Identifying a Rifle #2

[unglesb]

This is #2 of the 3 rifles I was gifted a few days ago. This one is also in Chinese / Japanese partially. I believe it was produced just after WWII in 1954. This one is not in such great shape and I haven't cleaned it yet, so please excuse the quality. Any help with ID is appreciated. Pics are attached.

Thanks for sharing your wisdom!

 

[LostSoul]

Chinese type 53, the Chinese version of the Soviet Mosin Nagant M44.

The bayonet is missing, it should be in that bracket on the right hand side of the barrel.

 

[unglesb]

Thanks LostSoul! Appreciate the quick response.

 

[metalman3006]

Is it import marked? Could be a bring back

 

[Threeband]

... Could be a bring back

Yup. Could be a Vietnam bring-back.

 

[Alphabrew]

The stock on it looks great. Most T53 stocks look black and beaten.

 

[UpperMarlboroMan]

The stock on it looks great. Most T53 stocks look black and beaten.

No kidding, considering the condition of the metal, that is one of the best T53 stocks I have seen in awhile. Usually it is the other way around...metal is OK and the wood is beat to hell.

 

[-Z/28-]

I would suggest having a gunsmith look that over before you shoot it. There's a lot of surface rust on it, which could mean serious pitting in the bore. If it is saveable though, the good news is the ammo (7.62x54r) is dirt cheap and they make a hell of a bang.

 

[iH8DemLibz]

Take some WD-40 and a mild abrasive pad and give it some love.

It's not a collector piece, so have fun bringing her back to life. Any Mosin M44 bayonet and hardware will fit it.

Scrub that chamber and bore with liquid love too. I like putting a cleaning rod in a power drill and going at them with a bronze brush.

And don't worry about headspace too much, as Mosin style bolts have a floating bolt head. IMHO.

You will find that a Type 53 will usually out shoot an M44.

 

[Alphabrew]

You will find that a Type 53 will usually out shoot an M44.

Exquise me?

 

[iH8DemLibz]

Exquise me?

Sorry, Vlad.

Didn't mean to offend your Socialist Sensibilities.

 

[h2u]

This is a horrible first suggestion until its been proven to NOT be a Vietnam bringback. Scrubbing/cleaning it will destroy any value it has.
Leave it be until its provenance is ascertained-PLEASE!

Not every T53 is a sub-$100 POS. Just like not every Mosin is a $100 (now $150), dime a dozen refurb.

Again I say please DO NOT touch this rifle until some one can properly inspect it for its historical value.

Take some WD-40 and a mild abrasive pad and give it some love.

It's not a collector piece, so have fun bringing her back to life. Any Mosin M44 bayonet and hardware will fit it.

Scrub that chamber and bore with liquid love too. I like putting a cleaning rod in a power drill and going at them with a bronze brush.

And don't worry about headspace too much, as Mosin style bolts have a floating bolt head. IMHO.

You will find that a Type 53 will usually out shoot an M44.

 

[Threeband]

"Floating bolt head"?

Mine have huge locking lugs which make them immovable.

 

[iH8DemLibz]

"Floating bolt head"?

Mine have huge locking lugs which make them immovable.

Mosin bolt heads have a LOT of fore and aft movement making it very difficult to determine headspace.

Unlike a Krag bolt in which the solid bolt face makes direct contact with the cartridge head. This makes it much easier to determine headspace.

Headspace in military rifles are generally sloppy anyway to account for dirt, mud, crud, etc...

And I didn't say go at it with a die grinder and sand blaster. I said give it some love (GENTLY). Cleaning it will stop Mother Natures torture (RUST) and it won't hurt the value.

Again, IMHO

 

[Threeband]

Yes, Mosin bolt heads do wiggle on the bolt body, but that has nothing to do with headspacing. Those two beefy locking lugs lock solidly into the recesses in the receiver, and the locked bolt head should have no movement whatever.

Most people don't worry about headspace on refurbed Mosins with matching bolts, but not because of a "floating Mosin bolt head." Mosin bolt heads don't float. The refurbished rifles were presumably headspaced by competent Soviet armorers.

The OP's rifle looks like a trophy, not a shooter.

 

[iH8DemLibz]

OK!

 

[MilsurpDan]

As h2u said, before you do anything try and figure out if it has any historical significance. It could be a Vietnam bringback if its not import marked.

If you must clean it, I would do it carefully, get some kroil and soak it on there and use something like 0000 bronze wool and LIGHTLY remove the rust with it. Don't use a grinder, steel wool or any other kind of similar abrasive. Make sure the chamber/bore isn't pitted to hell if you ever intend to fire it.

 

[-Z/28-]

As h2u said, before you do anything try and figure out if it has any historical significance. It could be a Vietnam bringback if its not import marked.

If you must clean it, I would do it carefully, get some kroil and soak it on there and use something like 0000 bronze wool and LIGHTLY remove the rust with it. Don't use a grinder, steel wool or any other kind of similar abrasive. Make sure the chamber/bore isn't pitted to hell if you ever intend to fire it.

This sums it up nicely. I'll add, if you want to clean up the stock without taking away any character, lightly brush on some Murphy's wood soap and wipe it off. It's more effective then just water, but not as aggressive as some other methods.

 

[smokey]

I'm also going to say chucking a bronze brush in a drill to clean any rifle's bore is a terrible suggestion. If you do want to clean the bore, run a patch or two of accelerator down the bore and then foam in some wipeout. After waiting an hour or so, run some patches up the bore on a jag until they're coming out dry. Do this 3 or 4 times...or until the patches aren't coming out blue/grey anymore.

 

[Oldcarjunkie]

Look for the importer mark somewhere on the barrel r receiver most likely. If you have a import mark then feel free to clean it up with some good oil and some 0000 steel wool. If it doesn't have a import mark, you can sell it to one of the Mosin whores like H2U.