Just bought a Yugo SKS

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ShootAndHunt

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Yesterday when I came to my favorite gun store (checking out the AR rifles), I found that they just have some Yugo SKS in stock. They are marked as New and the guys in the gun store said these guns are never fired. These SKS has matching number on stock and receiver and some other place, with grenade launcher sight and bayonet. They look so cool (except the fixed launcher sight and muzzle device) that I end up buy one. $139.99, it may not be the best price, but for a new Yugo SKS it is worth the money. (dirty cheap, I think.)

Could any one tell me how to clean the cosmoline on this gun, this kind of grease is all over the SKS (even some on the stock) and I have no any experience how to clean it, especially on the stock and in the action (fire pin)?

Is the barrel on the Yugo SKS pined or threaded onto the receiver?

I will mainly use this rifle for plinking and fun. The ammo 7.62 x 39mm is quite cheap. Don't have any plan to add optics, but I did ask the option, and was told tha I have to buy something completely replace the receiver upper cover to mount a scope, and it costs about $65!!!!!
 
I'll address part of the cosmoline question. I just purchased a Yugo SKS about a month ago and devoted considerable time into removing the cosmoline. The suggestion I followed that worked nicely was to use mineral spirits (paint thinner). Yugoslavian cosmoline is quickly taken care of with the mineral spirits. Then you need to remove the mineral spirits' oily residue. WD-40 works nicely. It's easily removed. However, there are so many nooks and crannies on the SKS, it took me probably 6 to 8 hours over several days of messing with it to get all of it. You can use the same process on the wood. Won't hurt it. The cosmoline on my Yugo hadn't soaked into it like an old Yugo Mauser I had so I didn't have to bake it or use over cleaner on the wood. Cosmo just wiped off the wood also.

Now as to the bolt assembly/firing pin. The key thing here is that when you shake it, the firing pin has to rattle back and forth. It it doesn't move freely, you're looking at the possibility of a slam fire which is fairly high on the "bad" scale. One way is to take the bolt assembly apart to get at the firing pin. It's apparently hard to do on some of the bolts and requires a punch, hammer, and a sailor's vocabulary so I didn't attempt it.. (Check some of the SKS boards for details.) One suggestion which I followed but can't recommend for safety reasons is to soak the the bolt assembly in gasoline for 15 minutes. It gets rid of all the cosmoline and makes it the way it ought to be. But I wouldn't and haven't recommended it because you could blow up, turn to toast and die. But if you did it and didn't turn to toast, you'd have a clean bolt assembly like mine. (I soaked mine in a small plastic tub that I set in the middle of my back yard. At night.)

I believe the barrel is screwed in but I'll let somebody with more info answer that definitively.

Optics are an iffy issue with SKS rifles. You usually have to replace the receiver cover with one that has built in scope mounting rings or whatever. Problem is that the cover has some wiggle to it. So it won't be as tight an arrangement as with some other rifles.
 
I agree with everything Murphster said.

The links below will give you some help with dissassembly. Take it all apart and scrub everything with mineral spirits and an old toothbrush. Soak all the small parts in a glass bowl, especially the bolt if you feel uncomfortable about taking it apart.

It might not be a bad idea to warm the bolt and the trigger group assembly on a pan in your oven at it's lowest setting. This will melt the cosmoline and make it runny. Now dunk those warm parts in the mineral spirits.

I'll repeat what was said above, make sure that firing pin rattles freely when you shake the bolt. If it doesn't, you could have a real slamfire problem.

Once you have it cleaned good and dried, don't forget to oil up everything metal real well.

As far as the wood is concerned, you can clean that with either Mineral Spirits or Lemon Oil works nicely also. I've use Tung Oil on the wood after that, but you could probably use Boiled Linseed Oil also.

http://will.mylanders.com/shot/sks/

http://www.surplusrifle.com/sks/maintenance.asp

I'm not sure where you are, but if you are east of the Mississippi, you can get a case of Barnual HP or FMJ ammo from www.dansammo.com for cheap and with free shipping. It's great ammo too.

