I can't believe how much the Russian SKS has gone up in the last 10+ years! That's the last time I looked at prices. I think I paid around $220 for mine but it's not a pretty refurb. Painted barrel, non matching numbers, all beat up and looked like it went to war. A year or so later, I see a guy shooting a MINT Russian SKS. I complimented that the barrel looks so shiny and when examined up close, it was nicely blued! I was in awe and wished I bought another one. He paid less than me at Lebarons! Later, I was at Lebarons and they were showing a customer a SKS and it looked just as mint and I wish I picked up another one just to keep as a display item at home and shoot with the beater.
When I shoot mine, it can hit that 300M steel target at the Oshawa Skeet and Gun Club with iron sights using surplus corrosive ammo that I bought in crates (I still have 1 crate left and possibly unopened). I can never get the barrel fully cleaned. Always super dirty no matter how much I clean it even when it arrived, it was so dirty. lol. But the things shoots straight and never messed up.