HordesOfKailas
Still learning
I'm sure that there is a duplicate somewhere but I'm just too damn excited to care. I bought my first C&R firearm this week - a 1927 Mosin Nagant 91/30 from Classic Firearms.
I've always been interested in Russian history (took Russian language all the way through AP5 in high school and have blood from that region) and found the wartime stuff to be especially fascinating. Combine that with my love of video games (Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater specifically) and the Mosin Nagant 91/30 was the ideal first C&R for me.
I got the rifle on Thursday and spent a good chunk of the day removing the Cosmoline and making it fireable. The "devil's snot" is no misnomer; this stuff is a complete bitch to remove. I ended up using boiling water and a ton of elbow grease to get it off. That said, there is no feeling like restoring a firearm to shootable condition. Definitely made me feel good.
I shied away from the more aggressive treatments as I really didn't want to damage the stock. I realize it's a shooter and not a safe queen but I really was hoping to retain the historic integrity of it. So it maybe took me a little more time than I "needed" but it looks great now (to me at least). Now of course Cosmoline has been bleeding out of the stock like no one's business, but I've managed that with some beer, a movie, and more elbow grease.
I definitely have more work to do in refinishing and restoring the stock, but I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. Considering I've wanted a Mosin Nagant 91/30 since I was 13, I couldn't be happier with this. Basically a dream come true.
I've always been interested in Russian history (took Russian language all the way through AP5 in high school and have blood from that region) and found the wartime stuff to be especially fascinating. Combine that with my love of video games (Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater specifically) and the Mosin Nagant 91/30 was the ideal first C&R for me.
I got the rifle on Thursday and spent a good chunk of the day removing the Cosmoline and making it fireable. The "devil's snot" is no misnomer; this stuff is a complete bitch to remove. I ended up using boiling water and a ton of elbow grease to get it off. That said, there is no feeling like restoring a firearm to shootable condition. Definitely made me feel good.
I shied away from the more aggressive treatments as I really didn't want to damage the stock. I realize it's a shooter and not a safe queen but I really was hoping to retain the historic integrity of it. So it maybe took me a little more time than I "needed" but it looks great now (to me at least). Now of course Cosmoline has been bleeding out of the stock like no one's business, but I've managed that with some beer, a movie, and more elbow grease.
I definitely have more work to do in refinishing and restoring the stock, but I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. Considering I've wanted a Mosin Nagant 91/30 since I was 13, I couldn't be happier with this. Basically a dream come true.