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Advantages/Disadvantages of the SKS & Mini-14

36K views 56 replies 30 participants last post by  alaj70 
#1 · (Edited)
I thought I'd like to add my thoughts into the talk. I will soon, God-willing, buy myself an SKS because no other rifle offers more.

God bless!


SKS and Mini-14

H.& H. = Hand to Hand

SKS Pos
1. Battle Rifle
a. Durable
b. Ideal; made for H.& H. Combat
c. Ability to accept Bayonette
d. Easy Disassembly
e. Reliable
f. Proven in the Battlefield
g. Simple to use and Operate.

2. Bayonette fixed to Barrel
a. Always there & ready to unfold when needed

3. Stripper clip (10rd clip fed into Internal Mag)
a. Avoidance mag. spring wearout
b. Daily Loading and unloading avoided
c. Stripper Clip MUCH more Cheaper than Magazines
d. Loading very easy.

4. Length of Rifle. ideal for H to H Combat

5. Affordable to Buy

6. Easy to clean

7. Heavier Bullet (7.62x39mm) =
a. Sure Man-stopping ability
b. Assured Painful Injury/Lethality
c. Made for harsh envoirnment

8. Sporter and other Stocks available (ex. Stock featuring Picatinny Rails)

9. Intimidating.

SKS Neg
1. Maybe less accurate (but more accurate than AK due to length of Barrel)

2. Some may not feature Bayonette

3. Slower to load clip (placing, pushing 10rnds in, pulling clip out)

4. Heavier

5. Too Long for easy room clearing and exits w/out being spotted first.

6. Bullet caliber unsafe for neighbors (easy penetration through walls).

7. Crude Sights hinders accuracy

8. Heavier Bullet = Heavy Recoil, Muzzle Jump, aimed rapid firing difficult

9. Expensive Quality Rounds (20rds for approx. $20)

SKS Rebutt
1. Inaccuracy can be helped by:
a. Synthetic Stock
b. Muzzle compensater may help accuracy
c. Firefights often occur at 30-200m

2. Order Bayonette

3. More Ammunition ready for use than 4 mags that's needed to reload after emnty

4. Possible light Synthetic Stock available

5. NC (No Contest)

6. NC

7. Peep sight available

8. Easy Rapid fire can be possible by
a. Muzzle Compensator
b. Synthetic Stock

9. W/ Iraq Economy Improving, quality Rounds cheaper.

Mini-14 Pos.
1. Accurate

2. Shorter, smaller
a. Suitable CQB
b. Easier to carry
c. Lighter

3. Cheaper Round (5.56mm)

4. Faster Reloading (Magazine fed)

5. Lighter bullet =
a. less recoil
b. reduced, muzzle jump,
c. easy rapid firing
d. Quicker Target sighting
e. very accurate Bullet
f. Safer for Neighbors (reduced Penetration through walls)
g. Wounding effect, extremely great (Hydro-shock effect).

6. Adjustable Windage

7. Based on the M-14 battle Rifle

Mini-14 Neg
1. Daily Loading/Unloading Bullets to/from Magazines

2. Smaller length ill-suited for H to H combat

3. No Bayonette

4. Stocks w/ Picatinny rails may not be available

5. Some Mini' does not have Scope rails for Picatinny installment

6. Magazines costly ($30-50 each opp. to $2-4 stripper clip)

7. 5.56mm not a perfect man-stopper.

8. May not be as reliable or easy to maintain as M-14 or SKS

9. Not Long enough for H. to H. Combat or may not be suitable.

10. Expensive

Mini-14 Rebutt
1. NC

2. Rare for H. to H. Combat

3. Same as #2

4. Rails available for scope mount or Red-dot e-sight

5. Newer Mini' does

6. NC

7. Wounding Effect sufficient, combat proven round

8. If Based on M-14, it may be just as reliable

9. Same as #3

10. Good investment if you value shorter, lighter rifle in 5.56mm

 
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#39 ·
I just think tapco could have better thought out their products. My biggest problem is with their magazines, they do not load well from stripper clips, they have a tendency to fall out when they take a hard bump, and their shape makes them very awkward to use like a normal detachable mag. I think tapco would have been better off making an AK mag adapter. The t6 stock does seem to be well liked by those who use it, but to me it felt toyish.

Maybe I'm just being a geezer. I just prefer steel and wood over poly/plastic when it comes down to it.
 
