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Question for mosin owners!

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Krane65

Grizzled Veteran
Jun 6, 2012
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#1
I got a mosin yesterday, and I'm just wondering if there are any safety concerns about this thing that I should know about? I know it's probably safe, but there's always a small chance of burning my eyebrows off or blowing my face off. I want to minimize this risk....

Oh and btw I ordered 440 rounds of russian ammo from 1946-1947. Is this safe to shoot?? $80 for all that including shipping....unbelievable deal IF it shoots and is safe...
 
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#3
I have Finnish Mosins with 118 year old receivers I have no issue pulling the trigger on. In fact the M39 I take to the range has a receiver made in 1895. The Mosin action is one of the toughest out there. It was designed to survive, and function in conditions we could not imagine. The ammo is the main concern when shooting surplus. I've fired thousands of surplus rounds with only a couple of issues. They were pierced primers caused by incorrect firing pin depth. I took the gauge on the screw driver provided with the rifle, and readjusted it. Never had an issue since.
fppg.jpg
 
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#4
Krane65 said:
Oh and btw I ordered 440 rounds of russian ammo from 1946-1947. Is this safe to shoot?? $80 for all that including shipping....unbelievable deal IF it shoots and is safe...
Click to expand...

I don't know how familiar you are with old ammo, especially Soviet ammo, but the priming compound will most likely be corrosive. I say most likely because I have seen corrosive ammunition from Soviet-era countries from as late as the 1980's in that caliber so the I would play it safe and clean your weapon properly. There is nothing wrong with firing corrosive ammo, you just need to do a bit more maintenance as soon as you've finished firing. The old trick is to flush the barrel with hot soapy water, muzzle down so you don't get it in the action. I have heard that windex or WD-40 works as well but I have never tried it out. After you get the rifle home you can clean it like any other rifle.

My brother has a K98 and a bunch of old 8mm rounds from the 1950's for it. Those things are loaded HOT! The recoil seems almost double with them than with new production ammunition of the same caliber.

Enjoy your rifle! :p
 
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#6
Krane65 said:
Thanks guys for the tips. I'm a little concerned after dry-firing my rifle today without a shell in it. I heard the expected *click* but the back of the bolt really lunges foreward when pulling the trigger. Is this normal for a mosin or is something dangerously wrong?
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normal. that's how it works. check this forum for advice.
[url]http://www.gunandgame.com/forums/mosin-nagant/[/URL]
 
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#7
Shot my mosin twice now.... Amazing rifle. BOOOOM-cha-crack. Love it... The only bad thing is my bolt doesn't want to eject my fired bullet casings without using excessive force hitting the bolt to open it. This is with my surplus ammo but new ammo seems to eject just fine. I really don't understand why.

If I ever had to do fast shooting to save my life, I don't think i'd make it.... It takes at least 4 seconds to bang the bolt open with my fist and eject the casing.
 
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#8
Krane65 said:
The only bad thing is my bolt doesn't want to eject my fired bullet casings without using excessive force hitting the bolt to open it. This is with my surplus ammo but new ammo seems to eject just fine. I really don't understand why.
Click to expand...

Could be the surplus stuff has lacquered cases, that can bind it up sometimes.

I love the sound of a Mosin shot... echoed around the valley for almost a minute up where I shoot.
 
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#9
Krane65 said:
Shot my mosin twice now.... Amazing rifle. BOOOOM-cha-crack. Love it... The only bad thing is my bolt doesn't want to eject my fired bullet casings without using excessive force hitting the bolt to open it. This is with my surplus ammo but new ammo seems to eject just fine. I really don't understand why.

If I ever had to do fast shooting to save my life, I don't think i'd make it.... It takes at least 4 seconds to bang the bolt open with my fist and eject the casing.
Click to expand...
This is pretty normal and can be down to any number of factors.

The problem most people jump on is 'sticky bolt' - when there is still cosmoline hiding inside the chamber or receiver, and it gums up the action. It can also be due to lacquered cases on ammo. Sometimes it occurs as a result of problems with headspacing or lug setback... not all that common, though. Best course of action here is a good cleaning, and maybe trying different ammo to see what your rifle 'likes' best.

Another one is the simple fact that you are working against a fairly strong spring with very little leverage, thanks to the straight, stubby bolt handle. As someone with arms like noodles, this is the biggest problem I run into, so I use my fingertips to 'pull' the bolt open from across the top rather than try and force it up from below. Oiling the bolt well may help.

Remember to clean your rifle well after you shoot it, as soon as possible if you're using surplus ammo of any sort. Failing to clean out the bore after firing corrosively-primed military ammo will end in rust. Lots of rust.
 
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#11
Krane65 said:
Shot my mosin twice now.... Amazing rifle. BOOOOM-cha-crack. Love it... The only bad thing is my bolt doesn't want to eject my fired bullet casings without using excessive force hitting the bolt to open it. This is with my surplus ammo but new ammo seems to eject just fine. I really don't understand why.

If I ever had to do fast shooting to save my life, I don't think i'd make it.... It takes at least 4 seconds to bang the bolt open with my fist and eject the casing.
Click to expand...


I had the same issue with both of mine. I stripped down the bolts and cleaned them in a solvent. Relubed and put back together and it works great now
 
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#12
This is a strange occurance because brand new shell casings eject flawlessly and with no effort. I put in my surplus ammo from 1946 and fire a shot....have to bang on that bolt with all my strength to eject the shell. My ammo isn't laquered casing. It's supposedly copper washed according to sgammo. So I don't see how that can be the prob.....
 
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#13
Krane65 said:
This is a strange occurance because brand new shell casings eject flawlessly and with no effort. I put in my surplus ammo from 1946 and fire a shot....have to bang on that bolt with all my strength to eject the shell. My ammo isn't laquered casing. It's supposedly copper washed according to sgammo. So I don't see how that can be the prob.....
Click to expand...

Is it heavy, or light ball ammo? I have one Mosin that will cycle flawlessly with light ball, but sticks with heavy. What type of ammo is the commercial?
 
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#15
Krane65 said:
This is a strange occurance because brand new shell casings eject flawlessly and with no effort. I put in my surplus ammo from 1946 and fire a shot....have to bang on that bolt with all my strength to eject the shell. My ammo isn't laquered casing. It's supposedly copper washed according to sgammo. So I don't see how that can be the prob.....
Click to expand...

My guess is the surplus ammunition is loaded much hotter than the new production and is causing the bolt to sort of seize up due to the pressure.

When I cleaned and relubed my bolt carrier group I still had to sit there and just work the bolt on the rifle open and closed again and again until it worked very smooth. I even cleaned and relubed a few times because the process of working the bolt got more cosmoline out of it that i must have missed.
 
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#17
I use an ammonia solution (80% h2o) in a spray bottle to clean the bore after firing corrosive ammo. Look for 2 cuts on the cocking piece. They're supposed to be flush with the firing pin screw or as close as possible. Its a quick way to determine without decocking the bolt if the firing pin is installed correctly.
 
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