Mosin Nagant.
I admit I was partly inspired by the previous thread, but after reading some of the history of this gun, and seeing how incredibly cheap they are (and that the supply is starting to dry up), I felt like now was a good time to make a purchase.
This isn't a very rare example by any means--round receiver Izzy, 1941--but the year, the styling, and the fact that it's been counterbored suggests to me that this gun saw some action in WW2. It feels really neat to own a piece of history like this. It's incredibly easy to completely dissasemble it for cleaning, and while the fit and finish is crude, as befits a Russian gun, it's all very solid.
I tried to get a chance to shoot it this weekend, but due to the snow, the lack of chains on the car, and the people trying to cut down Christmas trees, I didn't (anyone know a good outdoors place around Seattle to shoot long guns besides the pit off of exit 47?). I did get a picture of my friend posing with it. (Yes, the bayonet is on wrong...it's a mismatch, and is too tight to fit the gun without a big mallet, which is am disinclined to use. And yes, he's a lefty.)
At $90, I probably overpaid, but it's in pretty good condition save the counterbore, and the numbers all match.
I'll probably sand the bayonet a bit so that it can fit later.
I admit I was partly inspired by the previous thread, but after reading some of the history of this gun, and seeing how incredibly cheap they are (and that the supply is starting to dry up), I felt like now was a good time to make a purchase.
This isn't a very rare example by any means--round receiver Izzy, 1941--but the year, the styling, and the fact that it's been counterbored suggests to me that this gun saw some action in WW2. It feels really neat to own a piece of history like this. It's incredibly easy to completely dissasemble it for cleaning, and while the fit and finish is crude, as befits a Russian gun, it's all very solid.
I tried to get a chance to shoot it this weekend, but due to the snow, the lack of chains on the car, and the people trying to cut down Christmas trees, I didn't (anyone know a good outdoors place around Seattle to shoot long guns besides the pit off of exit 47?). I did get a picture of my friend posing with it. (Yes, the bayonet is on wrong...it's a mismatch, and is too tight to fit the gun without a big mallet, which is am disinclined to use. And yes, he's a lefty.)
At $90, I probably overpaid, but it's in pretty good condition save the counterbore, and the numbers all match.
I'll probably sand the bayonet a bit so that it can fit later.