Out of the blue she said she wanted to get me one.  Not bad for a college GF huh?  We're going to dunhams tommorrow to look at some.  Is there anything you should avoid when buying a SKS?

CMS

dayum, sounds like one hell of a catch to me!

uh...look for two

seriously though, the only thing id look for is making sure the front sight isnt all banged up, and see if you can find a nice looking stock.

I got one from dunhams a few weeks ago. Stock has some dings in it. Bore is clean as can be and all the numbers match. Two small areas of surface rust on the bolt. Bring a bore light incase they dont have one on hand.

Yes...do a close / detailed inspection of all external parts.  Make sure S#s match, if thats important to you.

Shoulder the rifle and take aim at something...all the sights should be in-line (the front sight pin should be centered).   Make sure that the front sight post cover is round and not all bent.  

Cock it and squeeze the trigger (dry fire) and test how the trigger feels.  

If you can, check the bore...when I go to gun shows or if I buy 2nd hand guns I take a cleaning kit with me and clean the bore.  Use a bore light to check it out.  Most placed don't care.

Check the stock all over for cracks...

I  look for SKS rifles that are seriously packed in Cosmoline........ usually these are the rifles that are unissued.......and all the numbers will match.  These rifles, although might be sold as used, are essentially new weapons.

You won't be able to test the trigger............ the two rifles I bought......you couldn't even get the slide to close because of the cosmoline.  The firing pin was frozen forward.

Took these rifles home, took them all apart, and spent about 5 hours cleaning off the cosmoline.
When I was finished the rifles looked like they were brand new !! The bolts were shiny and bright and not a mark on any of the bluing. The chamber face of the barrel was still virgin....so I knew these rifles were not fired!

I looked for the best looking frames and metal parts.......... one of the rifles I chose had a crack in the stock [ small one ] but the frame work was in superior condition. The white markings were bright and sharp on the grenade sights. It also had the "night sights" tritium tubes. The stock is going to be replaced anyway with a folding stock.....so the wooded stock meant little to me.

I took one rifle back to the store were I bought it........... and none of the employees could believe that rifle came from their stock. When Packed in cosmoline they look in bad shape, but boy do they clean up nice!

JF.

The 59/66A1 with the radium night sights are the most common.  This would be one white dot on the front sight, two white dots on the rear.  The 59/66A1 tritium night sight versions are somewhat scarcer.  These have glass vials embedded in cut out places on the front and rear night sights.  The 59/66 models are the earliest and would have no flip up night sights and are quite difficult to locate.  If you can find a nice one of these, grab it.  I bought another one for my collection last weekdend for $138 OTD.

Quoted: We're going to dunhams tommorrow to look at some. CMS

Soooo... What'd you get??

Just your basic 59/66.  Some minor pitting on the grenade launcher and bolt but I picked the best of the 3 they had there.  I don't know but the barrel might be new....the  other two were packed with cosmoline and this one had a shiny bore.  I'll post pics when I can.  Whats a good way to refinish the stock?  I don't want to sand anything.  How can I get the cosmoline/dirt/stain off to refinish it?   Any help would be appriciated...  Thanks guys,

Chris

There's been a lot writen on stock refinishing and cosmoline removal so a search will prove very useful. After you do the first one you'll be a pro!