Absolutely. For me it started with the Makarov pistol. There is something extremely rewarding about taking apart a machine and figuring out *exactly* how it works.
Always the student, never the teacher. I am surprised, after over two decades of shooting, that I would care or take the time to listen to a man's opinion on cleaning a rifle. Your presentation, background, tone, pace, scary black 10/22 build, knowledge and good intentions make your content so valuable. Such a good impression to leave current and future generations. Thanks for all the time you take.
You're a legend in the making you just don't realize it. The content you provide is head and shoulders above a lot of the others. Thanks for the consistent content that is educating the hell out of us all!🎉🎉🎉
Just found this channel on the recommendation of Hickok45 and I can't stop watching all of your freaking videos. Excellent information and your knowledge seems unsurpassed in this area. Kudos to you and give a shout out to Hickok for the referral
Just here to say how much I appreciate all of your content. Am always looking forward to whatever you have lined up. Thanks for doing what you're doing.
I don't have any questions due to the thoroughness of the video, nor do I have anything to add for the same reason. However, I know a comment helps the YT overloards, so I figured I would at least say this and do my part to show support. Thanks again for a fantastic video! It would be awesome to find someone equally as talented, knowledgeable, and willing to share as you for every other obscure interest I have as well 🙏🏽
What I like about your videos is there is always something to learn from them. Unrelated, did a de-p&w last night and had a good laugh remembering the reddit fiasco from not long ago lol
I keep forgetting that actually happened 🤦♂️. What a bizarre situation lol. Hope the p&w job came out well (but not *too* well). Thanks for watching and commenting, I really do appreciate it.
Thank you! This was a very useful refresher course on cleaning a gun I enjoyed many years ago, but which tends to be overlooked in favor of newer tools and toys. Time to clean my mid-60s and a later specimen I just picked up.
Thank you for always sharing your knowledge and passion for SKS. In Canada, if one could only own one rifle, I would choose a Chinese SKS. By the way, I only use the green bottle Ballistol to clean and maintain my rifles.
I got my first sks factory 22 never fired in near pristine condition with original box, original sling, oil container, and a few striper clips and very little cosmoline residue....watched a few of you vids then. Now just recently aquired a very, very, used factory 26 in definetly been issued condition, european beach wood stock and alot of slavic names carved into it.... but packed in cosmoline. First video that popped up! I know how to remove the cosmoline, but this video is the most detailed and from a channel thats based on the sks. Thanks for the knowledge.
Very informative, right to the point, and easy to understand! Your videos are allways helpful, and whatever info I'm after is as easy as simply asking. I really appreciate and enjoy what you do. Thanks again!!
Wow. you are REALLY nice on your SKS patterns. Boot lace, motor oil, whatever napkin or cloth you can pick up, whatever small tool you can find...nail, leatherman, knife, any smallish pointy object... pretty much it. if you want the detailed cleanup then yeah, this video is top notch
For sure - I treat them like princesses. Everything you describe works just fine. Even if you don't have a bootlace, you can usually perform adequate preventative maintenance simply by staring at them intently.
I’d love to see you do a cleaning video for one that used corrosive ammo and the utility of the cleaning kit. Mainly, because I have no clue how or why these methods would be different, but also because I always use surplus ammo, which is corrosive, in the SKS. Your channel is an absolute gem and you’re a wealth of knowledge. Appreciate what you do for the community, and can’t wait for more content!
Your cleaning methods are very close to mine. Sometimes I tend to over scrub stuff till it is near perfect... I have traded in guns to a local shop and he always things I have never shot them. Yes, they're that clean usually
Good coverage! Bonus points for remembering the "tappet" hiding under the rear sight. The less inquisitive types usually discover it when the spring collapses from corrosion cracking. RUST is the great "spring-killer" a single rust pit n a coil or flat spring van easily lead to a "stress riser" which is basically a failure point. About the "factory / issue cleaning kits. There seems to be a bit of "variety' in these, but the best are very clever, mechanically. The "cap" not only retains the widgets, but can double as a bore-guide. The springy locking "fingers" will grab the barrel and and the hole in the end conveniently takes the general diameter of the cleaning rod. The transverse hole in the "button" end of the rod accepts the "pin" from the kit. This is a useful feature when hauling the rod through the bore. Not as elegant as a bunch of after-market cleaning gear, but that little package fits neatly inside the butt, via the finger-biting trap.. "Issue" oil bottles and "patches" are a whole different field of study.