Good luck with your new rifle!
 
Brake cleaner works well to soak the bolt assembly in. Works better than gas (IMO), is safer (somewhat), and can be had cheaper than gas (in some locations, YMMV).

The barrel is threaded in.

Yugo SKSs are as solid as they come, and fun shooters too. Enjoy it.
 
Just picked up my AIM Yugo this afternoon. It was one of their "like new" ones for $129. It's very nice.

Cosmoline? Yup, everywhere, sometimes in large quantities. The good news is that it did its job; the metal finish on all parts was a solid 95-98%, except for a 1/4" square of surface rust on the bolt carrier.

I sprayed and swished and soaked all of the metal parts that were smaller than my forearm, including the trigger group, with brake cleaner, and it worked great. Then I just oiled and reassembled them.

As for the wood stock (which is actually pretty decent blonde wood), the oven was in use so I suspended it just over a 5-foot space heater and sweated a quart or two of cosmoline out of it.

The bolt disassembly was a challenge. I tried to knock out the firing pin retaining pin with a punch, and just bent the punch. So I just sprayed the crap out of it with brake cleaner, and then soaked and shook it in mineral spirits for 2 or 3 hours. At that point, the firing pin was rattling freely, but the challenge was on. I got a bigger punch and gave some serious whacks to the firing pin retaining pin, and got it out. For what it's worth, the bolt was absolutely clean inside, so it's probably not necessary to get the darn retaining pin out to clean it thoroughly.

I spent a total of 5 1/2 hours cleaning it up and removing all the cosmoline (who am I kidding, most of the cosmoline).

Overall, it looks pretty darn good, and suitably bad, and it's built like a tank. The bore looks brand new. It came with a leather sling, cleaning kit, oil can in leather pouch, and two larger connected leather belt pouches for the accessories. Plus, of course, the bayonet and grenade launcher. The trigger isn't going to win any awards (my wild guess would be around 10 pounds), but it is, for lack of a better word, "predictible."

I'm very impressed. I really can't imagine getting a better 10-round semi-auto rifle for $129. And the ammo is dirt cheap, too.

Then again, I haven't shot it yet, but I'm assuming I'll get 3"-4" groups at 100 yards, and that's just fine for a gun like this. If you're reading this thread and thinking about getting a Yugo SKS, quit thinking and buy one.
 
Its REALLY hard to get the bolt apart on the Yugo's.Id highly recommend you just soak it for several days in mineral spirits and swish it around every so often.I then lightly reoil and use.
 
I have a small car repair shop, and I think this could be done in my parts washer. Just seperate all metal and wooden parts, and go to a small car repair shop and tell them what you want to do, and see if they will let you use it?(I would go in and ask before taking gun parts in, maybe offer five bucks or a six pack of beer?) I would expect 20 minutes of solvent running on it, and you brushing parts and you would get it all. This is just a recirculating pump using a petroleum based cleaning solvent. It does a fine job on new parts or parts from a salvage yard that have been protected with cosmoline.

I use mine for a once a year cleaning of all my guns, and if I get caught out in the rain I use it to insure I remove all water.
 
Thanks for all your replies.

Forgive my ignorance, I believe that I could find the brake cleaner in an auto store, but what is the mineral spirits (and what are they usually used for?)and where I could find them?
 
Mineral spirits works good just get a pan or bucket and a small brush and start cleaning the metal parts . Brake cleaner works good after you get all the cosmo loosened up with the mineral spirits. I wiped down my stock too with MS then baked it at about 180 degrees. I would take it out about every ten minutes and wipe off cosmo. I did this for about an hour. If you do this put foil on the bottom of the oven to catch drips. I then wiped the stock again with mineral spirits, sanded it with 150 grit paper then gave it two coats of tung oil. Came out nice. Mark
 
Forget using solvents. The best way, and I've done it on many guns including a Yugo SKS is to completely disassemble the rifle and place the parts in boiling water for about a half hour. This will get it out of all the nooks. The rest just wipes off and the water evapoarate quickly when the part is taken out tof the water. Then you wipe it down with a lttle rem oil. If some cosmoline stays on then use Hoppes to wipe it off. No nned to buy a lot of solvents.
 
