Once yearly cleaning of SKS

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MiG25

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So a year ago I got tired of cleaning my 54 refurb Tula after every outing with boiling water, followed by drying the parts, then oiling with G96. The cleanup was discouraging me from shooting it.

Fired 2-40 rounds of bxn 85 and 91 ammo per month.

Took it apart today, not a spec of rust in the receiver or chamber, just some greasy carbon on the bolt and a grass seed. Firing pin rattles. Slight bit of red in the gas tube, which was run dry.

Think going forward I'll oil the gas tube and buy a spare JIC. I got better uses of my time than cleaning a refurb SKS.
 
Pictures of what? The rifle is a Tula 1954 that has a force matched hardwood stock and an electro penciled trigger guard.

The grass seed I blew out, the oily black carbon on the bolt I wiped off with my finger. I cleaned the inside of the gas tube with a paper towel with a shot of G96. Ran a bore snake through it.

Next thing I'll likely grind the bayo lug off. The bayo weights 12 ounces ounces won't be missed.

Going forward I'll lightly oil the gas tube and monitor it for any rust.
 
The Corrosive Salts used in Ammunition Production from the 1930's through 1990's was Potassium Chlorate which is also the same salt left by Pyrodex. That is the Salt that will cause Corrosion in your Firearm.

I have often wondered how quickly corrosive primed ammunition would damage a rifle. I doubt very much that in a hostile military setting these rifles would see much, if any maintenance or cleaning. If accelerated corrosion was the case, we would not have so many 60 + year old surplus weapons still serviceable and readily available. I think that the cleaning and oiling is most important when the weapon is going into extended periods of storage.

I read this on another site:

What did the Russians use in the field ?

They had specific Solvents to take care of the Corrosive Salts. I have heard that if they had no Solvents that they used to urinate in the Bore. No joke. Supposedly, the Water and Ammonia in the Urine does a darn good job at flushing the Corrosive Salts out of the Firearm.
 
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edojan said:
maybe you should switch to non corrosive then. Otherwise it will rust and you can keep telling yourself that your time was more important than the rifle
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No thanks, I'm cheap and lazy. The complete disassembly and hot water and drying everything was discouraging me from shooting it.

I'll shoot the pi## out of it and do an abbreviated cleaning and not worry about it.

After 1 year and a few hundred rounds, the only rust was on a part that was dry. I'm not convinced that alone wasn't the source of the rust, I don't leave any other steel tools dry.

Maybe the bxn isn't corrosive?
 
"I gots me a gun and I don't care, Do Da Do Da, I gots me a gun and I don't care to clean, Do Da Do Da Day..." V:I:

Remind me to never buy a gun off you. No firearm deserves to be neglected.

The "cheap and lazy" mindset will come back to bite you in the azz some day. And in more than just firearms maintenance.
 
Puma said:
What did the Russians use in the field ?

They had specific Solvents to take care of the Corrosive Salts. I have heard that if they had no Solvents that they used to urinate in the Bore. No joke. Supposedly, the Water and Ammonia in the Urine does a darn good job at flushing the Corrosive Salts out of the Firearm.
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Your aim better be good. Nobody wants their sks to smell like wee.
 
ljones said:
"I gots me a gun and I don't care, Do Da Do Da, I gots me a gun and I don't care to clean, Do Da Do Da Day..." V:I:

Remind me to never buy a gun off you. No firearm deserves to be neglected.

The "cheap and lazy" mindset will come back to bite you in the azz some day. And in more than just firearms maintenance.
Click to expand...

Sorry it offends you but I'm done babying a refurb SKS. I'm satisfied that the bxn ammo isn't going to make it rust away.
 
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