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You seem to have a misconception of many of us who appreciate the old Mosin Nagant. I have 8 of them myself, and have absolutely no interest whatsoever in ever "sporterizing" or "tacticooling" one. My oldest is a Finnish M28 with an 1897 receiver. I bought it in the late '80s, my first surplus rifle.

My comment about their affordability was simply in reference to years back when some nice, unusual specimens could be had for well under $100, and not because I'm a poor, broke knuckle-dragger who can't afford a real gun.
 
Not sure what you mean by the socio-economic comment, but it would be easy to mistake it for snobbery.
I did not like them for a long time because I thought they must be poor quality but now I own six including two Finns. They are practical firearms and have earned their place in history.
PS: Pretty good shooters.
 
You seem to have a misconception of many of us who appreciate the old Mosin Nagant. I have 8 of them myself, and have absolutely no interest whatsoever in ever "sporterizing" or "tacticooling" one. My oldest is a Finnish M28 with an 1897 receiver. I bought it in the late '80s, my first surplus rifle.

My comment about their affordability was simply in reference to years back when some nice, unusual specimens could be had for well under $100, and not because I'm a poor, broke knuckle-dragger who can't afford a real gun.
Not so sure about that. I watch the people who come to my tables at the shows looking for Mosins.
 
Not so sure about that. I watch the people who come to my tables at the shows looking for Mosins.

I did say "many of us", not all of us. I kind of resent being lumped in with the tacticool crowd, thank you very much.

By the way, I have to say that I've seen some awful silly stuff done with Mosins, "modification" that make me cringe. Decent modern rifles are so cheap nowadays, why in the world would anyone want to dress up the old war-horse to try to be something that it never will be?
 
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In your not-so-humble opinion. :rolleyes:

Plenty of us who have multiples of them feel otherwise. You just have to appreciate them for what they are, not for what you think they should be. If you're trying to compare them to a slick, modern hunting rifle, or even a Garand, you will be disappointed.

What they are is a sturdy, simple, reliable, accurate (enough) old battle rifle that served many millions of soldiers very well for the better part of a century. So go ahead and hate all you want. I kind of wish more people felt like you do, so demand and prices would decrease back to a more affordable level, but that's just selfish of me.

Fun thread.

When I got the bug for a war relic I was thinking Mosin. Probably because I'm frugal/cheap. After reading here and elsewhere I decided I'm not into muzzle flash, and least of all, recoil. Keep in mind I didn't know anything about anything. They all look pretty much the same to me. Someone brought up "Swedish Mauser's". After reading and looking around that's what I set my sights on. I got a fine 1902 all matching M38 for a good price and love it. I'd probably love a nice Mosin too, if that was what I stayed with. Then I lucked out, pretty sure anyway, and came up with a nice all matching 1918 NoI MKIII SMLE Enfield. I get the idea there's a lot of those old relics that are just the way you describe them.

Said in the nicest way possible with a BIG smile on my face. "Lighten up Francis". :D

Coming up next, if that 03A3 that I was looking at didn't sell I think I'm going to get it. I hope it smells of old linseed oil like the other two relics do.
 
When I got the bug for a war relic I was thinking Mosin. Probably because I'm frugal/cheap. After reading here and elsewhere I decided I'm not into muzzle flash, and least of all, recoil. Keep in mind I didn't know anything about anything. They all look pretty much the same to me. Someone brought up "Swedish Mauser's". After reading and looking around that's what I set my sights on. I got a fine 1902 all matching M38 for a good price and love it. I'd probably love a nice Mosin too, if that was what I stayed with. Then I lucked out, pretty sure anyway, and came up with a nice all matching 1918 NoI MKIII SMLE Enfield. I get the idea there's a lot of those old relics that are just the way you describe them.

I have to admit, a Mosin is no Swedish Mauser. If I had to choose from a purely utilitarian perspective, I'd take a Swede or even an Enfield over a Mosin, any day of the week. I would definitely prefer my unissued Yugo M48 that I paid $150 for back in the day, or my K31, or M1 Garand, or better yet any number of very accurate, modern hunting rifles within arm's reach.

