Mosin Nagant Accuracy...

[amadeus76]

So I'm considering picking up a Mosin Nagant before the prices skyrocket to absurd levels. I've got a line on a
Hexagonal receiver 1891/30 with matching bayonet. As much as I'd like one, I don't want to get one just for the sake of having one if it can't shoot for ****. I'm not expecting 1 MOA and I know that accuracy will vary depending on each individual rifle, but on average what can I expect from these rifles?

Information

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[matthanne1]

They made snipers out of them. Granted, much depends on condition, but I never really had problems with iron sights on any of the five or six I owned except the first one, which was pretty much a smoothbore due to poor storage anyway. That goes for the 1891 and 1891/30s, not for the carbines as I never had one of those. I heard the fixed bayonet on the M44 did have an effect on accuracy.

[RCS]

You might consider the Model 1924 heavy barrel rifle rebuilt in Finland with either a German or Swiss barrel (they made standard and heavy barrels). It will cost more but
nice examples can still be found.

photo shows the Swiss Neuhausen heavy barrel on the Model 1924Attachment 80012Attachment 80013

[mac1911]

expect minute of man and some times worse for your typical 91/30
Just because they made snipers does not make them inherently accurate. Think combat/military accuracy 5moa.
Plus shooting that surplus ammo is not going to help.
I reloaded for my mosins. Used hornady .312" SP 150 grains and on a good day could keep them in the black of a SR target.
Cast loads do a little better.
If you want a more accurate rifle the Finns and some of the newer production ones from Hungarians up to 1955ish

[Eaglelord17]

Mosin Nagants are actually one of the more accurate military surplus rifles. Most the inaccuracy claims are due to one or more of three significant factors. Factor one is inexperienced shooters, this can mean new shooters who haven't gotten the fundamentals down (Mosin Nagants tend to be a popular rifle for beginners due to the price point), or older shooters who don't know how to properly use iron sights. Factor two is crappy condition rifles, there is plenty out there which haven't been maintained and the bores are crap, this isn't a Mosin Nagant problem rather a issue due to condition that can be found on every type of rifle. Factor three is crappy ammo, many people shoot crappy surplus ammo through them (as it is cheap) and when the rifle can't group blame the rifle. Crappy ammo does that no matter the firearm, but it is more prevalent on Mosin Nagants as most of the other crappy surplus ammo that existed has been long since consumed.

Here is a photo of the shots I took with a M91 Infantry rifle and poor quality ammo (i.e. surplus ammo). With better ammo I am sure I could shrink those groupings significantly. I know with my M38 Carbine I did a 1" group at 100m with some handloads however I never snapped a photo of that. I think these are good representative photos of what can be done with crap ammo, and if you feed it better ammo those groups can shrink.

[cipherk98]

Best I've seen is around 2-2.5", and not from a Finn either. Realistically I'd say 4MOA is reasonable for a Mosin or any combat rifle. But it just depends how much vodka the person who probably rebuilt it had that day and how well it fits the stock. Some of those refurb stocks have absurdly generous inletting so even a gun with a great barrel will shoot like garbage.

[Aragorn243]

I have several that I have shot and they were as accurate as my other surplus rifles. Condition is key as others have mentioned. Fine tuning the trigger and the rifle in general will help. The Finns made many improvements over the Soviet rifles and your best bet if you don't want to do it yourself would be to pick up a Finn Mosin.

[amadeus76]

So I found a line on a 1942 Izhevsk made Finn referbished rifle as well for about $70 more. I might at some point modify the rifle to be a faux-sniper configuration. If I do, I understand the HEX rifle would use a PE scope, and the round receiver would be the PU scope. The HEX rifle went thru referbished t in the 50's and seems to have been put in storage afterwards (I'm told it's coated in cosmoline). The Finn I'm told is clean and has a mostly bright bore.

So my question is, considering the above, is the Finn the better rifle to go with?

[Eaglelord17]

Not if you intend to modify the rifle, it has significant amounts of history and as such should be left alone.

[Ronbo6]

Typically you are going to get somewhere about 3 MOA, but you can do things to ensure that your rifle shoots a lot better.

Of course, the barrel condition is critical, but you also need to ensure that the barrel is free floating. Improving the usually horrible trigger pull also helps.

Further improvements can be made by following the steps used to accurize the sniper rifles. This includes adding shims to certain areas in the receiver and perhaps creating a vibration node in the forend. The Russians usually wrapped about an inch or so if the barrel with oiled canvas in the area beneath the front band to do this.

Typically, Finn rifles have been already 'gone over' by a competent gunsmith, and they will usually be more accurate 'out of the box' than your bog-standard Mosin Nagant.