Important: Warnings and Disclaimers

History of the SKS

The concept of the assault rifle began with the Soviets in the early 1900s. Later, during World War I, Vladimir Federov introduced the Federov 1916 Automatic Rifle, which fired a 6.5x50.5SR Japanese cartridge. At this time this cartridge was thought to be the best for use in rapid-firing rifles. These guns were used toward the end of the 1914-18 war and the Russo-Finnish War of 1939-40.

During World War II, the Russians' need for the Avtomat increased, and they adopted use of a 7.62x39mm cartridge. The weapon created by S. G. Simonov to fire this cartridge was the SKS-45, Samozaryadni Karabin Simonova, a self-loading carbine, which was a scaled-down version of the 14.5x111.8mm PTRS anti-tank rifle. The SKS-45 was easy to field strip and maintain and was quite popular.

At this same time, M. T. Kalashnikov was working on designing a series of small arms, which would also use the 7.62x39mm cartridge. He was successful, and developed one of the best known military weapons of our time, the AK-47, Avtomat Kalashnikova, in 1947. The AK-47 was the prototype for many subsequent versions, and the Chinese manufactured SKS Type 56 rifle is a direct derivative of Kalashnikov's design.

At the conclusion of World War II, the People's Republic of China inherited many of these Soviet weapons from the Japanese. The Japanese had seized them in Manchuria. During the Chinese Civil War, the PRC began making this equipment, and by war's end were well on their way to standardizing production of these Soviet-type small arms.

In recent years, the People's Republic of China has been producing the 7.62x39mm Type 68, the 7.62x39mm Type 67, the 7.62x25mm Type 64, and the SKS Type 56 with the distinguishing folding bayonet. The SKS Type 56 was encountered frequently during the Vietnam War.

As a military weapon, the SKS rifle is only used by frontier forces; however, it remains ever popular with the American sportsman as a hunting weapon, and as always with collectors and firearms enthusiasts.

Safety Guidelines for Proper Operation of Firearms

1. Always treat a firearm as if it were loaded. Accidents happen when it is alleged that the weapon is unloaded.
2. Keep the muzzle of the firearm pointed toward a safe direction at all times. Never point a weapon at anything you do not intend to destroy.
3. Never rely exclusively on your gun's safety mechanism. It is only an aid to safe gun handling, but it is a device which could fail or be inadvertently disengaged.
4. Check to see that the barrel is free of obstruction before firing. Remove all grease, oil, or other debris to prevent the barrel from rupturing upon firing. Check the bore, the chamber, and magazine assembly.
5. Be absolutely certain of your target and the backstop. Make sure your backstop is sound, and to prevent ricochet, never shoot at hard objects or water.
6. Always wear shooting glasses and ear protection while shooting.
7. Understand the operating principle of the firearm and become familiar with its handling characteristics before attempting to use it.
8. Be certain you are using the correct ammunition. Use only high-quality military or commercial ammunition. Do not use reloaded or hand-loaded cartridges.
9. Keep the firearm unloaded when it is not in use. Store ammunition separately from the gun. Do not transport a loaded weapon.
10. In case of failure to fire, always keep the muzzle pointed in a safe direction and hold the firearm in this position for 30 seconds. After 30 seconds, remove the magazine, open the action, and retrieve the cartridge.

Operative Cautions for Firing SKS Rifles or Any Semi-Automatic Weapon

Test Your Gun

1. Load two rounds of ammunition into the magazine.
2. While in a stable firing position, point the muzzle downward.
3. Pull the charging handle or slide back, and let it fly forward to chamber the first round.
4. If your weapon fires, stop firing and unload weapon. This is called a slam fire.
5. If there is no slam fire, aim the weapon and pull the trigger.
6. If both rounds fire with one pull of the trigger, stop firing. This is called doubling.
7. Either situation is dangerous, and the gun should not be fired. Take the weapon to a gunsmith or place of purchase.

