Semi Auto Rifles

[Lord Tothe]

An SKS is a good rifle for your budget. I wouldn't advise a semi-auto for your first rifle though unless you have a good bit of firearms experience. If you want a truly great rifle, go for a Thompson-Center Encore. It's a break-action single-shot, but you're just a new barrel away from whatever caliber you want.

If your heart is set on an SKS, get an aftermarket firing pin with a spring instead of the free-floating factory version, and make DAMN sure all the cosmoline is cleaned out of the entire gun. Custom stocks are easy to install, and I'd say keep the top-fed fixed magazine. Stripper clips are just as fast as mag changes, and unless you mount a scope, that'll do just fine. In fact, it's easier to reload a clip from the top when you're shooting from the prose position.

[Galla-]

Surplus still cheaper by a mile than 5.56 and 5.45.

True, but Mosas is a beginner, and a lot of Soviet and Chinese ammo is corrosive.

Corrosive just means swab with a few patches doused in water.

Just adds one more step for 3x cheaper ammo.

True, but Mosas is a beginner, and a lot of Soviet and Chinese ammo is corrosive.

Not surprising, considering they were made by militaries with a "Quantity is the best quality" attitude.

.30-06 surplus is corrosive...

It's called "that was what they had at the time".

[Phonencia]

bastards..... I live in Tennessee and both my brothers own semi auto 30 round mag AK-47s, so, to quote part of George Strait's song,

"....That's why I hang my hat in Tennessee"
but srsly, I'd say an SKS would be pretty good, I would say AR-15, but since you're on a tight budget, you'll want an SKS. may I ask what you want this rifle for?

Just to be a bit farther ranged than my shotgun, more accurate, powerful, etc.
And for fun.

pretty good reasons if you ask me. although an SKS can come in handy for self defense.

[Idaho Conservatives]

I swear by the Ruger Mini-14. They are not cheap, but they are about the best small-caliber rifle you will find; they are reliable and can hit anything. Comes in the scarily cheap .22 and the also cheap but barrel-burning .223. And if you've looked at bullets lately, you'll know that ammo price is everything. Also, there is a ton of mod stuff up for sale; stocks, extended clips, barrels, sights, the works. You could get the gun and then make it your own for about $700.

AKs are inexpensive rifles and are just fun as hell to shoot, but the ammo is rather spendy; one clip full will run you around $20 and a magazine goes fast.

Hmmmmm...
Considering that I've been proven wrong several times, are AKs legal now?

Don't know your state laws, but here (and our gun laws are comparatively loose) you can pick up semi-auto AKs off the shelf at any decent sporting goods store or a gun show. However, if you don't want to commit a ton of money towards a gun, you don't want an AK. Those things cost one buck every time you squeeze the trigger, and I don't know many other hobbies that run you about $10 per minute. It sounds cheesy, but get a Ruger in .22 and thank me later.

[SlavicRepublics]

SKS would be a find choice, i own several of those and i can tell you they are just as reliable as an AK. its also a very customizable gun, just like an AR-15 or an AK platform. and they are really cheap too (so if you decide to go with an SKS, get a tapco and some of their 20 round mags and maybe a scope if you wish)

[Mosasauria]

An SKS is a good rifle for your budget. I wouldn't advise a semi-auto for your first rifle though unless you have a good bit of firearms experience. If you want a truly great rifle, go for a Thompson-Center Encore(1). It's a break-action single-shot, but you're just a new barrel away from whatever caliber you want.

If your heart is set on an SKS, get an aftermarket firing pin with a spring instead of the free-floating factory version(2), and make DAMN sure all the cosmoline is cleaned out of the entire gun(3). Custom stocks are easy to install, and I'd say keep the top-fed fixed magazine(4). Stripper clips are just as fast as mag changes, and unless you mount a scope, that'll do just fine(5). In fact, it's easier to reload a clip from the top when you're shooting from the prose position.

1. Would you happen to know the cost of this gun?
2. Did not know that...
3. That, I knew.
4. I figured as much, based on the shape and design of it.
5. Due to the cost of most scopes, I won't be getting one, so I'll follow your advice on that.