#42 ·
Agreed with above. On another note I have had good luck with both the Mini and the SKS eating cheap ammo(bulk spam can cold war stuff) as a regular diet. Much better than the AR. I enjoy the Old military stuff that is out there and think the SKS is great and has good points as well as a few downsides, and for me it is worth the price of admission to be an owner of a few and spend money on them.
Most of the people I know that complain about them had one and it... blah, blah, blah, wine, wine, wine, they forget they bought a used gun? Imported to this country by Century Arms, etc. I remind them the could have bought something else, and often I hear, but I wanted an SKS. :)
 
#43 ·
Now that I've been able to put some rounds through my Norinco SKS I've been able to make some of my own comparisons to my early (.308) stainless Mini-30 Ranch.

On my initial disassembly & cleaning I found that it is likely the SKS had never been fired. I could not find a speck of carbon anywhere. The bore is bright & shiny and the crown looks mint.
The front sight was also as far right as it would go. Looking on the internet I found a couple instances of them leaving the factory that way. I bought a standard sight tool & made it work by grinding some metal off the tool so it would fit the Chicom front sight.

The SKS is more accurate than the Mini. Neither is a target rifle but the SKS surprised me. I was feeding it Wolf SP and milsurp Yugo brass ammo. Advantage SKS.

The SKS loads plenty fast with stripper clips. Since there is no mag removal step it may actually be faster than the Mini. Ruger doesn't offer 10 rd magazines for those of us in states that require them. So for me it's 5 rd mags or aftermarket 10 rounders. If I can find a 10 round aftermarket mag that actually works I'll let ya know. The 2 ProMags I bought wouldn't even fit in the rifle. Of the other 4 I bought, 1 works "OK" but I wouldn't trust my life to it. The other 3 are useless. :angry:
Ruger 5rd mags are $20+ each. 400 rounds of non steel Yugo milsurp in stripper clips is a bit over $100. Add in that my SKS with factory fixed magazine has been 100% reliable and...
Advantage SKS. A no brainer for Kalifornistan.

If my SKS firing pin breaks, I already have a spare from Murray with early style return spring. If the Ruger breaks it's pin, I can either buy a (reportedly) inferior aftermarket pin or send the whole rifle to Ruger for a replacement.:angry:
Advantage SKS

The SKS is designed to gobble up any sort of steel or other cased ammo.
Ruger says I need to use expensive commercial stuff.
Advantage SKS.

So if it came down to it which rifle do you think I'm gonna grab? The SKS is a combat rifle. The Mini is not. But I'm keeping the Mini. It actually is 100% with the 5 rd magazines and is accurate enough for social occasions. It is most definitely the second fiddle in the safe tho.
And ya never know. I may not live in Kalifornistan forever and being able to use 20rd magazines might tilt the scales just a little.
 
#44 · (Edited)
Having bought a Norinco SKS with very little wear, I also bought an old ('90) Mini 14 and Mini 30 ('04) with limited use, in spring '08.

The only reasons I sold the Minis were that I did not like the thick post sights (lack of shooter skill) on these older models, and to find quick cash for my first Enfield "Jungle Carbine" in spring '09, and last May wanted handy cash for the very unlikely case a Spanish FR8 was seen at a Clarkesville TN store (yes!) on a road trip.

If it were not for the appeal of certain milsurps, I would have kept all of the Minis.
That old Mini 14 (the silver sticker said "State of KY") was the most reliable gun I've ever owned, including the bolt actions!

Even though the SKS has a stovebolt now and then (I know zero about power tools in chambers), that rifle will never leave until it wears out. Then it will be replaced.
 
#45 ·
Fishslayer: I'll be glad to take the Pro Mags off your hands.

I have a few Pro Mag 30 rounders which fit perfectly, feed flawlessly and drop free when released. The 20 rounders have to be sanded down with 320 or finer sandpaper to get them to fit and work. Tapco also makes good magazines for the Mini 14 as well. I don't trust any other aftermarket magazines for the Mini 14.

The SKS is also a reliable military weapon. With stripper clips it's easy to reload since the bolt carrier has a stripper clip guide. I wouldn't try to modify it and it serves its purpose.
 
#46 ·
The SKS is also a reliable military weapon. With stripper clips it's easy to reload since the bolt carrier has a stripper clip guide. I wouldn't try to modify it and it serves its purpose.
I have zero plans for molesting the SKS in any way. I like the rifle a lot just the way it is. At the very most I may put on a Tech aperture rear sight. These old eyes just ain't what they used to be.:(

I haven't given up on trying to make the ProMags work. But IMO they put out a pretty crappy product. How hard is it to build a box with a spring in it?
 
