1949 Tula SKS

[EBR Works]

A nice Tula arsenal refurb. Auction begins 12/28:

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/1080332681

[BrokerB]

Will.be interesting to see what sales price that gets. I have dam near the exact.same.thing sitting in a KBI box. Unfired since refurb.

I think mine came.with a stripper clip pouch and maybe 10 clips?

The single clip is a bit sad : (

Was there ever russia made stripper clip vests like they used in Vietnam?

[echo1]

Pretty nice light refurb. The bolt face and hammer look new. Anxious to see what it fetche$. They got the barrel length wrong, PAX

They fixed it.

[highpower]

I remember even just a few years ago that a refurb like that would be around $600 or so. I suspect that it will probably go for a bit north of a grand.

[boris badinov]

This is not a 1949 carbine.

It is a heavy refurb 1950 production. The replacement cover, dated 1949 has been scrubbed and re-stamped to match during refurb. Its a very common mistake to date the soviet sks by the dated cover. But various features of this rifle identify it as 1950 manufacture with a replacement cover, trigger type2 replacement magazine and a post 1955 laminate stock. The лю prefix is a well documented and verified serial prefix for 1950 dated carbines, but not for any 1949 guns


The difference in serial fonts on the receiver and the dated cover is a dead giveaway that the cover is a replacement.
image.pngimage.png

[boris badinov]

Beautiful rifle, though.

[boris badinov]

Was there ever russia made stripper clip vests like they used in Vietnam?

The Soviets didn't issue a vest. They used a belt pouch.s-l960.jpg

[boris badinov]

On 1949 carbines, the mag follower is welded to the inside of the magazine as below.

No Rivet▼

image.png



In 1950 the mag design was changed, adding a rivet to secure the follower-- possibly because the weld was not durable enough and may have led to feeding issues. When you see a riveted magazine on an true 1949 carbine, though the serial may be matching, the serial font will be different as we see on the OP carbine.

Rivet ▼
image.png
Note also that the serial font on the replacement magazine also matches the serial font on the replacement cover
image.png

But neither the serial font matches the serial font on the receiver.

image.png

...

Below is an example of a true, original parts, matching 1949.
90° gas block, cruciform spike bayonet, tapered stock with bottom rivet on the stock ferrule:

https://ibb.co/album/vVPgDs

[highpower]

Nice tutorial BB. I have a few Russians, all of which have been refurbished to a greater or lesser extent. Probably the best of the lot is a 1954 that the only thing done to it is the replacement laminated stock. Otherwise it is like new. The biggest shame is the un-refurbished ‘54 Izhevsk that had been used as a truck gun and apparently thrown under the seat and left to bounce around for a couple of years.

[boris badinov]

Nice tutorial BB.

Thanks. It's never fun to see a rifle incorrectly listed as an "extremely rare" (and therefore high value) when it is demonstrably not extremely rare or even rare. Mis-dating Soviet sks45s is very common-- as the dated parts are so easily interchangeable with rifles manufactured in different years. Its an honest mistake, an all too common mistake.
So much so, that even the new SKS collector's guide by Layman and VanDyk has two misdated "1949" examples in the first three pages of the chapter on Soviet variant!!

There is a Canadian member at sks-files.com forum, who has taken it upon himself to do a multi-year deep dive into studying the 1949 rifles and the design transitions from 1949-1950. Canada has a seemingly endless pipeline for 1949 examples, and he's bought and then resold dozens of 1949's and some oddball 1950s in his ongoing research. Suffice it to say, that while it ain't always obvious at first glance, it is 100% possible to spot a 1949-misdated SKS45.

I have a few Russians, all of which have been refurbished to a greater or lesser extent. Probably the best of the lot is a 1954 that the only thing done to it is the replacement laminated stock. Otherwise it is like new.

There's a lot to be said about (and paid for) a Soviet refurb done well. It doesn't have to be an original rifle to the a High condition or even pristine example.

The biggest shame is the un-refurbished ‘54 Izhevsk that had been used as a truck gun and apparently thrown under the seat and left to bounce around for a couple of years.

☹
I'm almost afraid to ask... is it an all matching rifle?

[highpower]

All matching and looks to have been virtually new when imported. The bolt was packed solid with cosmoline.

[boris badinov]

All matching and looks to have been virtually new when imported. The bolt was packed solid with cosmoline.

The guy who previously used it as a truck gun, packed it in storage grease?

[highpower]

The guy who previously used it as a truck gun, packed it in storage grease?

The whole gun was still packed in cosmoline including the bore. I think he took it out of the box and never shot it before throwing it around. It may have been riding around in a metal tool box instead of under the seat. There is a lot of finish bumps and bruises on both the stock and metal parts. As I said, all matching and no rebuild stamp although when I look at the picture of it, it does look like it may have been refinished. When I disassembled it to clean it up, the portions under the wood were as new. I haven't seen it in almost ten years as I gave it to my son shortly after I got it.

[echo1]

I remember even just a few years ago that a refurb like that would be around $600 or so. I suspect that it will probably go for a bit north of a grand.

That's near what this one should go for, it's a '50s refurb