New, or rather recently reintroduced

[Coyote WT]

At 47 years old I have never owned my own fire arm. As a kid I shot my dad's .38 pistol, various .22 rifles and a sweet Austrian 30.06. I was issued an M16 when I was enlisted in the early 80's but the only weapon I ever paid for and took real ownership of was my archery equipment. Recently I spotted what I thought was a WWII replica that I fell in love with. When I learned through initial research that it was, in fact, a Mosin Nagant and not a remake my inner collector geek had an orga...never mind, you get the picture.

Anyway, I finally put my tax refund to good use and now own (my name and my money) a Mosin Nagant. I have yet to actually fire it because the range I have been going to restricts personally owned rifles to members only and I haven't put the scratch together to actually join yet.

My intent is to become familiar and confident enough with it to actually hunt. I may take a couple years to get to that point because I'm not an serious hunter these days though I was in my youth but I have a very specific purpose in this hunt.

I have a couple general questions for the group.

First, do Mosin Nagant owners feel that this rifle is appropriate to hunt deer?

Secondly, have MN owners found it easy to find the equipment needed to fit the rifle for a scope? For that matter, how difficult is it to become proficient enough with the rifle's original sighting system.

Lastly, I would appreciate the benefit of any experiences MN owners can "warn" me of when becoming accustomed to this rifle whether or not I end up using it as my hunting rifle.

Thanks much, in advance, for your comments.

Coyote Walking Tall

 

[the rifleer]

Its a very dependable and capable rifle. It is perfectly suitable for hunting if you use soft point ammo. It is plenty accurate and will take down anything you shoot so long as you do your part. As for getting a scope, I recommend learning to shoot it without a scope. While it is possible to scope a mosin nagant, it is frowned upon by collectors. If you do not want it to have any historical value, then by all means throw a scope on and make it suitable for what you want.

The mosin nagant is tried and proven. Its a great rifle and will do whatever you ask of it. Just be sure to clean it properly if you use military surplus ammo. if you are unfamiliar with corrosive ammo, do a google search, you will turn up tons of stuff about it.

 

[Coyote WT]

Thanks

Thanks, Rifleer. I did some research on the corrosive ammo based on some comments I ran across in my early investigation. I don't anticipate getting any old style surplus rounds but I'll make it a habit to check.

I do appreciate the encouragement to learn the rifle's sight before considering scoping. I would love to find the era appropriate gear to scope with since certain versions were used as sniper rifles back in the day. I also hold to the principle of learn the basics first, neat gadgets won't make a better practitioner if you don't have the principle skill set.

Thanks again for your feed back.

CWT

 

[nimbleVagrant]

Congrats on the rifle. Is it a 91/30, M38, M44 or some other variant?

I wouldn't be afraid of surplus ammo. It's cheap and fun and as long as you rinse the barrel and bolt assembly with water you'll be fine. Just remember that surplus ammo isn't suitable for hunting critters and many ranges don't allow it.

Reproductions of the original scope and mount are available and require drilling and tapping and modification of the bolt handle. There are also companies that manufacture modern mounts for installing modern optics. These also require drilling and tapping and bolt handle work. Or you can use a scout type mount and LER scope. This doesn't require bolt handle modification but you lose your iron sights. Or you can just buy a reproduction sniper rifle with the scope already mounted and the bolt already modified. You see them around for about $450.

You seem to be on the right track. Get comfortable with the rifle, with the sights and move on from there.

The one real downside to hunting with a M-N is the lack of an easily operated safety. For that you can modify the cocking piece with a ring, making it easier to rotate.

 

[kozak6]

What particular variant do you have? There are actually surprisingly many, as many Soviet (and other!!!) nations had adopted different variants thereof.

The caliber is quite suitable as long as you use hunting ammo.

Mounting optics is somewhat complicated. If you insist on optics, there are two main options. A scout style mount is easily accomplished. A "conventional" mount requires drilling and tapping, which may require the expensive services of a gunsmith if you aren't adequately equipped or don't feel up to it. Make sure you double check all the markings before commencing any permanent modification. Double check all markings, including those on the underside of the tang. It would be a shame to "ruin" a particularly collectible (and VALUABLE!!!) rifle.

I think the stock sights are adequate, although many others disagree. The Mojo aperture sight system is fairly well regarded if you would prefer.

As far as peculiarities worth prior warning of, there are several. For one, depending on mainspring strength, the safety may or may not be particularly difficult to employ. If your rifle has a fresher spring, it may even be absurdly difficult to employ. If so, you may wish to clip coils. I don't recommend this unless you have a replacement handy in the case that you overdo it.

Triggers are widely variable. It's possible to shim the trigger in order to reduce pull, and the Huber ball triggers are also well regarded. Google should be able to provide details.

Most Mosin-Nagants are equipped with steel butt pads. This can potentially make recoil extremely unpleasant. If you find this so, it may be worthwhile to look into a slip on butt-pad at the very least. This tends to increase length of pull, which may be an issue. If you are going to fit a pad to the stock and permanently alter the stock, it's still important to double check the markings to see if you have anything particularly collectible/valuable.

Other than that, some Mosin-Nagants tend to have sticky extraction. This is thought to be from a laquerlike coat of cosmoline in the chamber. It may be necessary to REALLY scrub or even polish the chamber to fix. This varies widely from rifle to rifle, so we'll have to see if it's an issue with yours.

Good luck .

 

[Coyote WT]

91/30 Tula

To the best of my research, it's a 91/30 Tula, the arrow in the star is stamped on the hex shaped back of the barrel.

The thought of having to modify by drilling and tapping kind of puts me off the idea of scoping. Looks like it's old school for me.

So far I seem pretty blessed with beginner's luck. The safety is not as tough as some reviews here and other places made me think it would be and the bolt action runs very smooth, kicking out the snap caps I've been practicing with without fail. I suspect there may be some settling in once recoil is introcuduce so I'll keep my eyes open for any changes.

If I find the recoil too much of a distraction I think I'll try one of the shooter's recoil pads before considering altering the rifle. Not because I'm a purist or concerned with collectible status but more as a desire to keep it as close to what it was that caught my eye in the first place, that classic WWII era look.

Again, I really appreciate everyone's feedback and comments. I'm typically forum shy since a lot of the ones I've used for other hobbies tend to disintegrate into flame wars and/or immature behavior. I'm happy to have found this resource.

 

[sc928porsche]

There is a recoil pad available for the MN that replaces the steel one. Simply remove the metal plate and replace with the rubber using the original screws. It does work well and the rifle can be returned to its original condition by simply swaping again. I paid a little over $5 each for the ones I have.

 

[Coyote WT]

Thanks, sc928porsche, I'll keep that in mind. Does it make the butt much longer? As it is it feels a little long to fit in my shoulder pocket the way I think it should. That may be just my perception since it's been over twenty years since I've held a rifle.