Overall, thanks for the great advice.

[Phonencia]

20$ an AK Mag? wtf?

http://centerfiresystems.com/ammunition.aspx

Ill just leave this here....

[Phonencia]

oh, and this.

Yugo 7.62x39 1000rds
Price: $189.99

[Reeziando]

If cost is a factor, I'd be looking at SKSes.

Underpants

[Mosasauria]

oh, and this.

Yugo 7.62x39 1000rds
Price: $189.99

$0.19 cents a round? Damn that's cheap.

[Phonencia]

fuck yes. that's where my bro buys ammo for his '47 and '74.

[Mosasauria]

fuck yes. that's where my bro buys ammo for his '47 and '74.

I can't blame him. Everything there is cheap. Even all the attachments. Nearly everything is under $100.

[Phonencia]

and they ship from kentucky, so they're pretty close.

[Mosasauria]

and they ship from kentucky, so they're pretty close.

That's another good factor.

[Lord Tothe]

An SKS is a good rifle for your budget. I wouldn't advise a semi-auto for your first rifle though unless you have a good bit of firearms experience. If you want a truly great rifle, go for a Thompson-Center Encore(1). It's a break-action single-shot, but you're just a new barrel away from whatever caliber you want.

If your heart is set on an SKS, get an aftermarket firing pin with a spring instead of the free-floating factory version(2), and make DAMN sure all the cosmoline is cleaned out of the entire gun(3). Custom stocks are easy to install, and I'd say keep the top-fed fixed magazine(4). Stripper clips are just as fast as mag changes, and unless you mount a scope, that'll do just fine(5). In fact, it's easier to reload a clip from the top when you're shooting from the prose position.

1. Would you happen to know the cost of this gun?
2. Did not know that...
3. That, I knew.
4. I figured as much, based on the shape and design of it.
5. Due to the cost of most scopes, I won't be getting one, so I'll follow your advice on that.

Overall, thanks for the great advice.

I have no idea what an Encore rifle runs nowadays. I got mine second-hand for around $500 IIRC, but that was before the gun price inflation of the Obama election nationwide buying craze.

[Phonencia]

I like talking guns with meh peeps on NS.

[Hathradic States]

If cost is a factor, I'd be looking at SKSes.

^that

[Galla-]

Hmmmmm...
Considering that I've been proven wrong several times, are AKs legal now?

Don't know your state laws, but here (and our gun laws are comparatively loose) you can pick up semi-auto AKs off the shelf at any decent sporting goods store or a gun show. However, if you don't want to commit a ton of money towards a gun, you don't want an AK. Those things cost one buck every time you squeeze the trigger, and I don't know many other hobbies that run you about $10 per minute. It sounds cheesy, but get a Ruger in .22 and thank me later.

Where the hell do you live?

I can get 7.62x39mm for $0.10 if I'm being cheap, and average going rate is $0.15, which is cheaper than any other surplus round besides the 7.62x54mmR. x39mm is not a .308, it is not $1 a round rifle. If you're paying more than $0.20 a round, you're paying too much.

It ain't no .22 LR, but it's just about the cheapest, actual rifle ammo you can get along with the x54mmR.

[Caninope]

Also, it might behoove you to check out nearby gun dealerships. That way you can feel the gun in person, and you might find something cheap there. Besides, they might have a deal.

[Gun Manufacturers]

True, but Mosas is a beginner, and a lot of Soviet and Chinese ammo is corrosive.

Corrosive just means swab with a few patches doused in water.

Just adds one more step for 3x cheaper ammo.

Not surprising, considering they were made by militaries with a "Quantity is the best quality" attitude.

.30-06 surplus is corrosive...

It's called "that was what they had at the time".

