Virginia Gun Owners Forum - VGOF

Hey, these rifles are pretty low cost. Is it worth owning one? Are they fun to shoot?
I hear they aren;t ergonomic but they can shoot far? Is that true? In your opinions is it worth picking one up?

The Mosins, for the most part are excellent rifles. Safety is not user friendly and most don't even bother with them, but the rifles are as accurate as you could hope for in a mass produced piece (excepting the Swiss, of course).

Ammo is not interchangable with anything else. Most accurate seem to be the 91/30 long rifles and the M44 carbine. For some reason the M38 carbines don't seem to be in that match up, but that may be just my opinion.

Look them over well, and check the crown. Those steel cleaning rods have taken a toll on many of them, especially the M38s and you'll find many of them have been counterbored because of this.

The Finnish built Mosins are counted among the best of the lot. Sights are wanting on all of them, but usable. Kick is about the same as any other .30 cal.

I love mine. There's a reason that so many were made. Check the bore for pitting as most of the ammo used for these was corrosive. I haven't the slightest problem engaging the safety, but most everyone else does. Back when these were designed men were men instead of crybabies with weak fingers. The rifle itself is very easy to disassemble and clean. Check the date on the receiver. You might find it very interesting to know when it was made. Also, when you get one, be sure to clean all of the packing grease out of it. This means taking the whole thing apart. Trust me.....

Mine is very accurate, though not all are. I can put a 5 round shot group in a quarter at 80 meters using the iron sight. Be sure of what's behind your target. I've shot completely through a tree more than once.

It's a fine rifle so long as you're not afraid of the sound and kick of an old gun.

$100 for a centerfire rifle and dirt cheap ammo? I say go for it. I've got two and I love them both.

excellent rifles, I have 1 and one on the way.
If your into the old mil surplus stuff or into collecting.. its a good start. And i'm just starting

fun to shoot...this mite vary on who's firing it. it does have a bit of recoil/kick or more of a push, especial the shorter versions. It's also heavy and long.. heck its all steel and wood
The m91/30's measures about 49"-50" and weighs about 8-9 lbs. the M44's and M38's are about 40" and 7-8 lbs.
Its bolt action is long, compared to a Mauser or Carcano etc... For some these traits may make it a un fun gun...
I find it a blast to shoot. A good recoil pad makes it even funner. I put about 100-120 rounds down range every time I go.. which is about once a week

Also some find the setup/prep time it a pain it the but. especial when you buy it like I did strait out of the shipping create. Pack in grease/cosmoline, it needs to be thoroughly cleaned. Mine took about 3-4 days to clean and prep.. i was taking my time it was a nice little project to work on.

can shoot far?
I can't say, I haven't shot over 200 yrds. maybe there are others here that can.
at 200 yrds did I hit my targets, yup 4 out of 5. At 100 yrds I can do 5" groups standing. 3-4" groups resting from a sand bag on the bench. Thou this maybe my shooting skill or lack there of, then the accuracy/inaccuracy of the rifle.

Ammo is cheap, even cheaper if you get surplus.. I can get 880 rounds of surplus for about $160-190.. that's what .18-.19 cents a round..

Here's a good site for info etc.. http://7.62x54r.net

IMO.. its a fine rifle, expensive and cheap to shoot ...

I've had no luck finding one of these for $100. Suggestions?

Gun shows have them for 100 to 130 for common examples.

I'm sure the People have a very high opinion of the Mosin. Great for killing fascists and imperialists!

Jamie wrote:I've had no luck finding one of these for $100. Suggestions?

http://www.classicfirearms.com/c-r-elig ... -30-nagant

The next Dale City gun show is on the first weekend of August. The next Chantilly gun show is the last weekend in July. Dark Sun has stacks of them, $99 for the round receivers, and $119 for the hex receivers. Recoil is about the same as my 30-06 Model of 1917. They all come with a spike bayonet, oiler, sight tool, and a couple of other things. I'm not a big fan of them, but they are inexpensive and cheap to shoot with surplus ammo. If you shoot surplus ammo, run some hot water through the barrel after shooting, then clean normally. Or use a mix of Ballistol and water.

