Type 56 Carbine

About the Type 56 Carbine

The Type 56 Carbine is a Chinese-made copy of the Soviet SKS semi-automatic carbine, produced in vast numbers by Norinco and Chinese state factories from 1956. Chambered in 7.62x39mm, it feeds from a fixed 10-round internal box magazine loaded by stripper clip, uses a gas-operated tilting-bolt action, and features a folding bayonet (blade-type on early guns, spike-type on later production) and a one-piece wooden stock. It served as a standard infantry arm of the People's Liberation Army before being supplanted by Type 56 assault rifles, and was widely exported and used throughout the Cold War.

The Chinese Type 56 Carbine became one of the most widely encountered SKS variants in the world, spread through Cold War arms shipments to allied movements across Asia and Africa, and later flooding Western surplus markets after the end of its military service.

Type 56 Carbine specifications

Not to be confused with the Norinco Type 56 assault rifle (an AK-47 derivative); the Type 56 Carbine is the SKS-pattern weapon. Approximately 18 million were produced. Many were exported and remain common on the civilian surplus market.