Mosin vs K31 vs M24/47

H

HALLAUSTIN

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I want to buy another older gun soon and Im looking for pros and cons on each. I used to have a mosin, ammo is cheap, accurate enough to plink with and I didnt worry if it git beat up. Can anyone tell me about the K31 and the M24/47 in regards to the power of the rounds 7.5x55 and 8mm mauser or the accuracy of either rifle? It would mainly shoot paper, random fruits, and maybe some medium sized game.
 
Can't vouch for the 24/47, but I do have a couple K31s.

The 7.5x55 can be difficult to find. The GP11 surplus stuff is the only ammo available in quantity (and may not even be that anymore), and even then it isn't near as cheap as feeding the Russian. Hornady does make a factory SP load for it (Prvi Partizan makes some factory loads too). Actual ballistics are very similar to .308. To reload, you'd need brass (the GP11 is berdan primed, but the Hornady is boxer), but you can use regular .308 bullets, so there's no end to what you can do with it.

In terms of accuracy, it is going to be better than the other two. These old surplus guns are showing MOA capability... mine are insanely accurate. If you wish to scope one, you can get either a clamp-on mount or one that requires drilling/tapping the receiver.

The K31 won't be cheap to shoot, but it will be extremely accurate and lots of fun.
 
It would mainly shoot paper, random fruits, and maybe some medium sized game.
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FYI, I took my first hog with my K-31, and it performed as you would expect for a .308 class round.

If you reload, the K-31 is as cheap as any other rifle to shoot.

Also FYI, yo ucan use resized .284Win brass for it. Not that its any easier to find than 7.5 Swiss brass...
 
I have all three and I would rank them in order of preference: K31, M24/47, M91/30

I reload so ammo costs are similar for all three rifles. My preference is based on Accuracy (K31, tie between M24/47 and M91/30), Quality (K31, M24/47, M91/30), Fit/Finish (K31, M24/47, M91/30), and Price (M91/30, M24/47, K31).

I think all three rounds can be very accurate (m39 vs. m91/30), but it is much harder to find a low shoot count in a M91/30 and M24/47 than a K31. Plus the quality of the materials in a K31 put it in a different class by itself.

It would mainly shoot paper, random fruits, and maybe some medium sized game.
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If you can find similar priced M24/47 and K31, I would go for the K31. If it is several bills cheaper, I would go with the M24/47.
 
I dont have a K 31 (Yet) but can speak of the 24 47 Yugo Mauser.
Ive got one, and its a dandy shooter, with an excelent bore.
The first thing you will have to do is order a tall front sight for it, because it will shoot at least a foot high at 100 yards if you dont change out the front sight.
8MM Surplus ammo has pretty much dried up, The Big Three of American Ammo, Remington, Winchester, and Federal all run close to $30 dollars a box unless you buy them at Gander Mountain, then they will be $40 dollars a box.
You can order Wolf and Privi Partison pretty cheap, at around $15 dollars a box, and Seller and Bellot for around $20 a Box. Or Reload, for it. Which is what i do now, because you can make your own brass from 30 06 cases, and Buy Speer 150 Grain soft point Bullets reasonably eneough.

Back to the rifle, you find that the 24 47 Yugo is built like a tank, there is nothing flimsy about this rifle at all, except one thing, the firing pin, Ive never had a problem, but it has been reported by some other shooters, that the intermediate leingth Yugo has a tendancy to break firing pins, and if you do that there is no known source anywere in the Continental United States that has a replacement, So you would have to get one made by a Gun Smith should yours ever break.
I speculate that alot of people dry fire these rifles, and break them but I have no proof. I dont dry fire mine.

Accuracy will be very good with the 24 47, I love mine, despite the many obstacles and inconviences its worth the effort.
If you order one of the Bent Bolt models from Samco they are lovely.
 
I found shooting surplus ball in my Yugo's to be more painful than in K31's or Nagant. Surplus 8mm often has 200 grain bullets.

I would get a K31. They are finely built rifles, no longer being imported, and the value will increase more in future years than Nagants or Yugo's.

