Need Help Veryifying SKS Un-issied Or Issued

Mumbles Marble Mouth

Mumbles Marble Mouth

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Oops, to late now but Verifying not Veryifying. LOL

I have an SKS that I was led to believe is a non-issued and non-refurbished SKS. I would like to settle the matter if it truly is an non-issued and non-refurbished SKS before I go making those claims to friends I show the rifle to. Its all matching numbers and has no "electropenciled" in serial numbers.

















If more pictures are required, let me know and I'll post them as soon as possible.
 
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Looks great! Got one just like her I've had for over a year and she just sits in her corner of the safe still covered in cosmo. I'll take her out every so often to admire her near unblemished beauty and take in the aroma of her sweet commie perfume.
 
More pics are always good. Take a pic of the gas tube serial and the gas piston serial. The bolt as well from a few angles particularily the bolt face as well as the inside of the receiver area looking for slide wear from bolt/carrier to see if it has been fired any amount. An unrefurb SKS doesn't mean it was never issued/fired. They were all fired at the very least when they were built and test fired. The butt plate, the rear of the butstock on the side opposite to the date/serial. Some of the bayo lug area and the trigger group as well more detail around the forestock thru bolt area. But from what I can see it looks unrefurb...
 
Looks like 100% refurb to me.

Not stamped numbers on the parts that don't get stamped with the number, some faded out stamps on stock, re-crowning on the barrel.

Try to find a stamp that looks like a box divided by 2 (vertical or diagonal).
 
Yes definitely looks unrefurb. The numbers match on the gas piston and gas tube. They were written by the same person. Also the bayo lug is the rare transition lug that has the straight cut ears and the lightening cut. Sweet.
Final inspection cartouche is there. The bolt carrier is not ground and restamped. Rear sight leaf looks original not the grey colored replacement. However I do think it was issued. The butt plate shows the wear from being in racked vertically and rested on the ground. As well I can see the blue/green telltale in the gas block from some copper residue. There is probably the same in the barrel. I have noticed this copper reaction with the cosmoline in some of my unfrefurbs as I cleaned the cosmoline from them. Run a jag and patch down the barrel and there will be cosmoline and the blue green from the copper fouling. So it has probably been issued but used very little. Just my opinion though. Still a sweet unrefurb SKS's with the rare transition bayo lug.
 
guess_kto said:
Looks like 100% refurb to me.

Not stamped numbers on the parts that don't get stamped with the number, some faded out stamps on stock, re-crowning on the barrel.

Try to find a stamp that looks like a box divided by 2 (vertical or diagonal).
Click to expand...

Barrel is not re-crowned. The flash from the camera only makes it look like it has. I've owned several other refurbished SKS and I know where that refurbish mark is and this one doesn't have it.
 
ljones said:
Yes definitely looks unrefurb. The numbers match on the gas piston and gas tube. They were written by the same person. Also the bayo lug is the rare transition lug that has the straight cut ears and the lightening cut. Sweet.
Final inspection cartouche is there. The bolt carrier is not ground and restamped. Rear sight leaf looks original not the grey colored replacement. However I do think it was issued. The butt plate shows the wear from being in racked vertically and rested on the ground. As well I can see the blue/green telltale in the gas block from some copper residue. There is probably the same in the barrel. I have noticed this copper reaction with the cosmoline in some of my unfrefurbs as I cleaned the cosmoline from them. Run a jag and patch down the barrel and there will be cosmoline and the blue green from the copper fouling. So it has probably been issued but used very little. Just my opinion though. Still a sweet unrefurb SKS's with the rare transition bayo lug.
Click to expand...

Just an added note, the gun was very difficult to take a part. Not because of poor manufacturing but from everything fitting really tight. The barrel is clear. Not a mark in it. Are you sure the copper residue isn't from buddy who test fired it? I'm not sure how they stored the rifles if they were stored in a warehouse with the gun leaning in a rack. If that's the case, then the wear marks on the top part of the butt plate would indicate that. Or the rifles were stored in the crates they ship them over in.
 
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Non refurb. But I don't see how anyone can claim an sks is unissued. Unless you were working in the soviet mil supply chain for the last 50 years that is.
 
I was just doing a bit of research and I found that the Soviets regularly inspected all rifles in storage every 5 years. If you have an SKS that you deem is unused but has some handling marks, then the handling marks came from when ever the rifle was inspected.
 
guess_kto said:
Looks like 100% refurb to me.

