New SKS - Cleaning questions

[Pector55]

Hi guys... I got my SKS today and I'm familiar with cosmoline cleaning thanks to several searches and having done it with my Mosin. However, I also got some leather pouches that seem to be stiff and actually be a little moldy.

Should I clean them in warm soapy water and let them dry? Will that make them dry and crack? Any suggestions?

I typically scrub out the cosmoline with kerosene. I seems to take it off rather quickly and has yet to hurt anything.

[Dredly]

Good luck. I tossed the ones I got, the cleaning kit was also pretty bad. The pouches are normally not covered in cosmo as the weapon is wrapped in paper when its dunked in snot and the pouches are thrown somewhere else.

if they are moldy they probably got wet at some point and just sat there for a few decades. I would toss it and not risk it, but thats just me.

[pex]

Good luck. I tossed the ones I got, the cleaning kit was also pretty bad. The pouches are normally not covered in cosmo as the weapon is wrapped in paper when its dunked in snot and the pouches are thrown somewhere else.

if they are moldy they probably got wet at some point and just sat there for a few decades. I would toss it and not risk it, but thats just me.

BLASPHEMY!

If you guys are tossing military surplus, just let me know the coordinates of the garbage can.

[Pector55]

One last question, I removed the firing pin and extractor to get the cosmo out of there too. On the instructions I was following, it mentioned a spring on the firing pin? Mine did not have one. (FYI, mine is a Yugo) There was one attached to the extractor but no others.

http://will.mylanders.com/shot/sks/action-detail.php3

From what I have read doing searches, several people say that you should be able to shake the bolt and hear the pin move. That would be possible if there was a spring in there would it?

[nijwnfi]

You're OK, no spring on the firing pin. I believe some early Russian SKS had them, Yugo does not.

[Pector55]

You're OK, no spring on the firing pin. I believe some early Russian SKS had them, Yugo does not.

Thans man, muchas repas pointas to you amigos that helped.

[Garpman]

About cleaning leather pouches, or just about everything else, there is a product that is highly recommended called Ballistol.

I have not personally used it, but judging by the reviews I've read from gun owners, it works amazingly well, and on an extremely wide variety of surfaces.

[dogngun]

For old corroded leather stuff, I clean it in warm water with dish detergent, let dry on paper towels, rub in a good leather conditioning cream-I have been using Camp Dry for several years with no problems.
All of this removed most of the crud, and the conditioner makes the leather usable again.
This will probably make some people scream and cry, but I have been doing it to old gun related leather for over 20 years with no bad results.
As far as the firing pin, there is no spring-take the bolt apart, clean the pin channel thouroughly with pipe cleaners and hot water and detergent to remove grease. Let dry and re assemble without lubing the firing pin. It should rattle when you shake it, and it will not cause "slam fires" when it is completely clean.

There are some who advocate adding a spring, but it is not necessary if the bolt is kept reasonably clean.

Many people make money selling aftermarket gun products. Not all of them are worth it.
mark

[Kaos]

For old corroded leather stuff, I clean it in warm water with dish detergent, let dry on paper towels, rub in a good leather conditioning cream-I have been using Camp Dry for several years with no problems.
All of this removed most of the crud, and the conditioner makes the leather usable again.
This will probably make some people scream and cry, but I have been doing it to old gun related leather for over 20 years with no bad results.
As far as the firing pin, there is no spring-take the bolt apart, clean the pin channel thouroughly with pipe cleaners and hot water and detergent to remove grease. Let dry and re assemble without lubing the firing pin. It should rattle when you shake it, and it will not cause "slam fires" when it is completely clean.

There are some who advocate adding a spring, but it is not necessary if the bolt is kept reasonably clean.

Many people make money selling aftermarket gun products. Not all of them are worth it.
mark

SKS' (yugos namely) have been prone to slamfires before...first day I had mine to the range it did it and I had actually taken the bolt apart to clean the cosmo out of it with gun scrubber.

Adding the spring isn't a bad idea, can never be too safe. It's a battle rifle and should be able to get fairly gunked up before it fails.

Biggest tip I could give you for a yugo SKS is to sign up over at www.sksboards.com ( i post as kaos over there...though not so much anymore) because there is a WEALTH of info over there.

You should be able to hear the firing pin.

If you start having cycling issues go ahead and make a metal o-ring around the rim of the gas valve or order a new gas valve fron CNC Warrior (10 bucks) and you're back in business.

[Pector55]

Thanks for the tips guys. dogngun, I actually did put the leather pouches and sling in a 5 gallon bucket of warm water with dishwashing soap. (Dawn) I let it soak for over an hour before tossing it in the washer on a gentle cycle. I let it air dry and it still smells like mold and cosmoline. The water in the 5 gallon bucket looked orange so perhaps cosmo got on the pouches. I want to keep them and I was thinking about mink oil but I'll see what I can find (depending on whether or not I can get some of the smell out.)

Kaos,
As for the firing pin, I completely took this gun apart and wiped it all down with kerosene, rags, brushes, and then I used my cleaning kit. The bolt soaked for several minutes and I used compressed air to blow the hole out to make sure it was not gunked up. The pin does not really shake back and forth like you and others have described. It's in right and it moves rather easily when pushed lightly but it just doesn't seem that loose.

I hope to test it out this weekend. Hopefully, there is no problem with it. It sure is one nice looking gun. In fact, I enjoy spending time with my guns so I'll pull the bolt apart and check it out again. I just ordered 1000rds of 7.62 but I don't need slamfiring wasting my ammo. ;-)