Mosin Nagant opinions

[Guest mosinon]

I won't bore you with the long story* so here's the question:

Anyone ever shoot one of those mosin nagant surplus rifles? Is it fun?

*The Long Story (I suggest that you stop reading unless you suffer from insomnia)

With all the talk about guns recently it reminded me of how much I used to enjoy this 1200 fps pellet rifle I had. So I've decided to try shooting for fun. But I'm not sure I'll stick with it, I mean I think I will but I thought I'd learn to play electric guitar too. You get the idea.

So my plan was to pick up used, popular stuff (like the Beretta 92 I'm hoping to find) that way if I never get around to it I can sell the stuff I bought and not go broke. A no risk hobby if you will.

Upsetting this particular apple cart are these mosin nagants. They are going cheaply, so cheap that if if I didn't sell it I wouldn't be out much. Plus they are covered in some funky grease and the stocks look like they could use some work (I like wood working).

Even if I rarely shot it I bet there would be a lot of work to do to it and I bet it would take forever to get that thing sighted in and such. It just seems like it would be a longish and fun project.

I suppose more people are probably interested in MOA out of the box and so forth but I'm not a hunter or a competitive shooter so I'm more after the project.

If you've read this far. Thanks, and my deepest sympathies. Still, I would value your opinion.

[bubbiesdad]

I won't bore you with the long story* so here's the question:

Anyone ever shoot one of those mosin nagant surplus rifles? Is it fun?

*The Long Story (I suggest that you stop reading unless you suffer from insomnia)

With all the talk about guns recently it reminded me of how much I used to enjoy this 1200 fps pellet rifle I had. So I've decided to try shooting for fun. But I'm not sure I'll stick with it, I mean I think I will but I thought I'd learn to play electric guitar too. You get the idea.

So my plan was to pick up used, popular stuff (like the Beretta 92 I'm hoping to find) that way if I never get around to it I can sell the stuff I bought and not go broke. A no risk hobby if you will.

Upsetting this particular apple cart are these mosin nagants. They are going cheaply, so cheap that if if I didn't sell it I wouldn't be out much. Plus they are covered in some funky grease and the stocks look like they could use some work (I like wood working).

Even if I rarely shot it I bet there would be a lot of work to do to it and I bet it would take forever to get that thing sighted in and such. It just seems like it would be a longish and fun project.

I suppose more people are probably interested in MOA out of the box and so forth but I'm not a hunter or a competitive shooter so I'm more after the project.

If you've read this far. Thanks, and my deepest sympathies. Still, I would value your opinion.

Lots of fun, if you consider putting holes through 1/2" steel at 125 yds fun.

[Guest 1817ak47]

I have a 1926 issue from russia, nice rifle, will leave marks on your shoulder as the butt plate is STEEL. not as much recoil as a 20 ga single though. the ballistics of the 7.62x54r are very similiar to a 308, ecpet the 7.62x54r is apparently a tiny bit more powerfull.

check out 7.62x54r.net for some good info.

they say these are 5 round mag, the mag actually hold 4 + 1 in chamber

typical ballistics is 2700-2800 fps muzzle with a 147 bullet, that is typical.

[Guest 1817ak47]

Lots of fun, if you consider putting holes through 1/2" steel at 125 yds fun.

what kinda ammo is that with?? I just got mine and haven't even shot 20 rounds thru it

[56FordGuy]

Lots of folks here have Mosins. Some have several. They're inexpensive, and ammunition is still relatively cheap.

They're a lot of fun. In my experience, they don't need much work. Clean it, go shoot it. Not much to sighting in, either. They aren't match grade target rifles, but mine seems as accurate as most other surplus battle rifles. Not much sighting in, either. You might need to bend the front sight post one way or the other, but that's about it.