Not stamped numbers on the parts that don't get stamped with the number, some faded out stamps on stock, re-crowning on the barrel.

Try to find a stamp that looks like a box divided by 2 (vertical or diagonal).
Click to expand...

Mumbles Marble Mouth said:
Barrel is not re-crowned. The flash from the camera only makes it look like it has. I've owned several other refurbished SKS and I know where that refurbish mark is and this one doesn't have it.
Click to expand...

No the barrel is not recrowned. That is the chrome lining ring on the muzzle combined with camera angle and flash.
 
Mumbles Marble Mouth said:
Just an added note, the gun was very difficult to take a part. Not because of poor manufacturing but from everything fitting really tight. The barrel is clear. Not a mark in it. Are you sure the copper residue isn't from buddy who test fired it? I'm not sure how they stored the rifles if they were stored in a warehouse with the gun leaning in a rack. If that's the case, then the wear marks on the top part of the butt plate would indicate that. Or the rifles were stored in the crates they ship them over in.
Click to expand...

Unissued were stored in crates for storage. The wear marks were from them being issued and then stored in the barracks on racks, or used in drills, formation etc. Most SKS's were issued at some point as a second line weapon (State security, Police, Boarder guard, Prison Guards, Cadet training etc.) as such most have been issued, save for maybe some late production ones. They may have been occasionally fired for practice, or were in the racks readied for use that may have never been needed. Most unrefurbs I have seen have at least some wear on the butt plate. Thus they would have had at least some use. We can never say for sure, and it is really misleading to claim an SKS is unissued as there are no official records that we have access to to say for sure. At best it is speculation. A better term to use and the one that has gained ground south of the Border with those who have been dealing in SKS's for decades is the term AS-Issued which is a more accurate descriptor of the weapon. None can claim to be unfired as all were fired for testing.

As for the OP's gun if you could get a better pic of the bolt face without flash so we can see if imprinting has taken place or if it looks smooth. As well if you could disassemble the bolt and take pics of the firing pin it could tell us a lot as to whether the gun has been fired more than for just testing. I say that because I noticed when I was cleaning my unrefurbs, those with the blue/green copper color in the barrel and gas block had generally blackening on the firing pin and the telltale firing wear on the bolt face, whereas those that didn't have the copper coloration in the cosmo had pristine looking firing pins and the bolt face was smooth. Thus indicating that although unrefurb those had for sure seen some use thus issued. Just firing 3-5 test shots shouldn't create enough fouling to cause the obvious copper coloration however firing, say,a few hundred would. That is my reasoning for saying I think it may be issued although unrefurb. Some more pics of those parts would help to maybe clarify.

Again I don't claim to have or know all the answers. This is what I have learned from my own observation, as well learning from those who have been studying them and dealing in them for decades. Even then some things we will never know for sure, but that is the mystery and charm these Red beauties... Like a fine woman they always keep ya guessing and never reveal all ;)
 
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Just the fact that it's blued , all numbers original and not electropenciled suggests it never went through the refurb depot. ;)

Grizz
 
I'll just go with its been un-refurbished SKS in like new condition. ;) I'll take a picture of the bolt face on a later time but the flash isn't hiding anything. Its that clean. I just store the gun in a real pain in the ass spot to take it out to try and deter me from wanting to shoot it well my other SKS is easily accessible. Thanks for the info and replies. :D

I'm no collector so It will eventually get fired often. I mean, I've got 2 original military configuration Lee Enfields worth 3x more then that SKS and I use them all the time.
 
Looks very good - the stock cartouces and all the matching electro-penciling on the gas system is a good sign. People assume that electro-penciling means a refub - on SKS rifles not so much. You want electo-penciling on your gas system.

There are also different levels or refurbs:

1. Complete mis-match
2. Forced matched with ###x'd out stock
3. Matching but some refurb work with refurb marking on the top cover or stock.
4. All matching with no refurb marks but Butt Plate refurb'd
5. All matching rifle with Butt Plate Electro-Penciled to the rifle (complete un-refurb)

I couldn't see the pic of the Butt plate well. If any black paint or a two-tone colour - your rifle went through a minimal refurb - but 90% of collectors would still consider it an unrefurb. If the Butt is Electro-Penciled matching to the rifle it is almost completely untouched.
 
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