If you want cheap, get a Mosin-Nagant.

In terms of accuracy, the K31 are more accurate than the others, but you really have to shoot a lot to see the difference. As a rule, these old bolt guns were 3 MOA things. The Swiss seem to be a little tighter.
 
I have multiple Mosin's and a K31. I like them all. However, I can say I never hit a paper plate at 300 yards with a Mosin and I have w/ my K31. They are VERY accurate for milsurps.
 
The OP never specified which Mosin, which can be an important variable in the decision, depending. For instance, to me the M38, M39, M44, and M91/59 Mosins are all preferable to the ubiquitous 91/30, there's a lot of overlap in price between these and the M24/47 and K-31, but the Mosins are still cheaper to shoot.

I've had an M24/47, a K-31, as well as a 91/30, haven't kept any of them, just the Mosin carbine.
 
And if you dont mind, how much do those k31s go for.
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You're going to have to look a bit. When I got my first one they were going pretty cheaply- IIRC, it was under $200... now they're over $300. I did see some GP11 ammo at Classic Arms for $240/case of 480 (pretty good price now), so if you go that route I'd get one of those. May take some looking to find a K31 though.
 
I think that you'd be well served with any of them. I have all three and I think the comments above pretty well give you an idea of the pros and cons of each.

I reload, so I can say that I've achieved some very good results with all three. In fact, with modern Sierra and Hornady bullets, groups are so good they would probably cause the designers of the rifles to choke in surprise.

My favorite? I guess the Mauser rifles are what I'd keep if I had to make that choice. Cases are easy to come by or I can also form them from 30/06 or 270 cases if needed. LC cases work very well in this regard. Jacketed bullets are a bit pricey, but I like to shoot cast bullets out to 200 yards and that cuts costs quite a bit.

The K31 is quite an accurate and interesting rifle and mine is capable of MOA accuracy using Sierra MK bullets. I've shot it out to 900 yards with good success on steel targets. It is about the equal of the 7.62/308 Winchester round, but the diameter of the case precludes making cases form commonly available brass. Fortunately I put in a supply of Portuguese cases several years ago.

For those of you that own a K31, many of them have its former soldier's name placed under the butt plate of the weapon. Soldiers kept them at home and most have been cared for quite well. The Swiss army boots (Bergstiefel) had metal cleats on them and part of their manual of arms was to kick the but of the rifle to come to "Present Arms" or "Inspection Arms" so you will find quite a few dings about the lower left stock above the butt plate.

My Mosin Nagant 91/30 with the soviet scope and mount is also close to an MOA rifle with handloads, but it is just not as usable as the Mauser or the Swiss rifles. My Polish MN carbine is a favorite although it is only about a 2 MOA weapon with the same loads.
 
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i have all 3 and there is no comparrison. K-31 is the way to go. I just picked up one for $250 a couple of weeks ago at the Tulsa gun show. The other one i bought was about $275 from Military Gun Supply although their website doesn't show any in stock now. GP-11 is easy to find on the web. More expensive than any of the other ammo (just over 50 cents per round) but it's non-corrosive and extremely accurate. Did i mention K-31 was the way to go. If you see any stripper clips get some, i have never seen one. Bayonettes for these are expensive too compared to the others you mentioned.
 
Swiss stripper clips are made of a pressed cardbord like material. I have a few, but they are pretty fragile when compared to the steel clips of most of the other service rifles.
 
For those of you that own a K31, many of them have its former soldier's name placed under the butt plate of the weapon. Soldiers kept them at home and most have been cared for quite well. The Swiss army boots (Bergstiefel) had metal cleats on them and part of their manual of arms was to kick the but of the rifle to come to "Present Arms" or "Inspection Arms" so you will find quite a few dings about the lower left stock above the butt plate.
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Yep, found mine a few years ago after I bought it.

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The K-31 is a great rifle and out of those listed, it's the only choice.

It is highly accurate and while ammo isn't the cheapest, it can be found pretty easily at gun shows. The round itself is comparable to a .308. They are very well made and just flat out scary accurate.
 
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