Attached are a few photos of a New England Westinghouse M1891 I recently purchased. My non-expert interp of the gun is that it was one that was shipped to Russia (part of the "1915 Contract") then, later, appropriated by Finland but not significantly modified by the Finns. The stock is an original Westinghouse (as per the cartouches), and most small parts that bear marks seem to be Westinghouse (bands, sight, cleaning rod, etc). The bolt appears to be a replacement (a faint remnant of a number that was ground off), possibly by an armourer, with the final 3 numbers of the current rifle stamped on the bolt knob. Interestingly, the replacement bolt body is Westinghouse. The stock is solid but badly dinged up and appears to have some crudely carved letters on the right side. Surprisingly, the 4 groove bore is shiney and has (to my eye) reasonable remaining rifling. Should be shootable after I check headspace. Anybody see anything significant or interesting in the markings I've shown? Does the fact it escaped refurbishment in Finland say anything about the time it arrived there? This is only my second Mosin-Nagant but I've also acquired a couple of SVT's and an SKS and am more and more impressed by the simple (elegant?) functionality of Russian/ Soviet designs.
Ridolpho
