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The Pirate's Treasure

Talyn

Talyn

Emissary
Founding Member
From Brownells Sunday Gun Day.

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The Pirate's Treasure

Replica of a Bosnian SKS Sniper Rig

In the late 1980s, I was an officer in the U.S. Navy and then later served on deep-draft, ocean-going merchant ships all over the world. We had many run-ins with pirates off both coasts of Africa, the South China Sea, the Indian Ocean, and a few other areas around Vietnam, Malaysia, and Singapore. One time, we were waiting for a pilot to come aboard near Borneo when we came upon a derelict fishing boat with no crew onboard. The vessel was on a known pirate watch list. Another officer and I cautiously boarded and inspected the boat. There were a few firearms, some ammunition, and a few machetes. It looked like the crew had left in a hurry and did not take much with them.

One of the more interesting guns they left behind was an SKS. I don’t recall which variant but probably Russian or Yugoslavian. It was fitted with a Russian scope and it looked very cool and left a lasting impression. This type of rifle was used by snipers during the Bosnian conflicts with dreadful results, both from actual hits and the terror they created. I have no idea how one of them ended up half-way around the world on an abandoned pirate/fishing boat.

About a year ago, I got my hand on an unissued, never fired, very late production Yugo SKS from the last batch of rifles built in May/June of 1989. I cleaned it, replaced the Tritium front and rear sight lights, and then customized it from memory to look like the one I found on that derelict fishing boat.

The scope is a POSP 6x42mm and it holds perfect zero. The padded canvas cheek rest also carries three 10-round stripper clips. The one on the fishing boat's SKS was made of leather and cloth but looked similar. The rifle is both insanely reliable, accurate out to 300 meters, and still decent up to about 350 meters with good ammunition - but bullet drop takes effect fairly quickly thereafter. Every time I shoot it, I wonder about the story behind that pirate sniper rifle!

- Bill N. Featured Customer
 

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Talyn said:
From Brownells Sunday Gun Day.

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View attachment 12016
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The Pirate's Treasure

Replica of a Bosnian SKS Sniper Rig

In the late 1980s, I was an officer in the U.S. Navy and then later served on deep-draft, ocean-going merchant ships all over the world. We had many run-ins with pirates off both coasts of Africa, the South China Sea, the Indian Ocean, and a few other areas around Vietnam, Malaysia, and Singapore. One time, we were waiting for a pilot to come aboard near Borneo when we came upon a derelict fishing boat with no crew onboard. The vessel was on a known pirate watch list. Another officer and I cautiously boarded and inspected the boat. There were a few firearms, some ammunition, and a few machetes. It looked like the crew had left in a hurry and did not take much with them.

One of the more interesting guns they left behind was an SKS. I don’t recall which variant but probably Russian or Yugoslavian. It was fitted with a Russian scope and it looked very cool and left a lasting impression. This type of rifle was used by snipers during the Bosnian conflicts with dreadful results, both from actual hits and the terror they created. I have no idea how one of them ended up half-way around the world on an abandoned pirate/fishing boat.

About a year ago, I got my hand on an unissued, never fired, very late production Yugo SKS from the last batch of rifles built in May/June of 1989. I cleaned it, replaced the Tritium front and rear sight lights, and then customized it from memory to look like the one I found on that derelict fishing boat.

The scope is a POSP 6x42mm and it holds perfect zero. The padded canvas cheek rest also carries three 10-round stripper clips. The one on the fishing boat's SKS was made of leather and cloth but looked similar. The rifle is both insanely reliable, accurate out to 300 meters, and still decent up to about 350 meters with good ammunition - but bullet drop takes effect fairly quickly thereafter. Every time I shoot it, I wonder about the story behind that pirate sniper rifle!

- Bill N. Featured Customer
Click to expand...
Thats very cool 👍
 
No. it looks like he put one of these SKS side rails on it,

1605475859999.png


then mounted a Kalinka Optics POSP 6x42 rifle scope w/Illumination on the rail.

1605475900277.png
 
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I bought a Chinese SKS back in the day when you could get them for $89.00 (A few years ago. ;) ). Put a synthetic stock on it took it out and shot it. I was amazed at how accurate it was with Lapua ammo.
 
HansGruber said:
I’ve had a few...Chinese, Yugos, a Russian...

When they started going for over $300 is when I stopped gettimg them, though...
Click to expand...


My buddy's was cheap. I know this because he's a cheap bastard. I sold him a Fender P bass about 6 months ago. Cheap. Like $250. I still haven't gotten my money. lol
 
Keystone19250 said:
The pictures don’t prove your point.
Click to expand...

I don't think so.

I've been working with AK-type optics for the last 25 years. I've never seen a SKS mount (the rail & mount is an SVD set-up) that does what you think it does. That's why I double-checked in to what I posted before I made my conclusion.

Almost all SKS scope mounts have involved a replacement dust cover, so the guys' SKS in the article was interesting. So I dug into the available info and discovered that SVD side rails would work on a SKS, as per the first pic, then as old-traditional Russian optic have an integral scope and mount system then things made sense, and thus the second pic.

The way the guy in the second pic is hlding the optic/rail shows the interior of the intergral POSP 6x42 scope mount (the right side of the scope is actually the front) and it slides on to & cams (locks) onto the seperate rail. The rail/scope in the second pic is flipped over so the mount slides on to the rail as per typical Russian side-mounted optics. In the original pic the tubular extension on the rear support leg is the Illumination switch and there's an extended battery compartment that sticks out. Some Russian Kalinka optic set-ups are like that.

If you don't provide any credible evidense then you haven't proven your point.
 
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Talyn said:
I don't think so.

I've been working with AK-type optics for the last 25 years. I've never seen a SKS mount (the rail & mount is an SVD set-up) that does what you think it does. That's why I double-checked in to what I posted before I made my conclusion.

Almost all SKS scope mounts have involved a replacement dust cover, so the guys' SKS in the article was interesting. So I dug into the available info and discovered that SVD side rails would work on a SKS, as per the first pic, then as old-traditional Russian optic have an integral scope and mount system then things made sense, and thus the second pic.

The way the guy in the second pic is hlding the optic/rail shows the interior of the intergral POSP 6x42 scope mount (the right side of the scope is actually the front) and it slides on to & cams (locks) onto the seperate rail. The rail/scope in the second pic is flipped over so the mount slides on to the rail as per typical Russian side-mounted optics. In the original pic the tubular extension on the rear support leg is the Illumination switch and there's an extended battery compartment that sticks out. Some Russian Kalinka optic set-ups are like that.

If you don't provide any credible evidense then you haven't proven your point.
Click to expand...

You said all that just to be wrong. What Talyn said was correct. It’s a simple side Mount that you can get from Kalinka optics. They call it a MOLOT Mount and it’s pretty universal. I’ve added one to several SKS rifles including my own.

You drill two holes on the side of the receiver for the Mount and rivet it in place using the supplied rivets or tap the holes for screws. Then attach your preferred optic. I’ve successfully added PSO-1, POSP, ON-M76, and LPS scopes to SKS rifles this way.
 
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