To avoid digging too deeply into my reserves of .30-06 and 5.56, I've been practicing with my M44. Ammo is less expensive, and I have a ton of it.
When I first bought the M44, I invested in the accurizing kit for it that included action shims and strips of cloth to float the barrel. It passes the dollar bill test. I've been bench-shooting those white, red diamond sight-in targets at 100 yards with iron sights. I'm finally at the point where 4 of 5 rounds are inside the center red diamond, with an occasional flyer. The groups aren't that tight, often 1 or 2 grid squares apart (1 inch squares, I believe.) Often, I can get a pair of shots on top of each other but not 4 or 5.
I replaced the original globe sight with an adjustable post globe sight. It looks OEM. It took a ton of fidgeting to get the windage and elevation right. Absolutely miniscule adjustments.
Some notes: Russian ammo (even new ammo) is very inconsistent. Wolf 174 gr was the worst but at least it cycled smoothly. PPU 182 grain was better, more consistent but wide groups. My friend introduced me to this stuff called Igman at 170 grains which seemed best. It gave me the smallest groups and the most consistent. Czech silver tip (corrosive) at 147 grains also shoots OK but it cycles terribly. I have to leverage the bolt hard to open it after every shot. I'd like to re-test the Czech against the Igman.
The trigger is the worst. It's mush with a pull that is a mile long. I don't want to carve up the rifle to fit a Timney trigger. The relief cut for the safety leaves the wall paper-thin. I think I'm going to try a Huber trigger:
https://huberconcepts.com/product/mosin-nagant-trigger/
There's also a guy who makes these Finnish two-stage trigger sets. He custom makes them at a rate of 2 per month and you need to reserve one. Costs about $140. Also does not require any relief cutting of the stock.
I'd like to get the groups just a little tighter and then get off the bench and start shooting from CMP match positions.
When I first bought the M44, I invested in the accurizing kit for it that included action shims and strips of cloth to float the barrel. It passes the dollar bill test. I've been bench-shooting those white, red diamond sight-in targets at 100 yards with iron sights. I'm finally at the point where 4 of 5 rounds are inside the center red diamond, with an occasional flyer. The groups aren't that tight, often 1 or 2 grid squares apart (1 inch squares, I believe.) Often, I can get a pair of shots on top of each other but not 4 or 5.
I replaced the original globe sight with an adjustable post globe sight. It looks OEM. It took a ton of fidgeting to get the windage and elevation right. Absolutely miniscule adjustments.
Some notes: Russian ammo (even new ammo) is very inconsistent. Wolf 174 gr was the worst but at least it cycled smoothly. PPU 182 grain was better, more consistent but wide groups. My friend introduced me to this stuff called Igman at 170 grains which seemed best. It gave me the smallest groups and the most consistent. Czech silver tip (corrosive) at 147 grains also shoots OK but it cycles terribly. I have to leverage the bolt hard to open it after every shot. I'd like to re-test the Czech against the Igman.
The trigger is the worst. It's mush with a pull that is a mile long. I don't want to carve up the rifle to fit a Timney trigger. The relief cut for the safety leaves the wall paper-thin. I think I'm going to try a Huber trigger:
https://huberconcepts.com/product/mosin-nagant-trigger/
There's also a guy who makes these Finnish two-stage trigger sets. He custom makes them at a rate of 2 per month and you need to reserve one. Costs about $140. Also does not require any relief cutting of the stock.
I'd like to get the groups just a little tighter and then get off the bench and start shooting from CMP match positions.