My son recently got into federal law enforcement and to everyone's surprise(except himself), he turned out to be an exceptional marksman.
So I suggested a few things,we talked, and he said long distance match shooting sounded cool. So I said I'd come up with something for him to try out and evaluate. As always,these projects end up much bigger than planned.
Here's the result,all thoughts,comments,giggles welcome!












He likes it so far.

Cheers!
Rick

last stubborn piccy...........



Rick

Very Nice!!! I'm extremely jealous. What are the specs?

Good luck to your son on the competition.

Scott

Hi Scott!
It's a Russian Mosin-Nagant M91/30 infantry rifle. From the Ishevsk arsenal in 1942. It's basicaly a .30 cal at 7.62X54R. Ammo is still very common as are these rifles. Also used in Russian Dragunov and Romanian ROMAK3 sniper rifles(I want one!). Muzzle velocity around 2750 ft/sec. It'll get to 1k yds but it'll be a rainbow shot.
This set up has sniper bolt and scope mounts from Accumount. Bipod from UAG/UTG. A few other goodies listed in my gallery here.
I refinished the wood into what I call 'police black'. Better resolution photos and real life makes it look like a synthetic stock. I really like wood stocks but this one had a bunch of angry beavers attack it.
Amazingly, head repair tech at local gun shop said bore was very,very good and I should go 'shoot the hell out of it'.
Rick

I wish I lived in a state that allowed you (Joe-Blow Average Citizen) to go shoot the hell out of it.

Sweet! I do (or used to do before kids) smallbore rifle.

Dave, we have long range matches here in New York, and we're just a Blue as New Jersey.

Jim

Hey James,Dave!
Out here in la-la land these rifles are commonly on sale for $95-99 from most sporting goods stores. Tax,FFl fee(background check), and mandatory gun lock gives it a $144 walk-a-way price. Ammo (surplus Warsaw Pact) is $.40 a shot or less.
Still good with iron sights for blazing away at 100 yd paper at our age. A fun gun for sure.
Rick
note: usually comes with bayonet for running those wabbits in your garden.

$95! I'd take one in a heartbeat if SWMBO wouldn't us it on me. Supprise you're allowed to own a "scarry gun" like that in Kalifornia. You now, being on the Left Coast, and all.

Jim

Hi Rick,

I've been looking into getting a Mosin-Nagant myself but that one looks a little "new". Does it have a synthetic stock or are my eyes playing tricks? Your setup looks fantastic. Very nice scope as well.

I've been a little leery about making the purchase because of the age and amount of use those rifles got. How satisfied are you with the action and accuracy? But then again for about $150 I'm sure its got to be a good deal.

Again, I hope you and your son have a great time with it.

Scott

Have one myself a good rifle .

So is that Swedish 7 MM one but kicks like a mule.

Good deal indeed.

Wish him the best.

Thanks guys!
James- koo-koo kalifornia is OK with this as it is manual bolt action,5 shot magazine.
People get excited when terms like 'semi-auto' and 30 round magazines get mentioned.
2 out 5 dumb.....er,citizens don't know the definition of 'semi-auto'. They've just been told over and over that it's 'bad' for the public.
Scott- I mentioned above that re-doing a wood finish on this wasn't worth it due to the abuse it had gone through,including repairing a splice on the butt that worked loose. I filled and sanded til I was happy then masked off the interior. Rattle canned multi-coats of black primer and then multi-coats of Krylon clear matte. Does indeed look synthetic even in your hands. Best thing about this finish is you can fix minor ding chips with a black Sharpie! they are only gaurenteed to shoot. That's it. I got pretty lucky with this one as both the trigger and bolt action are pretty smooth and moderately light. I'll take it to range this weekend with a couple buddys from work and fling some brass around. .
Jeff- same stores occasionally have 8mm Steyr-Mannlichers, gorgeous rifle.Center pull bolt for leftys like me! Ammo very,very hard to find. Rifle goes for about 150-180 typically.
Rick

Nice job on that old warhorse Rick. Your son will have a lot of fun with it. You might have to experiment with different ammo to get the most out of the rifles accuracy, but once you find the right combo I think you'll probably be pleasantly surprised.

Scott, these are great rifles for the price. Try and find one with matching serial numbers on the bolt and receiver. And if possible, before purchasing take it to a gunsmith that's familiar with them. Headspace needs to be checked before shooting and of course the bore should be inspected for it's condition. That old ammo that went through it during the war was corrosive and unless cleaned properly would rust out the barrel.

Thanks for the advice. Unfortunately most of the gun shops in my area don't have any in stock so most of my searching has been done at Gunbroker.com or Auction Arms. I'd also like to get one made in the Tula arsenal and hopefully with a hex receiver. So no real rush to get one but I do appreciate the info.

Scott

Rick:

Can you give me some details/specs on that scope. I'd like to get one. I live in Mountain View, and have a Moisin-Nagant carbine that is in excellent condition. Also 7.62x54, with ammo easy to get down here also. Beautiful job.

Matt

Matt-
This is a 4-16X40mm no-name knock off I got recently on e-bay. Mil-dot reticle,illuminated.
It's OK so far. Not sure,but think it's an imitation of a Burris model. If it lasts a couple hundred shots before it breaks,it's ok. I should know what I'm doing by then.
Thanks for the compliment!
Rick