I just have a soft spot for the old Mosin, partly because they're what I started with 30 years ago, back when the rifles and crate after crate of ammo were dirt cheap, and partly because I do still think they are a unique and interesting old rifle with dozens of variations from all over the world.

And to be honest, 30 years ago all the tacticool modifications for the Mosin, that I look down my nose at now, would have appealed to me back then... :oops:
 
I bought one and caught Mosinitus from the Cosmoline... woke up with 16 of em in the vault. I Have kept all the Finns as they are the cream of the crop and the M38, M44, and the ex-Dragoon.
I also took an Original bolt and redesigned/Remachined it it on a dare and I have a true Cock on close Bolt that has a fp block machined in so it has to be fully closed to fire, Original safety and all are intact, and you don't fight the bolt after firing !
I should have bought em when I was a Kid as they were 12.00 each at the pawn shops....
 
This may sound odd but has anyone ever done or even heard of someone shooting them with black powder? I thought I read someplace the very early artridges were loaded with black powder or some sort of the semi smokeless powder. I had thought about loading some cartridges with black powder and a lead wadcutter bullet for a fun load but never did. I bought the brass to do it but never loaded any.
 
While I appreciate the historical significance of the Mosin in WWll, I HATE these guns and wouldn't take one for free. They are not fun to shoot, they are not smooth, cool, comfortable, or worthy of bragging. They are the Hi-point of rifles. I don't understand the fascination wit the rifles, but I'm glad we can all make fun of them and those who own them, good naturedly of course. ;)
To be fair, most people could make almost the identical argument about the VW bug...which had an even shorter production run of about half the units. Not sure you could call either one a failure.
 
Mosin would make good firewood, not good for much else unless you are going to throw it with the bayonet as a spear.
I would literally take any milsurp bolt gun over a Mosin, they didn't earn the name "garbage rod" for their quality or accuracy.
There was some appeal when they were $50-$100,now they go for $300-$400 and much better rifles can be had for that money,purely from a precision and accuracy stand point.
 
I sold, regretted, and then bought 2 Mosins. Admittedly I don't shoot them much, but I like to look at them. I am huge history buff, as in, I read only non-fiction and visit Civil War battle sites while on vacation.

All the Mausers are gone now and this is what has happened.

o_O

ETA:
Mosin operator's #1 mission...
Shoot a Nazi so you can get his K98

Had a K98, and it was buttery smooth. However, the factory ammo was dogsh*. Since I don't reload, and I don't like corrosive ammo, I got rid of it. Now I have a 1903A3 which is much more accurate and has better sights.

It reminds me a little of the time I was showing a recently acquired Turkish Mauser to a friend, many years ago. He looked it over with disdain. To him a rifle is only a tool for hunting, nothing more; it's history is meaningless. Where I saw a really neat old gun, he just saw a clunky, heavy, beat-up old junker.

Yep, lots of folks like that. They only like "the best".

Because they can't shoot well and think if they add stuff to the gun that they will somehow become better shots?

YES. They do become better shots with the scope - as long as it's from the bench.
 
While I appreciate the historical significance of the Mosin in WWll, I HATE these guns and wouldn't take one for free. They are not fun to shoot, they are not smooth, cool, comfortable, or worthy of bragging. They are the Hi-point of rifles. I don't understand the fascination wit the rifles, but I'm glad we can all make fun of them and those who own them, good naturedly of course. ;)
Hate is a pretty strong word. Did one of them shoot your dog?
I've bought and sold a lot of pathetic guns in my day (when trade and sell was unregulated) but never felt the need to hate any. Analyzing some have even made me a better judge when making used gun purchases.
I personally never met a gun I did not like for one reason or the other including Rohm, Jenning and yes even Hi point. Though short lived in my hands, I learned something and enjoyed all of them.
As for the Mosin; I paid 95 for mine still in cosmoline at a big five I believe. After I cleaned it up, would rather trust my life on it than a hi point, had fun with it, learned good ways to deal with cosmoline, it shot good enough to hunt with albeit heavy, then I sold it for 200 not long after.
Just the profit alone out strips the meager pleasure of many other guns of even supposed quality I have owned.:cool:

By the way, if you are not a purest, Timney makes a nice trigger with safety for it and a shooting game changer.
 

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