Brake cleaner is more likely to cause damage to guns in general than mineral spirits.I dont use it,its not worth the risk of melting something.
Click to expand...
Don't worry, there are no parts on an SKS that you could melt with brake cleaner. I don't think these things have ever even been near anything plastic. ;)

(do keep it off the wood though)
 
This is what works for me. Remove as much cosmo as you can with the mineral spirirts after breaking the rifle down. Make sure you get the firing pin fully de-gunked. After the minerals spirits has evaporated, wrap the stock in tin foil and baked it in the oven at 175 degrees for about an 45 min. Take it out of the oven and clean the bled-out cosmo with mineral spirits again. When it is dry you can use a lemon furniture oil on the stock.
 
Adding a scope to a Yugo SKS could constitute a violation of that gun's C&R status.

I have seen at least one report climing that a specific BATF response on the issue confirmed the bad news.

It's just about stupid enough to be true.
 
Adding a scope might not be a violation of the C&R status if you alter the rifle to where it could be importable as a sporting rifle. Here is a letter to the BATF and their response. The guy wanted to add a muzzle break,a scope, change the stock and add a bipod. Also I have 2 california legal yugos that have been altered by two different companies (century arms and interordnance) so they could be sold in cali. Heres the letters:


Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms


May 13, 2003


To Whom It May Concern:

I have a question regarding a rifle that I recently purchased. The rifle is a Yugo 59/66 SKS. The original rifle is equipped with a bayonet (w/lug), a grenade launcher (threaded muzzle), a fixed (non-detachable) ten-round magazine, and a wooden stock. It is currently legal as a C&R rifle and was bought legally through an FFL.

After reading over the current laws on imported rifles I have come up with a few questions. It is unclear to me exactly what is considered legal on this rifle and I would like to have a response from an official government source so that I can stay within the confines of the law.

I want to leave my SKS with the original ten-round, non-detachable magazine. From what I have read, this would NOT qualify my rifle as an assault rifle that was subject to the laws prohibiting:

1) Folding or telescoping stock.
2) A pistol grip that protrudes suspiciously below the rifle.
3) A bayonet lug.
4) A flash suppressor or threaded barrel meant to hold a flash suppressor.
5) A grenade launcher.

Since my Yugo SKS is NOT subject to the above stipulations because of the fact that I want to keep the non-detachable ten-round magazine, it appears to me that it is subject to the law regarding the assembly of any rifle that is identical to a prohibited from importation. This law requires that the rifle contain ten or less imported parts. I find it rather ambiguous that the word “identical†is used in this law. I would like for you to clarify whether this implies identical in form or identical in function?

In its original form my Yugo SKS has more than ten imported parts on it, but is legal as a C&R rifle. What I would like to do is modify my rifle by installing a new stock. The intent of adding the stock is for sporting and target shooting purposes. It is unclear to me, given the ambiguity of the law, whether it is legal or not to replace the stock, as the stock that I want to install would not make the SKS similar to a prohibited rifle, as no SKS rifles are manufactured with a Druganov stock. I also would like to replace the grenade launcher with a sporting muzzle break (non-flash suppressor type). In addition, I would like to add a non-permanent, swivel stud attached sporting bipod.

Here is the configuration that I would like to use for my Yugo SKS. Could you please tell me if the following configuration would be legal on a rifle used for sporting and target shooting.

