolt lever, longer handguard, and buttplate with two trapdoors being the most obvious.
Romanian SKSes are another semi-rare variant that will likely continue to increase in value. Romanians tend not to be as pretty as Russian rifles, but are generally just as well made and accurate.
As for Yugos, there are two main variants, the M59 and M59/66. The M59/66 has permanently affixed grenade-launcher hardware, the M59 does not. Right now, prices are similar between the two. However, the M59s are far more rare, as most went through arsenal refurbishment at some point, and were rebuilt in the newer configuration.
Aside from the rifles themselves, each country tended to have its own variants of sling, ammo pouches, cleaning kits and so forth. Many of these pieces have become somewhat collectable in their own right, and a rifle outfitted with correct accessories will bring a premium, sometimes a significant one, over a bare rifle or one with some generic items.
Anyway, whatever you get, they're fun to shoot, relatively accurate for a service-grade weapon, and ammo is abundant. Everybody should have at least one!

 

[ronny]

Brandi, unless you're gonna "collect" an SKS, the best buy in terms of quality and cost for a good shooter is a Standard Chinese, matching numbers preferred, but not necessary.

Search around on these sites and get more info than you ever wanted. http://www.sksboards.com/smf/index.php and http://www.yooperj.com/

 

[Brandi]

Wow, I had no idea it was so complex, it's like the AK-47. Hmm...yeah, I'm not that in to these guns enough to go through all that. I think I'll just keep an eye out for a good deal on a good shooter SKS for fun rather than collector value in the long term.

So the most basic gun that is still good quality should run in the $250+ area? After reading all this stuff it sounds like if you don't know your SKS stuff you could easily get taken, that's my only concern. It's not in the budget at the moment anyway but I'll keep an eye out.

Thanks for the info and the education!

 

[cjjtulsa]

Wow, I had no idea it was so complex, it's like the AK-47. Hmm...yeah, I'm not that in to these guns enough to go through all that. I think I'll just keep an eye out for a good deal on a good shooter SKS for fun rather than collector value in the long term.

So the most basic gun that is still good quality should run in the $250+ area? After reading all this stuff it sounds like if you don't know your SKS stuff you could easily get taken, that's my only concern. It's not in the budget at the moment anyway but I'll keep an eye out.

Thanks for the info and the education!

Nah, you won't get taken. An SKS would have to be pretty heavily messed with for someone to get burned on it; the real caution area is for the collector rifles, not so much shooters, unless they've been obviously modified. A good, standard Chinese should run in the $300 to $350 area if it's in nice shape; once in a while you'll get someone to let one go for less than $300, but prices have climbed enough that it isn't real often anymore. There should be some nice ones turn up in the classifieds here, and I've seen some nice ones on armslist as well.

Thanks, MP43 - I forgot about the Albanian and Romanian rifles.

 

[gfercaks33]

$300 is a good price. Classic arms has some Chinese t56 sks for 269 currently.

 

[AKguy1985]

$300 is a good price. Classic arms has some Chinese t56 sks for 269 currently.

Agreed. $300 or so is about what the chinese ones are going for. I'm sure everybody has seen J&G sales wanting to try and get $500 out of theirs!!!! I'm sure they arent selling.

 

[TDannar]

$300 is a good price. Classic arms has some Chinese t56 sks for 269 currently.

Just got one of these and paid the extra $20 for matching numbers. Cleaned up real nice.