jrswanson1 wrote:The next Dale City gun show is on the first weekend of August. The next Chantilly gun show is the last weekend in July. Dark Sun has stacks of them, $99 for the round receivers, and $119 for the hex receivers. Recoil is about the same as my 30-06 Model of 1917. They all come with a spike bayonet, oiler, sight tool, and a couple of other things. I'm not a big fan of them, but they are inexpensive and cheap to shoot with surplus ammo. If you shoot surplus ammo, run some hot water through the barrel after shooting, then clean normally. Or use a mix of Ballistol and water.

do you know if those are all still coated in Cosmoline or if they have been degreased and clean?

Riposite wrote:

jrswanson1 wrote:The next Dale City gun show is on the first weekend of August. The next Chantilly gun show is the last weekend in July. Dark Sun has stacks of them, $99 for the round receivers, and $119 for the hex receivers. Recoil is about the same as my 30-06 Model of 1917. They all come with a spike bayonet, oiler, sight tool, and a couple of other things. I'm not a big fan of them, but they are inexpensive and cheap to shoot with surplus ammo. If you shoot surplus ammo, run some hot water through the barrel after shooting, then clean normally. Or use a mix of Ballistol and water.

do you know if those are all still coated in Cosmoline or if they have been degreased and clean?

All of the ones there were cleaned of Cosmoline, even inside the barrels. Check the bayonet fit before buying.

jrswanson1 wrote:
All of the ones there were cleaned of Cosmoline, even inside the barrels. Check the bayonet fit before buying.

thanks

You guys continue to rock. Thanks for the hot tip. Moisin site pinned and gun show noted.

Hello,

If you know how to shoot them, they are capable of these types of groups:



The Finnish had a 1.3MOA or so minimum precision requirement for their M39 rifles. Most of the problems found with the 91/30 will go away with a lighter, two-stage trigger (Finnish M39 triggers and sears run about $30 on GunBroker) and shimming of the action.

Using handloads, or 7n1 or Czech silver-tipped ammunition doesn't hurt at all either, but I've seen excellent groups from all but the Greek stuff.

Get one, do some research on proving it up a bit, and you won't be sorry!

Regards,

Josh

That's what my groups look like up to 100 meters using irons as well. Using surplus ammo too. I probably won't be on it as much since I got my SCAR-H though.

I purchased my Mosin 2 years ago for 92 dollars. It would take way more than that for me to sell it. Don't be afraid to take your time when you go to pick out one as some are better than others. The trigger on mine feels like its been worked and the bolt is smooth as butter. Someone took fine care of it. The shop owner who I bought it from was informed prior to my purchase that I'd be rummaging through them for at least an hour. He didn't care and it payed off. Good hunting!

mossin's are great. I picked mine up from classic arms as well. 1923 dragoon with all matching #s including the bayonet. Had casmoline in great quantities though and required much cleaning. Smooth fire with slightly less kick than the 7mm mauser I have. Surplus Ammo is quite inexpensive but is slightly corrosive so clean your rifle after firing. Good cleaning and maintenance will keep these suckers firing for another 100 years.

NOTE. The ROMAK-3 and the DRAGONOV both use 762x54 ammo. These round's compare to the 308 round which is 7.62x51 by being just a hair heavier. Normal ak is 7.62x39. Both the ROMAK and the dragon have made numerous documented 600+ shots. I was going to get a ROMAK from classic but they were sold out at that time so I bought my nagat and something else . A great working piece of history... not like garrands are affordable at the moment.

Thanks for this thread. I've never shot this gun before, but for $100 it seems tough not to have one in your arsenal. Seems like it's worth waiting for the gun show to roll into town and check out the Dark Sun booth.

classic arms changed it's web format. Not sure if I like it. http://www.classicfirearms.com/long-gun ... -30-nagant $89 +$10 for hand select. All come with bayonet, sling, oiler, and leather ammo pouch.

Wow. I just checked the ammo prices. You guys weren't kidding about these being cheap to shoot.

Anyone have recommendations on Tula mfg? Is it worth the extra $10 to make sure it came from Tula?