Mosin Nagant Bolt Action

Introduction:

Mosin Nagant Wiki

Pros & Cons:

Submitted by Slappy

Pros:

The rifles and ammunition are very inexpensive.
Durable, reliable, and great combat accuracy. These rifles left many dead Germans on the Eastern Front in World War II.
Built like a Soviet tractor.
Fires the potent 7.62x54R (rimmed) ammunition which is still plentiful and relatively inexpensive. You can find ammunition that is factory sealed in big “spam cans”. This makes the Mosin Nagant a great weapon for long-term storage.
Growing aftermarket support.
Low cost gunsmith project.
Capable of match accuracy with little to no modification and the right ammo (188, LN1).
Adaptable for hunting/sporting applications.
Modern, non-corrosive ammo is available.

Cons:

Uses 5-round stripper clips (pictured right) for loading. After firing 5 rounds you must quickly reload.
Most military surplus 7.62x54R ammunition is corrosive. You must thoroughly clean your rifle promptly after shooting.
Stout recoil and a metal butt plate can make this an uncomfortable rifle to shoot. Recoil pads are available.
The safety, while effective, is stiff and awkward.
The triggers can have quite a bit of creep and overtravel.

Disassembly & Maintenance:

Ammunition:

Corrosive Surplus Ammunition:

Very little surplus 7.62×54 ammunition is not corrosive. Promptly clean your firearm thoroughly after shooting.

7.62x54R Recognition:

Sardine Can Decoding:

Accessories:

Optic Mounts:

Coming soon.

Stocks:

Coming soon.

Trigger:

Coming soon.

AK vs. AR vs. Mosin:

AK47: It works though you have never cleaned it — ever.
AR15: You have $9 per ounce special non-detergent synthetic Teflon infused oil for cleaning.
Mosin: It was last cleaned in Berlin in 1945.

AK47: You are able to hit the broad side of a barn from inside.
AR15: You are able to hit the broad side of a barn from 600 meters.
Mosin: You can hit the farm from two counties over.

AK47: Cheap magazines are fun to buy.
AR15: Cheap magazines melt.
Mosin: What’s a magazine?

AK47: Your safety can be heard from 300 meters away.
AR15: You can silently flip off the safety with your finger on the trigger.
Mosin: What’s a safety?

AK47: Your rifle comes with a cheap nylon sling.
AR15: Your rifle has a 9 point stealth tactical suspension system.
Mosin: Your rifle has dog collars.

AK47: Your bayonet makes a good wire cutter.
AR15: Your bayonet is actually a pretty good steak knife.
Mosin: Your bayonet is longer than your leg.

AK47: You can put a .30″ hole through 12″ of oak, if you can hit it.
AR15: You can put one hole in a paper target at 100 meters with 30 rounds.
Mosin: You can knock down everyone else’s target with the shock wave of your bullet going downrange.

AK47: When out of ammo your rifle will nominally pass as a club.
AR15: When out of ammo, your rifle makes a great wiffle bat.
Mosin: When out of ammo, your rifle makes a supreme war club, pike, boat oar, tent pole, or firewood.

AK47: Recoil is manageable, even fun.
AR15: What’s recoil?
Mosin: Recoil is often used to relocate shoulders thrown out by the previous shot.

AK47: Your sight adjustment goes to “10”, and you’ve never bothered moving it.
AR15: Your sight adjustment is incremented in fractions of minute of angle.
Mosin: Your sight adjustment goes to 12 miles and you’ve actually tried it.

AK47: Your rifle can be used by any two bit nation’s most illiterate conscripts to fight elite forces worldwide.
AR15: Your rifle is used by elite forces worldwide to fight two bit nations’ most illiterate conscripts.
Mosin: Your rifle has fought against itself and won every time.

AK47: Your rifle won some revolutions.
AR15: Your rifle won the Cold War.
Mosin: Your rifle won a pole vault event.

AK47: You paid $350.
AR15: You paid $900.
Mosin: You paid $59.95.

AK47: You buy cheap ammo by the case.
AR15: You lovingly reload precision crafted rounds one by one.
Mosin: You dig your ammo out of a farmer’s field in Ukraine and it works just fine.

AK47: You can intimidate your foe with the bayonet mounted.
AR15: Your foes laugh when you mount your bayonet.
Mosin: You can bayonet your foe on the other side of the river without leaving the comfort of your hole.

AK47: Service life, 50 years.
AR15: Service life, 40 years.
Mosin: Service life, 100 years, and counting.

AK47: It’s easier to buy a new rifle when you want to change cartridge sizes.
AR15: You can change cartridge sizes with the push of a couple of pins and a new upper.
Mosin: You believe no real man would dare risk the ridicule of his friends by suggesting there is anything but 7.62x54R.

AK47: You can repair your rifle with a big hammer and a swift kick.
AR15: You can repair your rifle by taking it to a certified gunsmith and it’s under warranty!
Mosin: If your rifle breaks, you buy a new one.

AK47: You consider it a badge of honor when you get your handguards to burst into flames.
AR15: You consider it a badge of honor when you shoot a sub-MOA 5 shot group.
Mosin: You consider it a badge of honor when you cycle 5 rounds without the aid of a 2×4.

AK47: After a long day the range you relax by watching “Red Dawn”.
AR15: After a long day at the range you relax by watching “Blackhawk Down”.
Mosin: After a long day at the range you relax by visiting the chiropractor.

AK47: After cleaning your rifle you have a strong urge for a stiff shot of Vodka.
AR15: After cleaning your rifle you have a strong urge for hotdogs and apple pie.
Mosin: After cleaning your rifle you have a strong urge for shishkabob.

AK47: You can accessorize you rifle with a new muzzle brake or a nice stock set.
AR15: Your rifle’s accessories are eight times more valuable than your rifle.
Mosin: Your rifle’s accessory is a small tin can with a funny lid, but it’s buried under an apartment building somewhere in Budapest.

AK47: Your rifle’s finish is varnish and paint.
AR15: Your rifle’s finish is Teflon and high tech polymers.
Mosin: Your rifle’s finish is low grade shellac, cosmoline and Olga’s toe nails.

AK47: Your wife tolerates your autographed framed picture of Mikhail Kalashnikov.
AR15: Your wife tolerates your autographed framed picture of Eugene Stoner.
Mosin: You’re not sure there WERE cameras to photograph Sergei Mosin.

AK47: Late at night you sometimes have to fight the urge to hold your rifle over your head and shout “Wolverines!”
AR15: Late at night you sometimes have to fight the urge to clear your house, slicing the pie from room to room.
Mosin: Late at night, you sometimes have to fight the urge to dig a fighting trench in the yard to sleep in.