Chinese surplus Dragunov scope

[bearhunter]

This spring in Chilliwack I picked up a Chinese milsurp Dragunov/AK scope. Nice unit, very sharp optics and appears to be well made. All of the markings on it are in Chinese characters.

It comes in a metal box with the same serial number as the scope plus a bunch of spare parts and accessories such as lens covers, spare bulbs, cleaning cloths, screwdriver, 3v battery, optic shades etc.

All of the instructions are in Chinese as well.

Don't confuse this with one of the airsoft replicas on Ebay. This scope is the real thing and price accordingly.


Now, here's my issue. Today I finally have a chance to mount it on a rifle. Not sure which one yet but there are a couple of types to choose from that won't be devalued with any mods needed to set up the type of base required for the integral mount. Before getting to serious about the project I installed the battery and flipped the toggle switch to the "ON" position. Nothing. The little light didn't illuminate. I switched out the bulb assembly with a spare and a new battery and repeated the procedure. Nothing.

Maybe someone can tell me if I'm doing something wrong. Is there a secret or more likely something very obvious I'm missing????

I phoned the business in Calgary I purchased it from but they are likely either at another gun show or off for the long weekend. There are two company names on the card. Richco Outdoors and Dynamic Gear Ltd.

 

[Wildey]

Are there any small external wires or connectors of any kind for the power?

 

[mr.e moose]

Are there any plastic tabs that have to be removed first in the battery compartment? Many electronic products come shipped that way so they cannot be accidently turned on. Do you have a multi meter to test the battery for 3 V? That is where I would start.

 

[bearhunter]

Thanks for the replies. Much appreciated. After digging around some more I finally came across some information on this scope.

It was made at Optic factory 833, Type JJJ 4x24, Type 85. It has the infra red detector which works very well on my TV remote. PSO-1. Yes it has external wires and yes, I did check to make sure there weren't any plastic insulators.

I also have a Russian version which was built in Bulgaria. Same issue with it. Both scopes were picked up recently as in a few months ago and I'm only just now getting into looking at mounting them. One will likely go onto a mixmaster SKS. Either Chinese or Russian. The other will likely go onto a Yugo Mauser if I can find a way to mount it without causing any damage to the rifle. I may have to put it into a spare stock that has been played with.

Anyway the Chinese scope I have is not one of the regular export versions. It is meant for Chinese military use. Some of them came into Canada and the US mounted on Dragunovs/SVDs but in very limited numbers. Supposedly there were some issues with this export and repercussions against the Hong Kong individual. Rumors I can't confirm but it was in the information I found.

Supposedly the bulbs are very dim and intended for very low light conditions, as in darkness. This seems to be the same situation with its Russian/Bulgarian counterparts as well. To bad but I can see the reasoning behind it. They are intended to be long range optics, not the up close and personal stuff that the holo sites, etc are for.

Looking forward to giving them both a workout when my doctor tells me my shoulder is healed enough to withstand recoil from anything bigger than a 223rem.

 

[WobblyHead]

Are there any plastic tabs that have to be removed first in the battery compartment? Many electronic products come shipped that way so they cannot be accidently turned on. Do you have a multi meter to test the battery for 3 V? That is where I would start.

Multi metering a battery doesn't work unless there is a load on the battery. Try using a known good or brand new battery battery instead. One other tip is take some scotch brite or some other dry scrubber to the outside threads of the battery cap sometimes a film or dirt coats these threads and since they are usually the cap is the negative for the battery it can cause the circuit to open circuit.