pair of SKS
I just got my hands on a pair and looking for any info on them and their resale value if i decide to part with them. Here are some detail pics to show you what i know...
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i know i put big pics but wanted to show detail...i can make them smaller if needed 0 -
The one with the wooden stock is Chinese, the other Russian per the markings. The plastic stock it's in is a U.S. made aftermarket accessory.
Normally they would be in the $250 - $350 range apiece. But because we're caught up in the second coming of barry nobama gun panic. I have heard reports that common plan vanilla SKS's such as yours, have doubled in price virtually overnight. Appears that the days of <$200 SKS's have gone forever.0 -
either one better quality? either one more valuable? i have 2 clips for them...i am guessing a 20 rounder and a 30 rounder? I was told if they have removable clips they have a different value. if anyone can educate me on this i would appreciate it.
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The Russian rifle was military surplus & would have been worth a substantial premium if previous owners had left it alone. But, they lost the original stock, fixed 10 rd mag, bayonet, & receiver cover. With the aftermarket stock, I'm not even sure if an original mag will fit.
The Chicom rifle was made for export to the US, so it is likely original finish. It also came with a fixed 10 rd mag.
Neither was made for removable mags, but there are many aftermarket removable mags that rarely work reliably. Try to find out if you can get the mags you have to work, or buy fixed 10 or 20 rd aftermarket mags & install them.
As rufe-snow pointed out, the market is volatile. If you sell, you may get some fool to pay top dollar. But, you need to have a working rifle to do best.
Neal0 -
The Russian is Bubba'd beyond recovery, unless the original matching numbered parts are provided with the gun. Otherwise, even if restored, it will always be a mismatch - a gun assembled from parts - and of considerably less value than a 'straight' piece. Finding Russian parts is going to be difficult, they will probably have to be Yugo or Chinese. Aftermarket parts don't add to the value in the eyes of many, and they often subtract from it. So, it's a 'whatever the traffic will bear' scenario.
The Chinese gun is more restorable, because of the availability of Chinese parts.
I think the price of all-original SKS' may settle in around $300 after the dust settles. In the unlikely event that an AWB does pass, SKS' aren't on the radar anyway.0 -
Current Obama panic prices on SKS rifles:
Yugo guns: $400-500
Russian guns: $750-800 (in like new condition).
Chinese guns: $350-500, more for the shorter "paratrooper" versions, and more yet (>$600) if they are the rare ones that accept AK magazines.
Like everything else, prices depend on condition and accessories.
As a "shooter" a "Bubba'd" Russian gun like above, is probably going to be worth only a few bucks more than a comparable Chinese or Yugo gun, say about $400-$450 right now. Kind of a shame, because most people consider these to be the best built of all the SKS guns.
These SKS guns are "funny". Even though they have built-in folding bayonets and are true semi-automatic military rifles (in fact, lots of the surplus Yugo rifles were actually used in the Balkans wars in the '80s), they're not legally considered "assault rifles" because they lack vertical pistol grips and detachable magazines.
That's how stupid the so-called "assault weapons" bans are.
In terms of value, I think the days of decent condition sub $200 SKS guns are LONG gone.
While I do think prices will drop down in six months after the current iteration of the Obama gun panic subsides, I also think the days of good-condition sub-$300 SKS guns will be shortly gone too (if they aren't already).
The reason is that Chinese made SKS guns aren't legally importable anymore, and surplus supplies of all of the European made ones (Russian, Romanian, Albanian, Yugo, East German) have either totally dried up, or nearly so. So even though there are a lot of these floating around in the USA, the numbers probably aren't going to be increasing much if all in the future, and given their interesting "niche" status as functional legal "assault" weapons, I don't see commercial interest declining.
I think for those of us who remember being able to buy new-in-box Yugo guns coated in cosmoline in basically unlimited quantity for under $100 just a few years back, this is a tough pill, but that's the reality. Still considering what you're getting, (ie an all milled steel and European hardwood furniture military grade semi-auto rifle with integral bayonet and range adjustable iron sights) you're overpaying even at $400.0 -
I wish people knew how to crop their pictures when posting. Nothing like seeing a blanket and some kind of remote in the picture 0
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