Mosin M44 Bringback.

G

gyvel

New member
I have in my accumulatiion of guns an old M44 Mosin that was a Korean War bringback, complete with Chinese characters painted on the stock. It belonged to a Korean War vet on my block and I paid a whopping $20.00 for it back in the 60s.

My question is: Would it be worth more than the average M44s available today or is it just "lost in the herd" so to speak?

Forgot to mention that it is a Russian made gun, not Chinese. And, of course, nothing matches on it.
 
Do you have the bringback papers, or some sort of letter from the previous owner? A painted stock may add interest, depending, but without papers it'll be essentially just another 'story' gun. But M44s are starting to appreciate now.
 
M44s are some of the cheapest Mosin Nagants, so I think the Chinese characters would add value.
It would be fascinating to get them translated.

You got that for $20, what a steal!
 
The Chinese characters and lack of Import mark would raise its value above that of the average M44. Any corroborating paperwork would raise it more.
 
No, alas, I have no paperwork. In the 60s, nobody ever thought about "papers." I was a teenager at the time and scoring a $20.00 rifle of any kind was a feather in your cap.

The guy who sold it to me was a Korean War vet who told me that it was "laying on the ground," so he picked it up and brought it home; That's all I really know about it, and, of course, it is just a "story," but he was probably telling the truth. More than likely, he's passed on by now, and I left that neighborhood in the late 60s.

Another interesting point about this particular gun is that it has what looks like a Mauser sling swivel inletted into the buttstock, albeit somewhat crudely.

It's an interesting gun, and has been a lot of fun for a lot of years, but, as pointed out, probably not particularly valuable.

Almost forgot: I took it into our local Chinese restaurant and had them look at the writing on the buttstock. All they could come up with is that it was a reference to some kind of "society."
 
You got that for $20, what a steal!
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I don't know about that - a car cost $3,000, a house cost $10,000, and salaries were a couple of hundred dollars a week. $20 in the 1960's was pretty close to $200 today.
 
Post a pic of that Chinese writing, I bet I can get it translated on the internet.
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As soon as I get a working camera I will.

The Chinese restaurant was probably not the best place to get a translation. They all spoke Cantonese, anyway.:D
 
Allegedly, the lack of import marks is worth 20% more than the standard, so I'm told. I think condition is the deciding factor on price, though.

When my Dad was in the Pacific, at the end of the war, the ships would come in to Japanese or Chinese ports, on the docks were mountains of Japanese rifles. The sailors could leave the ship, pick up a Jap rifle as a souvenir, and take it home. Dad said there were about 3,000 guys on his carrier, all got a rifle. Officers might get a pistol as well. Lots of guys came off the ships back home with more than one, either through gambling or payday loan collateral....
 
I am pretty sure it is a priceless, ahem, I mean, worthless gun. If you send it to me, I will dispose if it properly.:D I would pay for shipping but I think that should be on your tab since I'm going thru the "trouble" of disposing of it.:rolleyes:
 
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