I started watching this video with the expectation that Ive been cleaning my sks wrong this entire time, but nope I do it the exact same way, down to the bits of grease in the bolt channel and even using the exact products shown. A bit uncanny honestly, and a relief.
I really enjoy your channel! Your professional, concise and clear tone are really a breath of fresh air amongst many other firearm channels out there. Cheers from Canada 🇨🇦
Dude, love your style, attitude and the train of your thoughts. Very useful, I learned a lot, even though I've been following the original USSR SKS manual.
Excellent video. I have always cleaned my SKS after shooting, and have only used non- corrosive ammo. I am very OCD, and now I can be even more OCD with cleaning! 😅 Regards from Canada 🇨🇦
I'd love your thoughts on how an SKS should be cleaned after firing corrosive ammo to prevent damage. I've people say that running water or soapy water through the chamber and bore is sufficient, others that just shooting some non-corrosive rounds after the corrosive will do it, etc. I almost exclusively fire corrosive Chinese surplus through my SKS, and I always fully clean the rifle afterwards with water, solvent, and oil out of an abundance of caution.
That’s a great video to idea - I’ll try to make it a priority. One really important factor with corrosive ammunition is climate. Corrosive ammunition isn’t actually corrosive, but rather it attracts moisture from the air. As I understand it, firing corrosive ammunition in a zero humidity has absolutely no risk of actually causing corrosion. Consequently, guys like myself who live in very nearly zero-humidity environments can often get away with a lot more than guys who live in humid environments. This explains why some people will report that all they have to do to neutralize corrosive primers is to fire a few rounds of non-corrosive, meanwhile that might have very different results for someone else.
Hi there from South Africa. I live in the centre of the country which is semi desert and i always use chinese military surplus ammo because its available and relatively well priced. I do the same as you, every time i shoot it. So far never had rust even when stored for 3 month when i am away at work. I use my FN plastic coated cable as i find the standard cleaning rod a pain because its too short anyway. Its on the rifle just to complete the package. cheers.
we are alot alike. scarily actually. i do what you do, but i came across the swab-it ar chamber swab, it is great for 7.62x39 chamber, it goes all the way to the throat and in the start of the barrel, and it is great for the gas tube and the recess fir the recoil spring. pricy at $3 per, however. but im hooked
good video, i give mine a basic wipe down, with chrome lined bores just a couple of patches and its good. on the yugo i do a more through job on the bore. but as you stated they just run.
If I had your mos I definitely would have recapped. I live in northern Illinois and do not have friends or family into firearms. So I indulge in you tube gun vids. Thanks alot for your excellent vids.
Thanks friend, I get it. My job was awesome *when I got to do it* . For every minute I spent doing my job well, I must have spent an hour doing someone else's job poorly. Army just can't let a good thing be, lol.
Thanks for watching! I absolutely agree, a little grease is great. The rifles don't necessarily *need* it, but it sure does help everything run than much more smoothly.
The kit that came with a SMLE .303 in the Army was a rope pull through with a brass weight and loop and an oil bottle in the butt stock plus a roll of "forby" 4" x 2" cloth. Simple and effective.
Would you be able to make a cleaning video of a SKS preserved in cosmoline? Also, do you have a patreon? You're the only person on youtube or any other platform that I'd actually like to support
Thanks for all your videos, I really enjoy your content. I tell anyone who'll listen about it. Personally, I find cleaning my weapons is relaxing. It's also effective in noticing if anything is amiss before the next time I fire it. My go to lubricant? 3in1 oil!
My two cents worth product suggestion for storage lubrication, CRC 3-36. My 60 year old .22 bolt action loves the stuff. I've been using the rifle and 3-36 for 60 years.
Great job.I think you covered everything imaginable. Just out of curiosity, how can you tell when a bore brush is actually worn out? I thought they were good for about twenty years?
Was hoping you'd come out with an SKS cleaning video! Quick question: you said this method would serve us well for short to medium term storage. Obviously there are different factors to consider for each person, but at which point does one need to do a more thorough clean? What constitutes long term storage? 6 months? A year? 5-10 years? Thanks as always for all your great work.
