Comrades, check your ChiCom "armorer's" poster sets for insight on this question.

My set plainly shows double tab strap on both Type 56 automatic rifle (AK) and Type 56 semiatuo carbine (SKS) weapons.

I suspect these drawings - mine at least - were issued during the early 1980s yet they are not copyrighted and dated.

Don't know much about single tabbed carry straps tho suspect they are totally correct for attachment to either long arm cited above. I do know David Keng included single tabs in his Legend series rifle boxes as accessories for what that might be worth.

I apologize for having this "thread" stand alone from one further down the list that I meant to append. My bad. I was shocked to see it appear by itself. Will be more careful in future.

However to update, I'm beginning to think that the single leather tab ChiCom carry strap was originally for use on original, milled Type 56 rifles and for later, stamped Type 56 under- and side folders. The tab attaches to the foreward steel loop on the gas cylinder and the broad weave of the strap itself passes thru the rearward loop. In this way, at port of arms or over the shoulder the Kalashnikov lies flat upon the body.

Remember, for fixed butt stocked rifles, over-the-shoulder carry is supposed to be barrel up; for folding stocked rifle the reverse is true; barrel turned down. At least that is Soviet Red Army practice. The Chinese standard, as distinct from this, is over-the-shoulder carry is barrel down regardless for milled receiver rifles yet it is in conformity with the Russian practice for stamped, fixed butt rifles. Confusing ... yes.

Should these suppositions be "the truth, the full truth and nuttin' but the truth" I hope they to be, than it is also right to say that double tabbed straps are suitable for the later stamped metal receiver rifles generally (folders excepted) and single tabbed are suitable for all milled frame rifles.

Yeah, I think I got that right. Thanks for reading. Does any of this matter? No. So WHAT? At least I'm not confused about what the contraptions are, namely straps and not slings, for carry and not for better aiming and shooting.

Actually, the PLA used both styles for their milled rifles and their later stamped receiver Type 56 rifles.  I don't believe there's a "correct" for them at all.  I have early original Chinese PLA field manuals and technical manuals that also show both used for the milled rifles.