So I broke my SKS....

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Eightball

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Actually, the firing pin, somehow. Took it to the range, haven't shot it in a couple years, thought it'd be fun. Loaded it, let the bolt fly forward, and *click.* Reset hammer, and *click.* Chunked out the one round, thinking it was a bad primer. *Click.* Field strip it, everything looks alright, put it back together, and try one round. *Click.* Reset hammer, and pulled trigger, and *BANG*.....but the bolt only moved halfway back and stopped. Seemed like maybe the grease had seized, so I put the butt on the ground and worked it with my foot to finish extracting the empty case. Then the bolt got stuck rearward, and wouldn't move forward. So, I field strip it (with difficulty).....and somehow, my firing pin is no longer IN the bolt, it is wedged in between the bolt and the left side of the receiver :what: And, it's bent.

Parts:
img3396f.jpg


The firing pin, compared to a straight edge:
img3397v.jpg


The inside of the receiver; it was wedged to the left of the channel for the bolt.
img3395h.jpg


So....what the heck? I can't believe I somehow broke an SKS.....and, can anyone tell me exactly what happened, and what new parts I need to make her get back to "up and running" status?
 
if you didn't post pics i'm not sure that i'd believe you that it broke...

i'm not around my SKS, but as i remember there's a pin on the bolt that holds the extractor on the bolt, and may also hold the firing pin in place (it must, as i remember there's only one pin on the bolt holding things together). is that pin missing or broken?

i'm really curious about this one...

TMM
 
is that pin missing or broken?
Click to expand...
Nope. Near as I can tell, all parts are intact, except for the firing pin, which somehow teleported out of the channel inside of the bolt, and got really, really bent.
 
wierd a friend of mine bought an sks would only shoot one round and the bolt would get stuck just like that i wonder if it was a similar problem. he did fuss with it took it back gun shop couldn't figure it out let and let him trade it for another one.
 
Had a similar type problem with my SKS.. except my firing pin is still in the bolt assembly. It's sticking way out and stuck in there.

I bought a whole new bolt assembly. :(
 
It's a Yugoslavian SKS. Sending it back to a nonexistent country may potentially be quite difficult.

ETA: Also posted this on the SKS forums.
 
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its pretty hard to break a sks. are you sure your recoil spring is in the right direction? that will cause the gun to act like a bolt action and sometimes rounds will get stuck in the chamber, which doesnt explain your bent firing pin though. my dad got a yugo sks 4 years ago and they sent it to him from i think it was j and g sales with the recoil spring in backwards we spent alot of time cleaning the gas system and bolt assmebly, after 2 years we tried just flipping it for the hell of it and it worked, you wouldnt think to flip it becuase the gun came put together you would think it was in the right way. and the gun worked flawlessly for every round after it was fixed.
 
Is it possible the rifle was tampered with sometime during the years of storage?
That is bizarre.
 
Its and SKS for crying out loud, get a medium sized hammer and an anvil, straighten out the firing pin and make sure the retaining pin is doing its job. The advice about checking the recoil spring polarity is good too.

I'd do this before starting to spend more money on it.

--wally.
 
I'm with wally. Straighten it until is rides smoothly in it's OLD home. lol

Sounds as if the firing pin retaining pin got sheared/lost. I can see one end of it is still attached to the bolt.

The last round fired... did it make smoke from the action? Did you inspect the case? I'm thinking a blown primer might have push the FP out through the rear of bolt on ignition. Logical, compared to teleportation technology from a now non-existing 3rd world country in a military firearm. :D

Justin
 
The reason I disagree, it it's a free-floating firing pin which has possibly already malfunctioned. Even in a gun as sloppy as an SKS, the firing pin needs to strike consistently. I would even look for a NEW firing pin if I were inclined to re-install one. SOMEONE out there has got to have a Yugo bolt lying around that they have replaced with a Tapco bolt. I would scrounge around my local gun shops with an in-house smith, and ask if they have a bolt assembly in their parts bucket. Good as new, and no 922r issues.
 
Eh, maybe your right. But I only spent $100 for each of my Yugos. So spending another $100 in replacement parts is irksome. :D As long as the straightened pin "floats", it is just like a new one would be.

If the bolt is fine after the retaining pin damage, and you can't/won't straighten the FP, get one of those spring modified FP's. The one machined to use a return spring. Nice upgrade since your already going about it.

At the least you'll have to replace the retaining pin. It is prolly why the gun malfunctioned in the first place.

Justin
 
"Broke my SKS"......


Eightball...you sound like my middle son...

Give him a 3-Oz rubber mallet and a 500-Lb cast iron anvil...in less than 10 minutes, the anvil would be broken...
 
The firing pin in an SKS is held in the bolt by a retaining pin.

Is the retaining pin missing?

I recently replaced the firing pin in my SKS. I bought a new one off AIM Surplus for $5.
 
Bolts for SKS's are not necessarily a plug and play scenario. I recently purchased a new bolt for my SKS's as a spare part. It would not seat in any of my rifles (Chinese/Yugolsavian/Russian). The rear of the bolt had to be ground down a little so it would seat in battery. Just a head up. I would get the Murray firing pin and go from there. Even without the spring I think it a superior design. No conical shaped firing pin head fitting into a conical depression. Much less surface area in contact with the bolt body leaving less opportunity for getting stuck and causing the gun to go full auto.
 
many sks were made with triangular firing pins putting one of these upside down resulted in slamfires, or full auto uncontrolled fire make, sure the pin is placed in the bolt with no binding, otherwise the firing pin will be damaged by the hammer contacting the pin a common mistake when disassembling and reassembling for cleaning.
 
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