SKS goes Berserk!

Iloverifles

Iloverifles

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I shot a friend's Russian SKS rifle last week-end. It has a problem: it occasionnally shoots two or three bullets in a row downrange, with a single pull of the trigger.:ar15: I wonder what the problem might be... Does it short stroke? Can it be a trigger/sear problem?

The guy was using the same Czech ammo that works fine in my SKS. His does the same thing with my Norinco ammo, so I kind of dismiss an ammo-related problem.

I think I'll switch my trigger group with his next time, we'll see if this is trigger/sear related.

This has to be resolved fast, as the guy doesn't want problems with the authorities...:nest: So what do you guys think?
 
+1, clean it!

The SKS being an old design does not have a spring to hold the firing pin back. So if it is the least bit dirty, the firing pin can remain stuck in the forward position, causing slam fires. Clean it very well, the firing pin must wiggle freely in the bolt.

Add to this soft primers on your ammunition and your in slam fire country!

Good luck, Nic.
 
It's called a slamfire or "cookoff." Dirty SKS's do this. I have had it happen to me before. If you're a good handler of firearms its not anything to panic over. Let the rounds fire and unload and clean your SKS concentrating on the firing pin.

Take the bolt out of the carrier. Use an auto-punch to take the retaining pin out of the bolt. The pin will slide out. Wipe it off. Use Hoppes 9, Ed's Red, or Simple Green and submerge or scrub the bolt. Blow it off with an air compressor. Re-assemble. You should be able to hold the bolt vertically and shake it and the pin will bounce up and down. This is the effect of a clean "floating bolt." This is what you want.

Or worse yet, the pin is bent or damaged. Rare but it happens. You can order them out of the U.S. for cheap. Or, order a spring and pin if you're overtly worried.

Then head back to the range.

Ideally you should clean your firing pin and bolt every 3-4 range visits if shooting Czech ammo. That ammo is dirty, not clean burning, and if your bolt has oil on it (which it should only have a little bit on all sides except the face) it will mix into a paste and then to a varnish under heat. It needs to be cleaned off or the pin sticks in the "strike" position and will behave like an un-controllable automatic.
 
tell your friend to take it appart, and clean the grease out of the bolt, its really really sticky, and holds the firing pin out at times if its not cleaned out. to many people leave SKS' with all their nasty ass grease in them its gross, and dangerous. seen some the bbl was full of grease and it came out like ... well a dog turd on the work bench.
 
If you take the bolt out of the rifle, the firing pin should move freely back and forth when you shake it. This will prevent slamfires.
 
It's called a slamfire or "cookoff."
Click to expand...

Cook-off and slam-fire are not even close to being the same thing.

Slam-fire is caused by the firing pin hiting the primer when the bolt slams forward. Hence the name slam-fire.

Cook-off is caused by a massively overheated barrel. The round sits in the chamber and is heated to the point where the primer compound ignites, setting the round off. In essence, the round fires from being heated or cooked. Hence the name cook-off.
 
I think you would have a hard time heating up an SKS to the point of getting cook-offs, especially if you're limited to 5 rounds at a time.
 
tjhaile said:
I think you would have a hard time heating up an SKS to the point of getting cook-offs, especially if you're limited to 5 rounds at a time.
Click to expand...

I agree. I fired a Chinese SKS in Arizona, ~ 300 rounds as fast as I could load it with 10 round stripper clips. In the heat of the Sonoran desert in July, the rifle stock was so hot it was uncomfortable to hold but it never cooked off a round.

It still shoots well after that experience.
 
An AR-15 will start cooking off rounds if you fire more than 500 rounds in 10 minutes.

IE, round in chamber, round fires itself without the operator pulling the trigger.

NS
 
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