#47 ·
IM A RANCH RIFLE kinda guy i love my ranch but i got a yugo sk i like it alot i actually just bought it to show my buddy what a hunk of crap his wasr10/63 was for the 125.00 i paid for the thing i can shoot the pants off any stamped ak. and it does man i know its kinda cheating with this barrel thats approx 5" longer. But it just would bother me so bad watching him hit everything but his target at a distance. the LOP on those romanian ak's are for a midget or a little kid (little kids) so short that if he actually shouldered the rifle it would punch him right in the mouth! GARBAGE

the sk still has a place in my gun vault BATTLE RIFLE its not a sniper but hits out to 200 m on a torso sized targets show its worth its not a modular rifle not intended for optics although a select few were actually outfitted with a telescopic sight my yugo is a battle rifle and with a handy supply of stripper clips its a pretty quick little gun. the yugos have a flip up glowing night (possible early tritium) sight that flips up. the 7.62 x 39 is a great round mucho energy and stopping power. and its legal for big game in nm

THE MINI IS AWESOME I use it for varmints and predators its my go to gun i want to start shooting competitively with it in 3 gun it is plenty accurate with a trigger job and optics only. but than again its my best buddy i practice with this gun at least 2 times a week and it listens to where i want to place the bullet its brought home deer and antelope to eat and countless yotes to skin.
 
#52 ·
I agree. The Mini 14 easily handles all but the heaviest .223/5.56, and the SKS can handle any 7.62x39. The Mini 30 firing pin can break from firing hard primer ammo made for the SKS/AK-types, and because the pin isn't a drop in part, that's a PITA. I don't have a Mini 30 and there may be pluses to the Mini 30 I'm not aware of. I do have a Mini 14 and an SKS, and think each is well suited if not ideal for its respective caliber.
 
#55 ·
I had a Norinco that I should have never sold ..May need to find another..s

The Mini is definitelty still in use ain't going anywhere
 
#56 ·
Man! This is an old thread! I also have one each, Chinese SKS with Tapco M4 style stock,
detachable mags and a Picatinny cover with an Old Aimpoint on it. I bought it back in
the 80's when they were cheap. The barrel with flash hider is just legal length and I
did the trigger job on it. No bayonet. Shoots great! 3 MOA BUIS and 2-2.5 MOA with aimpoint.

I also have a 581 Mini-14 that I bought for my wife and it's got a red dot on it also.
Shoots about 2-3 MOA with the optics on it.

I also have a Windham SRC .223/5.56 AR with about 600 rounds through it.
It shoots about 2 MOA with the optics. I am not a sharpshooter!
Got lots of accessories, MOE, BUIS, Aimpoint and so far with the Mini or the AR, I haven't had one lick of problem except the Mini throws emptys 40 yards!

The SKS has untold 1,000 of rounds through it and I don't recall ever having a FTE or
FTF. That said at this point I would probably take the SKS in a SHTF scenario, with
the AR second and the Mini last. Mostly because of the experience I have shooting
the SKS. The Mini is my wife's gun.
I have 5 20 round mags for my SKS.
I have 6 20 round and 4 30's for the Mini.
I have 1 20 and 8 30 round mags for the AR
 
#57 ·
...at this point I would probably take the SKS in a SHTF scenario, with the AR second and the Mini last. Mostly because of the experience I have shooting the SKS...
I was only introduced to the SKS rifle about 4 years ago. Since that time, and several of them added to my collection, I must say these rifles are some of the most underrated firearms out there.

Given the ballistics of 7.62x39 cartridge, I am very pleased with the accuracy I get from my SKS rifles. With iron sights, I can group nicely at 50 yards; all within a 4" inch group. At 100 yards, of course, it opens up. But again, this is with iron sights.

As far as reliability, I've never experienced a FTF/FTE with my SKS rifles. They are built to run...and run they do. This is one of the obvious strengths of the platform's design.

One could make an argument against using an SKS in a SHTF scenario, based on it's "standard" firepower...because of the 10-round attached magazine. However, there are 20-round options available, as well as stock options to augment the ergos of the rifle.

That said, one thing I do like about the 10-round magazine is that there are no magazines to tote around, and nothing to get lost. It's self-contained. Moreover, for general defensive use, 10 rounds is adequate...not great, but adequate.

Bottom line, the SKS rifle is a great choice for any type of shooting that trips your trigger. I'm a huge fan of this shooting platform.
 
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