Great question. Here is the way I think about "long-term" storage: The question isn't necessarily how long the weapon will be stored for, the question is how long it will take you to recognize if the storage conditions change. For example, I have essentially no firearms in long term storage currently, despite having a few that I haven't handed or fired in a couple years. Even though I'm not using them, I am regularly verifying that their storage area is safe and dry. Say a pipe bursts and I start getting water dripping into my storage area, I will recognize and correct that issue very quickly. By contrast, last time I left home for an extended period (9 months), I prepped all my firearms for long-term storage, because I knew that if the storage conditions changed, that might go unnoticed and uncorrected for a little while. So that's where personal factors come in. If somebody wants to "set and forget", long term storage rules apply. If someone plans to make regular contact with their firearms, whether or not they are actually handling/using them, short to medium term standards are fine. The "gold standard" for long-term SKS storage is cosmoline. A properly cosmoline packed SKS can pretty much be stuck behind a cabinet in a moldy oceanfront warehouse, and will probably be good to when someone finds it a few decades later. In terms of a more modern long-term storage solution, I generally just do an exceptionally thorough cleaning, then package the rifle in a sealed VCI-infused plastic bag.
Re: Balistol - you can dilute it 10%/90% product to water, it will look like skim milk, and then wipe down the gas system components and bore to neutralize the formation of salt, and then use typical gun cleaners from there. Will make your can of Bal go much further.
I've got an SKS that I purchased around 30 years ago. It had a broken after market folding stock. I've cleaned it a few times, but would like to identify which version I have. Where can I find the list of identifiable marks and the best place to find a factory wooden stock and other parts? Thanks
Ironic how at least one of those scary boys is just a wittle plinker, lol. Reminds me of a pic I seen once titled something along the lines of “an elderly man on a bike with his hunting rifle”. In reality it was a Serb soldier, possible war criminal, after some ethnic cleansing mission, with a chunky 59/66.
Glad you caught that lol - I was really appreciating that irony as well. That's a great anecdote about the Yugo. It's bizarre how detached from reality some folk's perceptions of firearms are. I see a commercial AR-15, I think of controlled gun ranges, competitions, and RU-vid videos. I see an M59/66, I think of war crimes. And yet the AR is the scary one?
I've shot maybe 300 rounds through mine, and aside from the cosmoline disassembly breakdown, I've only cleaned it twice. I cant be the only one who has issues with the bolt carrier group not going back in the first attempt. Yes, I know, more practice. But wtf!
Oh that would have been a great bit to include - shoot! There’s definitely a trick to it (basically holding everything at a 45 degree downward angle so the bolt remains locked to the carrier and gravity pulls everything into place). I’ll try to include that in a future video.
Sometimes I do use it, yes, but only in specific situations. I think it's a great cleaning agent to use on particularly grimy rubbed oil finishes. Additionally, I think it's a great way to add a little protection to heavily worn original finishes, or stocks with dents or scratches that have exposed unfinished wood. In applications like that, I absolutely recommend it as a means to clean or protect a stock without compromising the historically accurate finish. For example, my "Sino-Banian" (like many others), came with a pretty beat up stock. Rather than refinish it as some did, I gave it a very thorough rubdown with Howard F&W, and I am happy with the result. I don't use it for general stock conditioning, but I don't use anything for general stock conditioning. Even in my very dry climate, I've never found that to be necessary. That said, if someone was in a different situation, I think it's a good product to use. I think of it as the Ballistol of wood conditioners. Very neutral, doesn't hurt anything, only drawback is a funny smell.
@@blakethesnake1555With the sanctions on Russian ammo, these days I just buy whatever is cheapest. As long as it’s non-corrosive, it’s *pretty much* all the same. Tela, Belom, and Sterling are the most available brands at the moment, and I haven’t had issues with any of them. That said, anything that says “non-corrosive” and “made in ” will be just fine.
Yes and no. You can absolutely polish away corrosion spots from a bolt carrier, the problem is that this may make the the metal more prone to corrosion in the future. I have one SKS bolt carrier that a previous owner seems polished, and it’s the only SKS component I own that regularly tries to rust on me. My philology with corrosion/pitting is that if I can’t make it disappear with brass wool, it’s there to stay. Your mileage may vary!
Of course you may have videoed the triangle with different numbers within, but I’ve seen different triangle number stamped numbers with different variants. My Sks has a triangle with a /306\ . And all I seen was a 306 is a “factory” gun. Can you explain more of the difference in the numbers. I know it’s a Norinco made in China with a serial number starting with a number 7. And after cleaning it I’ve noticed that every serial numbers on certain parts all match. I also found a serial number on the underside of the rear side that seems to be scribed in it. Can you give me (us) some more information on the triangle numbers. Thanks for your time.
