The trials began in 1947 and the most prominent candidates to become the main weapons of Soviet soldiers for decades ahead were the latest modification of the SKS carbine and the AK-47 assault rifle.

The AK differs from the SKS in several respects, most notably the detachable, curved 30-round magazine that makes reloading quick and easy, and that it was fully automatic, combining the power of ...

However, the Kalashnikov rifle was not the weapon that gave birth to the 7.62x39mm round; it was the SKS carbine. While not a household name like the AK, the SKS carbine is a very well-known ...

The AK quickly proved that, despite being adopted in the guise of a submachine gun, it could do everything the SKS could do, so Simonov’s design was rendered redundant and obsolete. Russian ...

One is the bolt carrier handle, which is more like that of an AK-47 than other SKS rifles. Another is dual storage compartment doors, rather than one—presumably for both the cleaning kit and an ...

The SKS typically has a wooden stock and a non-detachable magazine with a capacity of 10 rounds of 7.62-millimeter caliber, the same caliber ammunition used in the AK-47s that eventually replaced ...