What can be done with a Mosin Nagant 91/30
- Thread starter Rock Knocker
- Start date
I have a Finnish version of the 91/30 with a .308 bore. It shoots so well it's scary. I have bad eyes and can get it under 4" at 300yds with iron's! With a little bedding and some trigger work, they can be made to shoot very well. I have a Huber Concepts trigger in it as well, and it's a huge improvement over stock.
If you have a rough barrel, fire lapping is an excellent way to improve the accuracy. Using valve lapping compound on cast bullets is the best way to fire lap them with the oversize bore, as Tubb's final finish only has .308 bullets, which will never hit the grooves.
I used .313 cast bullets (with soft lead to allow the compound to impregnate in them, basically straight wheel weights) with valve compound on my Russian 91/30 that has a .3115 bore and it improved things greatly. All you need to do is put some lapping compound on a flat and hard surface smooth it out so it's not in a big lump, lay a cast bullet in it, and with another hard flat object (I used a piece of aluminum plate) roll the bullet between them in the compound, but don't press so hard that it will size the bullet down, which is easier than you think. This will impregnate the bullet with the grit. I then lubed with Lee's Alox/beeswax stick lube in the grease grooves, and loaded as normal over a light charge suitable for cast bullets. You can even roll it in the compound again after lubing but before loading, it's all up to you. After firing about 30-40 of these, the bore was much smoother than before and cleaned much easier than in the past, and was more accurate as well.
The Mosin Nagant gets a bad rap that is undeserved for being inaccurate. Many of the guns that are inaccurate just have abused barrels or are used with loads that are not suited to the particular rifle. I have improved the accuracy of most all my Mosins (I have 5) with just a bit of handload tuning. And my Fin will go under an inch @100yds with irons, and under 4" @300yds, and I have bad eyes. If one of the talented prone shooters from the forum were to shoot my rifle, I bet it would be very accurate, and would likely be able to shoot MOA or better at 600 and even 1000yds.
The Mosin is a great rifle with a very strong action. And the 7.62X54R isw an awesome round as well. It's more powerful than the .308, and nearly on par with a .30-06. It is capable of great accuracy if tuned well, and will kill anything in the mainland US if used for hunting.
If you have a rough barrel, fire lapping is an excellent way to improve the accuracy. Using valve lapping compound on cast bullets is the best way to fire lap them with the oversize bore, as Tubb's final finish only has .308 bullets, which will never hit the grooves.
I used .313 cast bullets (with soft lead to allow the compound to impregnate in them, basically straight wheel weights) with valve compound on my Russian 91/30 that has a .3115 bore and it improved things greatly. All you need to do is put some lapping compound on a flat and hard surface smooth it out so it's not in a big lump, lay a cast bullet in it, and with another hard flat object (I used a piece of aluminum plate) roll the bullet between them in the compound, but don't press so hard that it will size the bullet down, which is easier than you think. This will impregnate the bullet with the grit. I then lubed with Lee's Alox/beeswax stick lube in the grease grooves, and loaded as normal over a light charge suitable for cast bullets. You can even roll it in the compound again after lubing but before loading, it's all up to you. After firing about 30-40 of these, the bore was much smoother than before and cleaned much easier than in the past, and was more accurate as well.
The Mosin Nagant gets a bad rap that is undeserved for being inaccurate. Many of the guns that are inaccurate just have abused barrels or are used with loads that are not suited to the particular rifle. I have improved the accuracy of most all my Mosins (I have 5) with just a bit of handload tuning. And my Fin will go under an inch @100yds with irons, and under 4" @300yds, and I have bad eyes. If one of the talented prone shooters from the forum were to shoot my rifle, I bet it would be very accurate, and would likely be able to shoot MOA or better at 600 and even 1000yds.
The Mosin is a great rifle with a very strong action. And the 7.62X54R isw an awesome round as well. It's more powerful than the .308, and nearly on par with a .30-06. It is capable of great accuracy if tuned well, and will kill anything in the mainland US if used for hunting.
Rock on. Ive never heard of this lapping before i will deffinitly look into this. Good to hear your rifles are shooting so well, i cant wait to get mine out some more. Right now all i have is Sellier and bellot brass, which ive heard isnt the greatest, but im working on getting the dies and im going to have to measure the bore one of these days.
Also... Does anyone know where i can find pillars of certain length to work in my rifle? Or anything i could use? maybe a trip to the hardware store with the bolts along with may help out.
Also... Does anyone know where i can find pillars of certain length to work in my rifle? Or anything i could use? maybe a trip to the hardware store with the bolts along with may help out.
Rock,
The Lapua 7.62X54R brass is awesome. It's super tough, lasts a long time, and will handle some really hot loads without loosening in the primer pockets. I have been using the same 100 for a few years now, and will likely have it for a few years still at the rate I am going. I believe some of it has about 16-17 firings on it, and still holding up well with annealing every 5 or 6 firings.
The S&B brass isn't too bad, but it's not nearly as good as Lapua. But it will still make decent ammo and is plenty good for hunting or general plinking. I have a bit of that that I use in a few of my Mosins and I have no real complaints. It works and it's reloadable, better than can be said for the steel crap that surplus ammo comes loaded in. Though I have seen people go through the trouble of finding Berdan primers and reloading the steel crap as well, and the S&B is worlds away better than the steel crap.
Good luck and have fun with the Mosin. It's a tough rifle that will serve you well. And you can use it for other things as well, like hammering nails, digging a trench, as a sledge hammer for demolition work, or anything else you need a stout solid tool for.
The Lapua 7.62X54R brass is awesome. It's super tough, lasts a long time, and will handle some really hot loads without loosening in the primer pockets. I have been using the same 100 for a few years now, and will likely have it for a few years still at the rate I am going. I believe some of it has about 16-17 firings on it, and still holding up well with annealing every 5 or 6 firings.
The S&B brass isn't too bad, but it's not nearly as good as Lapua. But it will still make decent ammo and is plenty good for hunting or general plinking. I have a bit of that that I use in a few of my Mosins and I have no real complaints. It works and it's reloadable, better than can be said for the steel crap that surplus ammo comes loaded in. Though I have seen people go through the trouble of finding Berdan primers and reloading the steel crap as well, and the S&B is worlds away better than the steel crap.
Good luck and have fun with the Mosin. It's a tough rifle that will serve you well. And you can use it for other things as well, like hammering nails, digging a trench, as a sledge hammer for demolition work, or anything else you need a stout solid tool for.
OK 2506, i thought the service rifle name tag was there only for the looks, but if pillars will disqualify it from any match for one reason or another it makes more sence. Im still surprised i cant find anything about it being done.
That is some tough brass to have 16-17 firings! And its good to hear, im about to go out and get some Lapua for my 223.
That is some tough brass to have 16-17 firings! And its good to hear, im about to go out and get some Lapua for my 223.
well i just slugged my bore, and the slug came out at .312.
And the bore of my rifle seems nearly flawless(to the naked eye) is there anything i should look for? The barrel isnt at a mirrors finish when you look down it but i dont think i will be worried about lapping.
And the bore of my rifle seems nearly flawless(to the naked eye) is there anything i should look for? The barrel isnt at a mirrors finish when you look down it but i dont think i will be worried about lapping.
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