This is a Yugo M59/66, I take it? Hard to say, there are few possibilities, the most obvious of which is that the spring is frozen by rust or debris. If you remove your buttpad, you should be able to disassemble the trapdoor and find out what's going on in there.
@@Triangle26 its at 7:15 (called "slushing") altho now I think it was another HGH vid since I seem to remember the term cosmolene at that part... fun to think of the similar industrial steps for all the SKS made ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-39wM-lzDWE4.html&ab_channel=HighCaliberHistory
Hey I have another question about my sks serial numbers on all parts and stock match there is no lightning cut on the bolt carrier it does have the type 56 marking and its a triangle 326 do you think it's commercial or military?
The line between military and commercial is blurry. Many “commercial” rifles were originally manufactured for military purposes. That said, if your rifle has a military model designation (the three Chinese characters you describe) and no weird commercial features (sporting stock, neutered bayonet lug, optic rail, shortened barrel, etc) the most likely explanation is that it is a military production Type 56 Carbine, as marked.
@@Triangle26 thank you it has none of those things it does need a spike boyonet it has a blade one but I think rhe owner before me put that on polytechnic makes some for cheap I think they are new would that hurt anything?
Totally. I've had a few malfunctions over the years, but given how many rounds I have put through these rifles, it's still an unbelievably low failure rate. Except for one Albanian I have which is an absolute dumpster fire (actually the rifle I am cleaning in this video). But once again, that's quite the exception.
I need your help on aging my sks i watched your older videos on how to date one but my numbers still dont make sense to me. It has type 56 marking and triangle but the numbers dont make sense
@@jacobcochran51 The spaces are unusual, but probably meaningless. I assume the coded number in the Triangle is not a “26”? The most obvious interpretation of your serial number is that it’s the 18,606th rifle made at (whatever factory code you have) in the 16th year of production, which is 1971. That would be a fairly typical date and production code.
Surprised you didn't do two things. First - remove, clean, lube the secondary piston and spring. Super easy to remove - just keep control of the spring. Second - take down the recoil spring and guide for the same procedure. A little trick - use a dowel or long punch up the hollow portion pusing on a table, and the disassembly is comically easy - again keep control of the spring.
Is your magazine mismatched? That’s a fairly uncommon issue with a matching magazine, but sometimes tolerances stack the wrong way with mismatched parts. Either way, if you’ve confirmed it’s not an assembly issue, and it’s coming down to just half a mm or so, careful filing of the magazine catch may be appropriate. Magazine catches are also replaceable, so it’s not a super high risk experiment.
99% of cleaning I do for non corrosive ammo in all my guns is oil and a rag. Especially for AKs and SKSs. I used to live in the desert and grease would attract sand like nothing.
I REALLY LIKE YOUR SIGHT, AND I KNOW YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT, BUT I CAN'T PROCESS ALL THE VALUABLE INFO YOU PROVIDE BECAUSE YOU TALK WAY- WAY-WAY -TOO FAST ! I CAN ONLY LISTEN FOR A SHORT WHILE THEN I START TO GET A HEADACHE. AND HAVE TO TURN YOU OFF. WHAT'S THE DEAL, THIS IS NOT A RACE. TRYING TO LISTEN AND UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU ARE SAYING IS LIKE FLASHING PAGE AFTER PAGE WRITTEN INSTRUCTIONS, BUT NOT GIVING A PERSON THE TIME ENOUGH TO READ THE FIRST PAGE BEFORE YOU PUT UP THE NEXT PAGE. I ONCE HEARD SOMEWHERE THAT YOUNG PEOPLE THINK THAT TALKING FAST MAKES THEM APPEAR TO BE INTELLIGENT. IT DOESN'T ! WHAT MAKES A PERSON APPEAR INTELLIGENT IS WHEN THEY SPEAK IN A MANNER THAT EVERYONE IN THEIR AUDIENCE CAN PROCESS AND UNDERSTAND THE THINGS THEY ARE SAYING. THANKS , TOM ( 1954 ISHEVSK )
I’m going to be honest with you Tom, I have a tough time taking communication feedback from someone who types a message in all-caps. I talk fast. It’s not to appear smart, it’s just my natural talking speed. I’ll consider trying to slow down.
