*SOLD* 1964 North Vietnamese SKS 7.62x39 Blue 20.75" *RARE VET BRING BACK EXAMPLE*

Bryant Ridge's Analysis

The SKS is a semi-automatic rifle designed by Soviet small arms designer Sergei Gavrilovich Simonov in 1945. Although it was first produced in the Soviet Union, it was later widely exported and manufactured by various nations. The rifle has a permanently attached folding bayonet and a hinged, fixed magazine. As the SKS lacked select-fire capability and its magazine was limited to ten rounds, it became obsolete in the Soviet Armed Forces with the introduction of the AK-47 in the 1950s. Nevertheless, SKS carbines continued to see service with the Soviet Border Troops, Internal Troops, and second-line and reserve army units for decades. 

In terms of production numbers, the SKS was the ninth most produced self-loading rifle design in history. Nearly all the Warsaw Pact member states adopted the SKS at one time or another, and technical specifications to produce the carbine were shared with the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) and Romania. With the assistance of Soviet or Chinese technicians and generous military grants, armaments factories producing SKS carbines were later established in North Vietnam, North Korea, Yugoslavia, and Albania.
Vietnamese Type 1 SKS rifles were nearly identical to the Soviet and early Chinese SKS. They had a small star on the receiver with a 1 in the center, and the barrel and many of the internal parts were chromed. North Vietnam set up a small arms factory north of Hanoi, with Chinese factory #296's assistance starting in 1959. The goal was to make it a substantial arsenal for the repair and production of arms, including barrel-making and forging capabilities. Although it was able to assemble about 6,000 SKS rifles between 1962 and 1965, when it was shut down by American strategic bombing, it would never reach its potential. Serial numbers on these rifles begin with a two-digit code identifying the year of production (62 through 65) and then a 4 digit sequential number.

Specifications

Manufacturer: North Vietnamese

Model: SKS

Serial: 641936 

Date of Manufacture: 1964

Caliber: 7.62x39mm

Finish: Blue

Barrel Length: 20 3/4" 

Optics/Sights: Hooded Post Front with Tangent Notch Rear Graduated from 100 to 1,000 Meters

Stock/Grips: Smooth Hardwood (Please Note: This example has a crack on the left side of the stock that can been seen in pictures 32 & 33.)

Action: Semi-Automatic

Markings: The left side of the receiver is stamped with the serial number "641936" and a star with 1 in the middle. The receiver cover, bolt, magazine, and trigger guard feature the matching serial number.

Images