Yugo SKS vs. other SKS

[blo0dyhatchet]

I am still pretty new to mil surplus rifles. I picked up a chinese sks from a gun show ( Facotry mag, 30 round mag, all matching numbers) for $225. I was looking around and came across a Yugo sks in Shotgun News for $109. What would be the difference bewteen the 2? I have looked on auctionarms.com and gunbroker.com and the chinese is consitantly more expensive. I would think, since the yugo has the grenade launcher set up that it would be more expensive.

I am debating on selling my chinese at the next show and buying a yugo, and having some cash left over for more goodies. Are they about the same, or should i hang on to the chinese?

 

[Dr. Dickie]

As far as I know, the Chicom is more expensive simply because they are now banned. The real money is for the Chicom paratrooper SKS (it is a little shorter than the carbine).
The Yugo is touted as being the closest to the origninal Russian design. I have a Yugo, and have been quite impressed with it. It seems to be well built and a hoot to shoot.

 

[DMK]

Unless you just don't like it, keep the Norinco Paratrooper.

The Yugo is heavier, longer (yet actually has a shorter sight radius than a standard SKS - not the paratrooper though), does not have a chrome lined barrel and is much more commonly seen for sale.

Also be careful when you buy a Yugo. I recommend buying them in unissued condition only unless you've owned one before and know what to look for. They have a gas valve to select single shot fire for shooting grenades. Some of the used ones, especially the "shooter grades", have gas system problems at this valve. These rifles were shot with corrosive ammo in service, and they apparently didn't clean them well. A lot of folks get these with corroded gas valves causing gas leaks and cycling problems.

If you do buy one that was issued, always remove the gas tube and valve to inspect for corrosion. Also check for corroded bores.

The Yugoslavian 59/66 SKS

 

[jagdpanzer347]

I'd recommend keeping the Chinese. As previously noted, they have been banned from importation for some time. The Yugos are cheaper because the market is saturated with them. As supplies dwindle, the prices will go up, same as with almost all milsurps.

-jagd

 

[jrfoxx]

I'd agree with the others and keep the chinese due to value, there are fewer around, and mine was WAY more accurate than the one Yugo I've owned,(may not be a fair comparasin though, since mine is a Norinco "Sporter" SKS-M model), not the 'typical' Chinese sks, though I used to own one of them also, and recall it also was better than the yugo), YMMV though.I have a real nice Russian too, which is by far the best in looks, value, and accuracy (maybe not rarity though compared to my sks-m's odd thumbhole stock).

 

[MechAg94]

The unissued or excellent quality Yugo's are $150 or more. Also, one other potential issue is the sights sometimes don't line up real well. On mine, I pushed the front sight all the way over and it still shot off the target at 100 yards. I had to install Tech Sights with windage/elevation adjustment to get the iron sight on target and the front sight centered again. The Tech Sights were about $60 and they are better than the stock sights.

It is a decently accurate rifle, solid construction, handy bayonet, and a great value for the money. For a semi-auto home defense rifle, it is still probably they best value out there right now.

 

[carlrodd]

keep the chicom and go treat yourself to a yugo. it's fun to hunt for yugos. i had a blast going around to different shops and sniffing around their used rifle sections. i found a hard-ridden yugo for chump change, and learned alot about cleaning one up...turned out to be a nice weapon underneath all the goop. i only see chicoms going up in price, so don't make the mistake of letting it go. but for $100-150, why not just hunt down a nice yugo too? it's not like you're getting two of exactly the same rifle...that's what's fun about the sks.

 

[Lonestar.45]

As others have said, keep the Chinese. It's a supply and demand issue. The Chinese are more expensive because there is no more supply coming into the country at all. The Yugos have flooded the market and are still being imported (although that is slowing down).

The $109 Yugos you see will not be in that great of shape. They are "shooter grades" more than likely, with possible pitted barrels or corroded gas valves, and wood that has seen better days. Yugos are excellent SKS's, but I'd pony up the extra $40 or so and get an unissued or excellent grade one.

Selling your Chinese to get a $109 Yugo and some "goodies" would be a step backward in my opinion. If I were you, I'd either save for the "goodies" you want, or more likely, save for an unissued/excellent condition Yugo and go from there.

One other thing, don't know what kind of goodies you want, but these guns are best when left in stock form. The aftermarket mags, stocks, receiver scope mounts, etc. all pretty much suck and do nothing for reliability or accuracy. Many learn this the hard way and eventually go back to an all stock weapon. Some just like the "tacticool" looks of a Dragunov stock. So be it.

 

[blo0dyhatchet]

All I have done to this gun so far is swap to the 30rd mag, and i bought a second stock off of auctionarms, sanded it down and stained it a dark red mahogany color. Havent swapped em yet. As far as goodies, I meant a CZ-52 or a makarov lol. I considered a folding stock but didnt really like the looks of them on the guns that i have seen.

 

[Frog48]

You can never have too many SKS', so keep the Chinese and buy a Yugo too!

I got my Yugo new/unissued for $139, and added a cheap scope kit to it ($60). I cant decide if I want to put a sporter style stock on it.

 

[MCgunner]

Nice to know my $115 Norinco paratrooper is worth something. Then, I have this Norinco rifle I gave $75 for, was an issued very good gun.

 

[RockyMtnTactical]

The Yugos are nicer than the Chinese. But they both go bang. The advantage of the Chinese is a chrome lined bore, unfortunately the Yugos do not have that.

Also, some people don't care for the GL and all that other stuff that most Yugos have. I cut all that stuff off of mine. Here it is.

 

[Simonovfan]

There is a lot of badmouthing about the Yugos in terms of their qaulity. The yugo is made from all machined parts, the Norinco's aren't. If it is unissued and the bore is clean, then you are probably going to get better accuracy out of it than the Norinco. Just make sure it's un-issued and check the bore before you buy it. I have an M59 (1960) Yugo without the GL stuff, that is unissued, and the bore looks brand new. It shoots around 3" groups at 100 yds, but i'm not a great shooter and have no skills or form. I've noticed groups that were better and some that were worse than that. With my new Tech-sights aperture sight and with domestic ammo I'm getting better consistancy. The front sight post covers the target at 100 yds, I can partially blame that for my groupings. If I gave it to someone who could actually shoot, they could probably halve that. I think ammo qaulity has alot to do with SKS and AK accuracy.

Just for the record; I used to own a brand new Norinco type 56. Chrome lining does not make a better bore. It only protects against neglect and corrosive ammo. Both of which, Westerners hardly worry about.

 

[blo0dyhatchet]

Thanks for all of the replies clearing this up for me. I have joined a few forums in the past, and they were no where near as helpful, nor as active of a user base.

 

[DMK]

Welcome to the forum!

 

[armoredman]

Yugo = solid, good, reliable, reasonable accurate, inexpensive rifle.

 

[cracked butt]

^^^what he said^^^

I have a Yugo and have handled and shot a chinese version. The chinese version is a lot lighter and somewhat more handier, the Yugo IMHO is better made.

 

[Plink]

I own several of each make and they're pretty much all the same. The Yugos tend to be the most accurate with the Romanians coming in a close second. The fit and finish on the Yugos are better than on any of my Chinese models. Every model has been stunningly reliable and problem free, so I don't see any advantage among them there.