Cautions

1. Do not allow rifle to be heated or sunburnt.
2. Frequently lubricate your weapon.
3. Frequently clean your weapon, particularly the gas system and bore. Always cover with a light coat of gun oil after cleaning.
4. When storing, always keep the hammer in its released position.

Specifications

Main Parts and Accessories

It will be helpful to refer to the parts described and shown on these two pages when following the instructions in this manual. Pages 18-19 list all available parts.

Loading the SKS

Always remain conscious of muzzle position.

1. Flip the safety to the ON position. See Figure 3.
2. Pull charging handle on bolt carrier back until the action locks open.
3. Load with either single rounds or stripper clips. See Figure 4.
4. Again, remain conscious of muzzle position.
5. Pull charging handle back and let the bolt carrier fly forward to chamber the first round.
6. Your rifle is now loaded.

Instructions for Firing

Always remain conscious of muzzle position.

1. Aim rifle down range.
2. Release the safety.
3. Place finger inside trigger guard on the trigger.
4. Pull the trigger back.

Unloading the SKS

After Firing

Always remain conscious of muzzle position.

When the gun is fired, gas pressure is extracted from the spent cartridges, and they are ejected. New rounds are then automatically fed until all the rounds are gone, or the shooter stops firing. When finished firing, lock back the bolt and always engage the safety before unloading unused cartridges.

Instructions for Unloading

Always remain conscious of muzzle position.

1. If bolt was locked back, rifle should be unloaded.
2. Visually inspect the magazine and chamber to confirm that gun is empty.
3. If unsure whether empty, immediately place the safety in the ON position.
4. Release the magazine cover by pulling back the magazine cover latch. See Figure 5.
5. Any unexpended rounds will now be freed from the magazine.
6. Now, lock the magazine cover back in place.
7. Next, pull back the charging handle to the rear and extract and eject the live round in the chamber. The bolt stop will automatically lock the bolt carrier back. See Figure 6.
8. Again, visually inspect the weapon.

SKS Disassembly/Assembly

Make a safe examination of the rifle to be certain it is not loaded before stripping. Open the magazine cover, draw back bolt and look into magazine and chamber to be certain they are empty.

Instructions for Disassembly/Assembly

1. Take out all accessories. With a finger, press in the cover of the accessory chamber on the butt plate and take the case for accessories out of the stock. See Figure 7. Open the case and take out the accessories.
2. To remove the cleaning rod: swing the bayonet outward from the muzzle of the rifle and remove the cleaning rod. Then, fold the bayonet back down to a march position.
3. To remove receiver cover and recoil spring assembly: hold the small of the stock with your left hand, pressing with your thumb on the rear of the receiver cover. See Figure 8. Rotate with the right hand the receiver cover retaining pin arm upward to its vertical position and pull the pin out to the right as far as possible. See Figure 9. Allow receiver cover to move backward 1/2 inch and remove by sliding to rear. See Figure 10. Remove the recoil spring from the rear of the bolt carrier. See Figure 11. Be certain to reinstall recoil spring with C-clip end forward.
4. To remove the bolt: pull the bolt back as far as it will go and remove the entire assembly. See Figure 12. When reinstalling bolt, be certain magazine cover is not latched.
5. To remove Gas Tube/Handguard Assembly: use a pin punch to pry the lever located on right of rear sight base into the position where the camming surface located at the front is completely vertical. See Figure 13. CAUTION: Further movement will allow operating rod and spring to escape.
6. Now remove the Gas Tube/Handguard Assembly. Raise the handguard assembly and rock it slowly from side to side until it can be pulled away from the gas block. See Figure 14.
7. The gas piston can now be pulled out of the gas tube/handguard assembly.

Note: The seven steps listed are sufficient to field-strip the rifle for cleaning and regular maintenance.

Assembly requires only that you perform the above steps in reverse order.

Cleaning the SKS

Make a safe examination of the rifle to be certain it is not loaded before cleaning. To clean, begin with the rifle field-stripped. See disassembly instructions beginning on page 10.

