SKS Question

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sailor723

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I have a SKS (54 Izhevsk) bought from BullsEye London some years ago. At the time it was sold as "Supergrade" (whatever that means :d ) and was priced about 40-50% more than the CT BBQ paint specials at the time.
All the numbers I can see (bolt, mag, receiver and stock) match. It came with an oiler, sling and a couple of stripper clips. I put about 30-40 rounds of non corrosive through it, cleaned the bore and it's been in the safe ever since. (not my thing). I was always far more into handguns so I know very little about these. I actually just bought it on an impulse.

Any advice on what to look for and how to determine today's value?

I've looked online but prices appear to be all over the map and many Google search results are US which doesn't help. :confused:
 
To determine the value of an older firearm, condition is hugely important. Do all numbers actually match? Most Izhevsks were refreshed back in the day, this is more common and lowers value. If you have one that is original numbers matching, in excellent condition, not refinished, it could fetch a pretty penny (for an SKS).

One issue with the SKS as a platform is that they are one of the most common semi autos in Canada, and one of the cheapest. This means that there are loads and loads of them available in good shape for much less than yours may be worth. So it will take finding the right collector (who recognizes and appreciates the rarity) to get top dollar for it.

Have you got pics of everything? Could share with us :)
 
Incendiary said:
To determine the value of an older firearm, condition is hugely important. Do all numbers actually match? Most Izhevsks were refreshed back in the day, this is more common and lowers value. If you have one that is original numbers matching, in excellent condition, not refinished, it could fetch a pretty penny (for an SKS).

One issue with the SKS as a platform is that they are one of the most common semi autos in Canada, and one of the cheapest. This means that there are loads and loads of them available in good shape for much less than yours may be worth. So it will take finding the right collector (who recognizes and appreciates the rarity) to get top dollar for it.

Have you got pics of everything? Could share with us :)
Click to expand...

I would but my uploaded photos are full from back when I was buying and selling a lot on the EE as a team member and I can't seem to find anything that will allow me to delete them. Right now it says I'm using 8.23MB out of 1.91MB :)

As to numbers , all I can see appear to match (receiver, bolt, mag, trigger guard, back of dust cover and the left side of stock) no electro pencil and nothing ###'d out or stamped over. Are there others?
 
sailor723 said:
I would but my uploaded photos are full from back when I was buying and selling a lot on the EE as a team member and I can't seem to find anything that will allow me to delete them. Right now it says I'm using 8.23MB out of 1.91MB :)

As to numbers , all I can see appear to match (receiver, bolt, mag, trigger guard, back of dust cover and the left side of stock) no electro pencil and nothing ###'d out or stamped over. Are there others?
Click to expand...

Gas tube, gas piston. Those are what's force matched on mine iirc.
 
Sold a good condition russian that was non matching (magazine was the only mistake match) for $500 recently. I'd say slightly more than that. Start at what you see a similar sks for sale on Canadian buy and sells. Come down until you get interest.
 
sailor, ask mods how to delete those pics ? I use Postimage.org for all pics I want to keep or upload to forums. No charge, No adverts, No Spam from 'org'. Also I've Never had pics 'go missing' or 'get lost' by that 'org'. And NO DAMM "WATERMARKS" ! ! Just NO Probs at all.
As for the price, Webley is right. Find a CDN priced '54 Izzy to use as a 'base', then adjust for 'Your' condition compared to the one you 'found'. I recently sold a '51 Tula in a Chinese Stock for ca $500.
 
PS - USA forum websites may give you 'an idea' of the price, but they have a limited 'access' to Russ and Chinese due to import restrictions. Those prices won't translate well in CDN markets. Lots of SKSs appear on GP, too.
 
On the open market the general public will give you the same value as a Russian SKS in the same condition. Normal users do not really care. If everything lines up like I said in my first post though, a collector may give you good money (good for an SKS). Post pics using an image hosting site and let’s take a look at her!
 
The problem with the Izhevsk sks is that anyone can throw a renumbered receiver cover on it and call it the real thing. Now if the stock is correct that's a different story.
 
I think people should consider tempering their expectations when it comes to the ever common "all matching" scenario. For some reason, some people seem to equate "all matching" to "not refurbished". I remember a fella who bought some ammo from me a while back, who proudly proclaimed he just picked up an all matching non refurbished, non issued 53 Tula SKS still in cosmoline. He happened to have it in his car. I said are you sure it's not refurbished? He said yes, there are no ###XX on the stock serial number. I said that wasn't the only way to tell. I asked to look at it and was almost certain I was about to break some bad news to the guy.

Right away, I noticed the stock colour was not the original arctic birch on the 53. I mentioned that. Then I saw the left hand side of the stock. Sure enough, there wasn't ###XX on it, but it was another stamped number clearly on a replacement stock. I told him the original arctic birch stock would have the Tula star with the fletched arrow on it and the serial number below it.

But it gets worse...on the dustcover top, there was that square with the diagonal slash across it, a clear mark of a refurb. The magazine was also Franken-welded to the point where the first two digits of the serial number were not even visible. How that was even possible...

Then I asked to look at the gas tube and piston rod. Piston rod was seized in the tube which was all manner or orange. Guess someone forgot to slather the cosmoline in there and it was pretty clear a steady diet of corrosive ammo without a subsequent cleaning regimen was the recipe on that gun.

The bayonet was also black. And I can tell original bluing was gone - it was painted BBQ black.

By then the fella was about to start crying. No joke - I looked at his face. I asked him what he paid for this apparently unissued, unrefurbished "all matching" SKS in cosmo. He said $1040. This was on GP. I told him man, that's a steep price to pay for a clear refurb. He said well, he trusted the seller, who he showed me on his phone what his account was - lo and behold...zero feedback.

I didn't know whether to laugh or cry at that point.

Moral of the story - lots of people will sell SKSes purporting that it is in such and such condition. 90% of what's out there are refurbs in one form or another. Some are more obvious. Some buyers and sellers may genuinely know little about the correlation between condition and value, but it is quite the large range out there and while it is true, the true worth may not necessarily align with what the market is willing to pay - it would behoove both seller and buyer to do some research before listing anything for sale, or buying something listed.
 
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If you know nothing about identifying a true, numbers matching sks, find someone who can help you. Otherwise disappointment awaits
 
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