Two things to know. One, they have a very noticeable recoil. Your shoulder will probably be sore after 15-20 rounds. Might not hurt to invest in a slip on recoil pad. Two, all of the surplus (inexpensive) ammunition for these rifles has a corrosive primer. If you don't clean the rifle within about 24 hours of shooting it, corrosive salts left in the barrel will begin to cause rust. It's not a bad idea to run a few water soaked patches through the bore to dissolve the salts before you do your regular cleaning. Some people use Windex, ammonia mixtures, and other methods for cleaning them. I've used a couple of patches soaked in hot water, followed by a regular cleaning, for a long time with no rusted guns. The corrosive primers are something to be aware of, but not a really big deal.

[Guest Jcochran88]

check out this threadhttp://http://www.tngunowners.com/forums/curio-relics-black-powder/23616-more-mosin-fact.html?highlight=mosin

[Guest mosinon]

Lots of fun, if you consider putting holes through 1/2" steel at 125 yds fun.

Why yes, I do consider that to be quite a bit of fun. Thanks for the info everyone. I'm definitely going to pick one up. I think there is a gun show in town tomorrow (Knoxville) so I'm to try and pick one (or two, they're cheap) while I'm there.

[Guest Spuds]

They are battle rifles, made simply so that uneducated Russian peasants could master their use and care.

They were made to kill men, you'll be surprised how accurate they are. Armies aren't armed with inaccurate rifles.

If you want to tinker, get a run of the mill M91/30 or M44, and leave the Finnish Mosin-Nagants alone. Monkeying with a Finn will get you on the list pronto!

[Guest mosinon]

check out this threadhttp://www.tngunowners.com/forums/curio-relics-black-powder/23616-more-mosin-fact.html?highlight=mosin

I think that should fix the link. Thanks for the pointer Jcochran. Sorry for the repost, I did look around a bit for an earlier conversation but I missed that one somehow. In fact, I don't think I even looked under curios and relics. I'm new to the forum and have a bit to learn.

[bubbiesdad]

what kinda ammo is that with?? I just got mine and haven't even shot 20 rounds thru it

Has a yellow tip, got it in a 300 round "spam can"

[Guest ff51]

I have a friend with one of these he picked up just for the reason to have a cheap rifle to play with. We took the weapon out to the family farm and even with the iron sights I was able to put 3/4 the shots into a man sized target at well over 100 yards. These guns are CRAZY accurate. The awesome thing is that we joke that an AR has to be cleaned after every shoot but the mosin hasnt been thoroughly cleaned since the battle of Stalingrad. I may be wrong but it is my understanding that the only difference between the sniper version and the battle riffle is that the sniper version passed a test ensuring it shot a true grouping. After this the got tapped for an optic and a new bolt. Ergo all of the mosins are theoretically ' sniper accurate'.

[bubbiesdad]

Why yes, I do consider that to be quite a bit of fun. Thanks for the info everyone. I'm definitely going to pick one up. I think there is a gun show in town tomorrow (Knoxville) so I'm to try and pick one (or two, they're cheap) while I'm there.

If you get one of the 91/30's, be sure to shoot it with the bayonette attached.

[Guest 1817ak47]

Has a yellow tip, got it in a 300 round "spam can"

that is a good start, do you know what coutries it came from????

was it lead or steel cored ammo??

can't go wrong with a mosin, you can't hardly get a beat up rusted but good functioning multi shot 22 or

4100

[Guest mosinon]

They are battle rifles, made simply so that uneducated Russian peasants could master their use and care.

Nothing against uneducated Russian peasants but a rifle designed for the sadly uninformed is probably the right rifle for me.

They were made to kill men, you'll be surprised how accurate they are. Armies aren't armed with inaccurate rifles.

My doctor would probably say cheese fries with bacon were made to kill men but some folks would be surprised just how tasty they are.

I get what you are saying though, when they were making that rifle they weren't worried about how it felt on your shoulder and such they were just interested in how well it shot other people.

And now, I'll just be using it for fun. Can't wait.

If you want to tinker, get a run of the mill M91/30 or M44, and leave the Finnish Mosin-Nagants alone. Monkeying with a Finn will get you on the list pronto!