There's plenty of non-corrosive .30-06 ammo out there. In fact, it was almost completely phased out by 1955.

http://www.ashlandlakegunclub.org/docs/ ... rRedux.pdf

http://www.odcmp.org/1101/USGI.pdf

[Idaho Conservatives]

Don't know your state laws, but here (and our gun laws are comparatively loose) you can pick up semi-auto AKs off the shelf at any decent sporting goods store or a gun show. However, if you don't want to commit a ton of money towards a gun, you don't want an AK. Those things cost one buck every time you squeeze the trigger, and I don't know many other hobbies that run you about $10 per minute. It sounds cheesy, but get a Ruger in .22 and thank me later.

Where the hell do you live?

I can get 7.62x39mm for $0.10 if I'm being cheap, and average going rate is $0.15, which is cheaper than any other surplus round besides the 7.62x54mmR. x39mm is not a .308, it is not $1 a round rifle. If you're paying more than $0.20 a round, you're paying too much.

It ain't no .22 LR, but it's just about the cheapest, actual rifle ammo you can get along with the x54mmR.

You have to buy a shitload of rounds to get that kind of bulk price, and I just don't shoot often enough to justify buying a thousand bullets in one caliber, unless it's the ungodly cheap .22. Big difference between buying a hundred bullets and a thousand bullets. And now that you say it, it may have been a box of 50 bullets instead of 20 (that's what I get for posting up at 10:30), but that's still a lot more spendy than the .22; those you can get a brick of 500 for around $15 and before the Obama gun spike as low as $8. If you are shooting paper targets at an indoor range, you aren't losing much of anything between a .22 and a 7.62 anyway.

And also, I'm not sure where you are planning to buy from, but I beg of you, DO NOT buy a gun at Cabela's! Their gun prices are the most ridiculous and offensive I have ever seen. I've seen some rifles there for $400 that cost $130 at a local gun show, and some Mauser 98s that looked like someone had let their dog chew on the stock for $250. Most chain stores have decent prices, and usually the smaller and more local you get, the better the deals to be had. Just avoid Cabela's at all costs.

[Phonencia]

my bro has a Mauser 98K. it's awesome.

[Galla-]

Where the hell do you live?

I can get 7.62x39mm for $0.10 if I'm being cheap, and average going rate is $0.15, which is cheaper than any other surplus round besides the 7.62x54mmR. x39mm is not a .308, it is not $1 a round rifle. If you're paying more than $0.20 a round, you're paying too much.

It ain't no .22 LR, but it's just about the cheapest, actual rifle ammo you can get along with the x54mmR.

You have to buy a shitload of rounds to get that kind of bulk price, and I just don't shoot often enough to justify buying a thousand bullets in one caliber, unless it's the ungodly cheap .22. Big difference between buying a hundred bullets and a thousand bullets. And now that you say it, it may have been a box of 50 bullets instead of 20 (that's what I get for posting up at 10:30), but that's still a lot more spendy than the .22; those you can get a brick of 500 for around $15 and before the Obama gun spike as low as $8. If you are shooting paper targets at an indoor range, you aren't losing much of anything between a .22 and a 7.62 anyway.

And also, I'm not sure where you are planning to buy from, but I beg of you, DO NOT buy a gun at Cabela's! Their gun prices are the most ridiculous and offensive I have ever seen. I've seen some rifles there for $400 that cost $130 at a local gun show, and some Mauser 98s that looked like someone had let their dog chew on the stock for $250. Most chain stores have decent prices, and usually the smaller and more local you get, the better the deals to be had. Just avoid Cabela's at all costs.

I saw a Mosin for $200 at Cabela's xd

and I always buy my ammo bulk cuz of cheap prices. I never buy them in store, unless we're talking on sale .22 LR and that's it |:

http://www.the-armory.com/shopsite_sc/s ... /ammo.html best site

[Qatarab]

I don't know too much at the moment(i've been studying handguns for the past month so my rifle knowledge is locked somewhere in my head where i must review it again so i can give better answer) but i can accurately tell you that the SKS seems to be a good choice for you as a semi-auto(plus such russian designs tend to be a bit more reliable).

[Maurepas]

You can't have FNs and AKs in Florida? Fascists, *shakes head*