A Yugo SKS 59/66 with the following:

1) A synthetic druganov style pistol grip stock replacing the wooden stock. (Made in the USA)
2) Synthetic handguard. (Made in USA)
3) No bayonet attached, but still has the bayonet lug. (Original)
4) Grenade launcher removed and replaced with threaded, attached, sporting muzzle break (non flash suppressor type). (Made in the USA)
5) A fully removable swivel stud attached sporting bipod. (Made in the USA)
6) Original ten-round non-detachable magazine. (Original)
7) Receiver cover mount with scope rings and scope. (Made in the USA Receiver Cover) (Chinese Scope)

I reside in the state of Michigan.

I would appreciate a response and an explanation for the legality/illegality of the rifle.

Thank you

Full BATF Response:

Dear Mr. XXXX:

This refers to your letter of May 13, 2003, to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms and Explosives (ATF) in which you ask about modifications to your Yugoslavian M59/66 (SKS style) rifle.

If the rifle has an original fixed, non-detachable magazine, it would not be a prohibited semiautomatic assault weapon as defined in section 921 (a) (30) of Title 18, United States Code (U.S.C.). However, alterations to the rifle may still be prohibited under section 922(r) of Title 18, U.S.C.. Section 922 (r) prohibits assembly of certain semiautomatic rifles from imported parts. The implementing regulations in Title 27, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Part 478, section 478.39 (formerly part 178, section 178.39) provide, in part, that no such person shall assemble a semiautomatic rifle or any shotgun using more than 10 of the imported parts listed in paragraph (c) of this section if the assembled firearm is prohibited from importation under section 925 (d)(3) as not being particularly suitable or readily adaptable to sporting purposes. Paragraph (c) includes a list of 20 parts that may be found in a shotgun or rifle.

As you describe, the modified M59/66 would have:

-A synthetic Druganov style stock
-A synthetic handguard
-A bayonet mount, but no bayonet
-No grenade launcher
-A threaded muzzle and a sporting muzzle brake, not a flash suppressor
-A detachable bipod mount
-Original 10 round non-detachable magazine
-Receiver cover with scope mount

Since the rifle would no longer be in its original military configuration, it would no longer be suitable for importation as a curio or relic under the provisions of 18 U.S.C. section 925(e).

It is our opinion that the rifle as described above "would" (my quotes) qualify for importation as a sporting firearm under section 925(d)(3) if there were no threads on the barrel or if the muzzle brake were permanently attached by welding or high temperature (1,100 degree F) silver solder. If the rifle has a threaded muzzle it would not be approved for importation and the assembly would be prohibited under section 922(r)

Sincerely Yours,

Sterling Nixon
Chief, Firearms Technology Branch
 
My understanding of the BATF response is that simply adding a scope and doing nothing else makes it illegal as it still has the "evil" features but has been modified, thus removing the C&R status.

This is in line with my original thinking.

Now if you go ahead and start removing things like the night sites/thread barrel/grenade launcher/bayonet lug - then you should be fine. Unfortunately, most people just sling a receiver mounted scope on one.
 
This BATF stuff is confusing. My century arms yugo has the grenade launcher removed(has muzzle break) but has the bayo and night sights, my I/O yugo has a sleeve over the grenade launcher and it still has it's bayo and night sights (so it is altered too) and I have another one that is from centerfire arms that has the grenade launcher completely cut off and it still has the bayo and the night sights(it's altered too). All of these rifles are california legal and are shipped to cali that way. So why would these companies be breaking these laws if it is a problem? Lots of these rifles come into cali and you know BATF must be aware of this. Mark
 
I also herd a rumor that BATF is going to do away with the C&R status and put it into the regular firearm catagory. If so look for price increases.
Anybody else herd anything?
John K
 
gas chamber and piston

hello i got my sks today and i took it apart and cleaned it all up and when we got to the gas chamber and piston it looks like there should be o rings on the piston and there was no spring with is either, and when we put it all back together the piston rattles around in the gas chamber.
could somebody help please
thanks
 
They altered things in California to make them legal, which kind of goes against the point of Curio and relic but when has the batf rules ever made sense. They are more designed to prop up US business half the time than to make any sense.
 
Sksman, the piston has no rings or a spring in the gas tube, that is normal. Mark
 
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