I just got here and I like this place, I don't want to be on that list! Besides, between the wife and the publisher I stay on that list anyway. I'm going to get the run of the mill, hopefully needs help, version. Probably two or three.

I'm really looking forward to it.

[Guest mosinon]

If you get one of the 91/30's, be sure to shoot it with the bayonette attached.

I've read that elsewhere as well. Something to do with barrel harmonics and the way the rifles were sighted at the factory right?

I'm not really interested in the bayonet unless Nick Saban is somehow cloned a million times, the million clones are then killed and they all come back as zombies attacking Knoxville.

Is there a way to resight it so it shoots properly without the bayonet?

Hmmm, that may have been the worst question ever asked on this site. I can imagine the response:

"Nope, once you get a rifle you're stuck. No one around here knows how to make a gun perform better"

What I mean is: IS there a standard way to make it perform better without the bayonet. Not that it matters too much, the fun is in the journey, not the destination.

[56FordGuy]

You can adjust the front sight to move the point of aim to match the point of impact. Some rifles shoot fine with or without the bayonet mounted, I think the M44s are more affected than the 91/30s.

[Guest donfromtexas]

If you get one of the 91/30's, be sure to shoot it with the bayonette attached.

I actually read in a magazine that it is recommended, if you have the bayonet to shoot with it for better accuracy. The rifles were all made to be shot with bayonet attached and it had to do with the barrel harmonics. Might have been in American Rifleman or some similar magazine, will have to look back through them to be certain.

[Mike.357]

I have a 91/30 and do not own the bayonet for it. It seems to me that it shoots just fine without it.

[Guest coldblackwind]

I have an m44, and just adjusted the front sight to shoot without it, I'm short, its long enough, I don't need that big bayonet stickingout too! Anyways, my friend had both a 91/30 and an m44 before I got mine, and I shot both, the 91/30 seems to be more comfortable recoil-wise.

[Motasyco]

Get one, or two. My wife and I have his and hers Mosins. I was suprised at the accuracy without touching anything. Get some bulk ammo and have a blast.

[Chucktshoes]

I wish there was a store in Memphis that had one, I check them all regularly. I would order one but the bleeding FFL Transfer fees are in the area of stupid in this town. I need to hurry up and move so I can get on with getting my C&R.

[Capbyrd]

I wish there was a store in Memphis that had one, I check them all regularly. I would order one but the bleeding FFL Transfer fees are in the area of stupid in this town. I need to hurry up and move so I can get on with getting my C&R.

Tell me about it. I drove to Guns and Leather and bought mine. The closest place that MIGHT have one is Gander Mountain in Jackson.

If you do buy one, and need to get all the cosmoline off, here is what I did for the metal parts.

I first wiped all the excess off with some old towels and ran a little solvent all over everything. Then I completely disassembled the gun and set it outside hanging from a pallet. By the end of the day, there was a puddle of cosmoline on the ground and all of my metal parts were dry as could be. It worked fantastically. If you have a large oven, you can use that too. Heat will liquify the cosmo and it was just drip off. I dont know what I'm going to do about my stock yet though.

[Mark@Sea]

Capbyrd, try wrapping your stock in a towel, then putting it in a large black trash bag, and put it in the rear window of your car for a day.

Best solvent I've found for cosmoline is kerosene.

As for accurizing the MN, google 'cork mosin nagant' or check out Educational Zone #63 - Corking a Mosin Rifle to Improve Accuracy - Page 1

[Mike.357]

in the books series, " The Corp" written by WEB Griffen two of the main characters used a metal garbage can and gasoline to get cosmoline off of their rifles.

[Chucktshoes]

I just called Gander, and they do have them. They are around $130 which is as much as I would pay for one + transfer fees If I ordered one, soooo, Looks like I will be making a detour to Jackson next time I go see my mom.

Thanks for the tip Capybird.

Edited August 27, 2009 by Chucktshoes