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Soooo, I was at the Gun Show yesterday and I splurged a little and bought a M91/30 Mosin Nagant Hex Receiver built in 1931. The stamps on the receiver indicated this was built at the Tula factory. It is 48.5 inches looong - yes. 4 feet and change, and that's without the bayonet which adds another 17 inches. Now I don't know much about it and only read about it online from other people's reviews and videos.
It was an impulse buy for sure, but at $120, I could not resist. I bought a 440 round spam can and a couple boxes of soft points to justify the purchase (and a taco for lunch). I've seen these go for $75 online. Certain features command higher premium, such as Tula factory manufacture, year made (mine is 1931), hex receiver, and overall condition. I thought I had a screaming deal (another guy who was watching me as I inspect and negotiated the deal also bought one). The condition of this rifle was, IMHO, 98%. I did not even look like it's been fired at all and was heavily lubed in cosmolene. The finish of the wood looks superb. Every piece is exceptional for an 80-Year Old gun. No rust, no pitting. Light scratches on the bluing and some very little nicks on the wood finish (I suspect from it being constantly put up for display). Almost every part had some stamp on it - even the rear sight leaf spring. All the major components (wood stock, bolt, internal magazine, barrel) were serial numbered and all match except for the bayonet.
Last night, I went through the painstaking task of disassembly, cleaning, and assembly. The parts are simple and with the help of YouTube, I was able to completely disassemble down to the pins. I had a hot pot waiting in the kitchen and boiled the cosmolene away (worked out great!). Reassembly was equally easy, except for the bolt assembly, which took me a little bit to calibrate the firing pin tolerances.
Today, I took it to the range for the first time with my 8 year-old son (we brought the M&P 15-22 for him). I shot a total of 20 flawless rounds through the Mosin. I most definitely felt the recoil. And yes, it kicked like a mule. That old joke about Mosins being good for realigning dislocated shoulders caused by the previous round was not that far-fetched. It felt like it.
But seriously, the recoil was strong but still manageable (I still have my shoulders).
Accuracy. I shot 10 rounds at 25 yards and another 10 rounds at 50 yards. I was not really going for accuracy at this point and just wanted to make sure this 80 year old gun still shoots. Well, it did not disappoint in that department. I did note that mine shoots high - not as noticeable at 25 yards, but at 50, my aim was a good 8 inches down from bullseye for me to hit it. Later on, I found out that this is by design and common to all M91/30 as it was sighted in at 300 yards out of the box and that's the lowest it can go.
Here's are some pictures after I cleaned and reassembled it. (warning - pic heavy)
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It was an impulse buy for sure, but at $120, I could not resist. I bought a 440 round spam can and a couple boxes of soft points to justify the purchase (and a taco for lunch). I've seen these go for $75 online. Certain features command higher premium, such as Tula factory manufacture, year made (mine is 1931), hex receiver, and overall condition. I thought I had a screaming deal (another guy who was watching me as I inspect and negotiated the deal also bought one). The condition of this rifle was, IMHO, 98%. I did not even look like it's been fired at all and was heavily lubed in cosmolene. The finish of the wood looks superb. Every piece is exceptional for an 80-Year Old gun. No rust, no pitting. Light scratches on the bluing and some very little nicks on the wood finish (I suspect from it being constantly put up for display). Almost every part had some stamp on it - even the rear sight leaf spring. All the major components (wood stock, bolt, internal magazine, barrel) were serial numbered and all match except for the bayonet.
Last night, I went through the painstaking task of disassembly, cleaning, and assembly. The parts are simple and with the help of YouTube, I was able to completely disassemble down to the pins. I had a hot pot waiting in the kitchen and boiled the cosmolene away (worked out great!). Reassembly was equally easy, except for the bolt assembly, which took me a little bit to calibrate the firing pin tolerances.
Today, I took it to the range for the first time with my 8 year-old son (we brought the M&P 15-22 for him). I shot a total of 20 flawless rounds through the Mosin. I most definitely felt the recoil. And yes, it kicked like a mule. That old joke about Mosins being good for realigning dislocated shoulders caused by the previous round was not that far-fetched. It felt like it.
But seriously, the recoil was strong but still manageable (I still have my shoulders).Accuracy. I shot 10 rounds at 25 yards and another 10 rounds at 50 yards. I was not really going for accuracy at this point and just wanted to make sure this 80 year old gun still shoots. Well, it did not disappoint in that department. I did note that mine shoots high - not as noticeable at 25 yards, but at 50, my aim was a good 8 inches down from bullseye for me to hit it. Later on, I found out that this is by design and common to all M91/30 as it was sighted in at 300 yards out of the box and that's the lowest it can go.
Here's are some pictures after I cleaned and reassembled it. (warning - pic heavy)
