Mosin Nagant 91/30 at Big 5

[BuckWallace]

Hey guys, I just saw the ad for Big 5 this Sunday and noticed they have a Mosin Nagant 91/30 for $99... I have no experience with these guns but am looking for something to just have some fun with and heard these are really cool rifles. Would this just end up being crap from Big 5 or would it be worth it to pick one up?? Any feedback would be much appreciated!

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[nwo]

The MOSIN-NAGANT rifles from BIG 5 have ALWAYS been GREAT pieces in my experience. I have NEVER seen a bad one from there ( having examined, and purchased several from BIG 5 over the years)

99 bucks is a GREAT price too.

At that price, buy two or three of them!

They are great fun rifles, and neat pieces of History as well.

 

[JUSTIficatioN]

It would be worth it, there fun rifles to shoot and surplus ammo is cheap (also corrosive though) but be sure to check the rifle over thoroughly before you pay for it. Check the bore and make sure it doesn't look like someone took a dump down it, check the stock for cracks and the receiver for cracks and wear. In my experience it's totally up to the customer to know what to look for when buying a firearm from big 5, most people working at the one I go to here in Seattle have no firearms knowledge whatsoever. Either that or just wait for one to come up for sale on the board.

 

[Riot]

I bought one online for $80, after shipping, taxes, and dealer fees it ended up being over $120. Then I saw a Mosin-Nagant at my local ACE Hardware store for $99.

BUY IT. Then buy the ammo in bulk at like JG Sales, AIM Surplus, or Ammo-To-Go. This rifle is accurate as heck and built for the rifleman in mind. I just can't (for the life of me) see some 1940's Russin clearing houses with one of these things! They're huge!

 

[toobigtofail]

The Mosin Nagants they sell at Big 5 are a pretty great deal. These are refurb guns that were put away by the ROOSKIES sometime after WW2 in case they had to large scale infantry fight again. Luckily, they never did. What this means is, after wiping the cosmoline off of these guns, they are pretty much ready to shoot. The stocks may have repairs in them, but none of mine have any cracks. There might be a lot of dents on the guns, but usually they have been reblued so they look pretty good.

Good luck with your purchase, and check out 7.62x54r.net for more great information on these historical rifles.

 

[Joe Link]

I absolutely love my Mosins

 

[mudslinging79]

if you can, sort through what he has, you may get lucky and find a ex-sniper that was refurbished as a regular 91/30. ive seen them like that at joes, guy behind the counter had no idea...

 

[ZeroRing]

if you can, sort through what he has, you may get lucky and find a ex-sniper that was refurbished as a regular 91/30. ive seen them like that at joes, guy behind the counter had no idea...

Might be worth mentioning specifically what you look for when trying to "find" one of these. Inquiring gun-nuts want to know (at least... the "lazy" ones who don't want to google the info).

 

[slingshot1943]

I bought a carbine a few years ago for $60 from Big5. It's very nice. The only thing someone might complain about is the numbers don't match.

 

[mudslinging79]

pull the bolt and look inside on the left side, you see a couple screwholes that are filled then you have an ex sniper. the scope mounted to the left side of the reciever. dont confuse the hole for the ejector as a filled in scope mount though.

 

[darkminstrel]

Take someone who already owns a couple with you.

Sure you can play the hit-or-miss game, but a person with even a little knowledge can steer you in the right direction. Take into account that ammo is incredibly cheap...but corrosive. You'll have to dedicate real and extra time to make certain your bore doesn't rust out from neglect.

That little bit of doom-saying aside, I love mine and wouldn't trade or sell them for a million a piece.

 

[raftman]

Another vote for buy it! Just make sure the condition is good and you'll have a heck of a rifle. Even though the surplus ammo is corrosive, the rifle being a bolt action makes it relatively easy to clean after shooting (not like a gas-operated semi-auto with its gas tube, piston, and so on.) If you really don't wanna shoot corrosive, there is new production commercial Russian-made stuff (such as Brown Bear) that's non-corrosive, and still considerably cheaper than non-corrosive new production ammo of approximately equivalent ballistics (such as 30-06).

 

[James1300]

I bought one from BIG 5!
Long gun. made in 1934!
Matching numbers and a HEX reciever.
Came with a tool kit, ammo pouch's and bayonet, too
Love to have a Carbine for $99.00
Great piece of History.

 

[mudslinging79]

love both my m-44 as well as my 91/30. wouldnt trade them for anything.

 

[bugeye]

Ahh the counter point of view!

They are worn out x military rifles that are 70 years old and shot a steady diet of corrosive ammo, think 8 moa guns with shot out barrels that have major pitting in them.

However the surplus ammo is a good deal and in my 3 mosins shoot no worse than the new stuff, and they are historical pieces and great fun to shoot if 8 moa can make you happy! One more thing, you never hear about these rifles blowing up and that's a very good thing considering their age!

But don't think your buying accuracy!

 

[raftman]

Accuracy is highly variable with these rifles, some may have been fed corrosive ammo, others have basically never been fed anything at all. Mine for example, has a bore that shines like a polished mirror with no wear or pitting evidence whatsoever. To say they're invariably worn out to the point of grievous inaccuracy would be like saying the same about of any gun of similar age. It may be true of some, or even most, but can't be said about all.

 

[Riot]

Mine looks like someone dumped charcole down the barrel...too bad it can still put 5 rounds in a 50-cent piece group.

 

[BuckWallace]

Well I went ahead and bought one... The stock was in really good shape, no cracks anyway. It's all numbers matching and the barrel looks to be in good shape as well. There looked like there was some gunk or something about half way down the barrel, but it was raised so it shouldn't be a big deal. I guess I'll find out when I run a bore snake down there... Thanks for the link, toobigtofail. It looks like mine's from Tula, made in 1942. Anyway, I'm excited to go out and see how it works. Thanks for all the quick responses!

 

[Riot]

Well I went ahead and bought one... The stock was in really good shape, no cracks anyway. It's all numbers matching and the barrel looks to be in good shape as well. There looked like there was some gunk or something about half way down the barrel, but it was raised so it shouldn't be a big deal. I guess I'll find out when I run a bore snake down there... Thanks for the link, toobigtofail. It looks like mine's from Tula, made in 1942. Anyway, I'm excited to go out and see how it works. Thanks for all the quick responses!

Windex...I know how it sounds but trust me....WINDEX

Then clean it with all that other gun oil stuff...

 

[trainsktg]

Windex will clean cosmoline and do a very good job of getting rid of both corrosive salts and copper deposits in the barrel. It leaves metal very 'dry', so as said above, put a little gun oil on the cleaned parts. You might also consider using small dabs of rifle grease on all metal-to-metal sliding and camming points.

My counterbored Big 5 91/30 ex-sniper is one of my most accurate rifles with open sights. I've never heard of an 8MOA refurbished Mosin.

Keith