Instructions for Cleaning the Rifle

1. Attach the bore brush to the cleaning rod.
2. Saturate the bore brush with gun solvent and push through the length of the barrel. See Figure 15. If using corrosive primer, this step is very important to remove the corrosive residue from the barrel of your rifle.
3. Make at least 10 passes through the barrel from the muzzle end. The cap of the accessory tube can be used to protect the crown of the muzzle from damage during cleaning. Use a cleaning jag or slotted tip and push a clean dry patch through the bore. Now pass a clean patch soaked with solvent through the bore. Alternate this procedure with wet and dry patches until the patches come out clean.
4. Dry the bore with a clean dry patch, and then apply a thin coat of oil to the bore with a final oil-soaked patch.
5. While cleaning the bore, you should also give the chamber area a thorough brushing as well. Use the same technique with the patches, alternating wet and dry until the chamber is clean. Do not leave oil residue in the chamber.
6. Clean the bolt, bolt carrier, piston, recoil spring and receiver. A toothbrush can be used effectively for cleaning these parts. Wipe them dry, and then coat the bearing surfaces of the bolt and bolt carrier with a thin coat of grease. Do not pour oil into the receiver indiscriminately.
7. Clean the gas port and gas block area. See Figure 16. Remove the gas piston from the handguard and gas cylinder assembly, and clean thoroughly with solvent. Remove all carbon fouling with a clean rag, then apply a light coat of oil. Gas port cleaning tool is normally not included in basic cleaning kits, but is available from SKS parts dealers.

To reassemble, reverse the takedown process.

Removing Trigger Mechanism/Magazine

Prior to start, be certain rifle is not loaded.

1. Place the safety in the ON position.
2. Release box magazine cover.
3. Use a pin punch to strike the trigger mechanism retaining button at rear of trigger bow. See Figure 17.
4. Once released, the trigger assembly can be pulled back from the stock assembly.
5. With the trigger mechanism removed, and the bolt locked in the open position, the magazine can be taken out of the stock by simultaneously pulling the magazine down and to the rear. See Figure 18. When reinstalling magazine, be certain front of magazine is engaged in lug on receiver.

Note: Foreign material in trigger group is a major cause of SKS doubling or slam firing. Trigger group should be cleaned and lubricated regularly.

At this time, receiver/barrel/stock assembly may be removed.

Removing Receiver Barrel Assembly from Stock

Prior to start, remove trigger mechanism/magazine. See instructions on page 15.

1. Extend bayonet.
2. Lay gun on padded table upside down.
3. With right hand hold rear of receiver assembly tightly against table with screwdriver or punch. With left hand, lift up firmly on stock separating the two pieces. See Figure 19.

Note: Crossbolt removal is not required or recommended.

Assembly requires only that you perform the above steps in reverse order.

Sight Adjustment

Elevation

Using a front sight elevation tool, insert the forked end of the tool into the top of the front sight hood. Engage the tool into the flats of the front sight post. Turn the tool counterclockwise to lower the bullet's point of impact on target. To raise the point of impact, turn the tool clockwise.

Windage

Using a small mallet and brass punch, or an aftermarket windage adjustment tool, windage can be adjusted by drifting the front sight seat in the direction desired. From the perspective of a sight picture, move the front sight seat in the opposite direction you want your point of impact to shift. For example, to move the group on the target to the left, drift the front sight seat to the right.

The rear sight is an open notch type which is adjustable for elevation from 100 meters to 1000 meters, or 110 yards to 1100 yards. There is also an all-purpose battle setting on the sight ladder, set for 300 meters, or 330 yards. This is attained by moving the elevation slide to the rear of the ladder as far as it will go.

Mounting the Bayonet

Begin by sliding the bayonet handle and the bayonet spring over the tang of the spike bayonet. Push downward on the handle until the slot for attaching the bayonet screw is exposed. Hold the bayonet carefully in this position with the muzzle ring facing the muzzle of the rifle and insert the bayonet pin into its proper slot in the bayonet lug. Tighten the bayonet pin with a screwdriver of proper size.

Parts Legend

Exploded View of Gun