New here

I’m New to the forum so I’m not sure how the wind blows here.
If I have a M91/30 round receiver in a prewar stock with button bands and another with a 1930 hex receiver in a laminated stock, should I leave them alone or swap parts to return them to pre-war , pre Arsenal condition?

Welcome aboard. Give it time an the powers to be will tell you what to due.
Mike

Depends on what you want to do. They are always going to be arsenal refinished so you can't undo that. Hex receiver might go better in the pre-war stock but it depends if they had to alter it to get it to fit the round stock. If they did, it will have large gaps on the sides.

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Originally Posted by Aragorn243

Depends on what you want to do. They are always going to be arsenal refinished so you can't undo that. Hex receiver might go better in the pre-war stock but it depends if they had to alter it to get it to fit the round stock. If they did, it will have large gaps on the sides.

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An arsenal refurbished is what it is for sure, some collectors say leave it the way you got it, I feel the arsenal was state sponsored bubbatism . I have a 1930/59 MO with button barrel bands in a post war stock. It irritates the crap out of me that the bands are from the wrong arsenal.
It seems to me that if you don’t use a hacksaw it is hard to hurt the collectibility of a refurb.

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Originally Posted by Shovelrobert

should I leave them alone or swap parts to return them to pre-war , pre Arsenal condition?

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Originally Posted by Shovelrobert

pre Arsenal

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For me, I think I would want the correct stocks and as long as you are not swapping out metal and losing the matching numbers I don't think it's going to change the value in the long run. You will want to make sure you have the correct barrel bands, with the correct stamps on them and the band springs. I do have an arsenal refinished that I think may have wrong parts that I just bought that I am not going to mess with because it's still in the cosmoline with all the accessories and I'm leaving it that way. SO I guess it depends on what you want to do with the rifle like others here have told you.

I’m of the mind that they should return to the original issue configuration as much as possible. I can’t understand the purist thinking that they should remain as they left the Cold War refurbish depots. The refurbishment program was state sponsored bubbasism. If it was a vintage car and an authorized dealer put an alternator on it back in the day, you would want to restore it with a correct generator. My mauser will have grease and ground in 90 year old dirt as long as I have them, same for my M27. I can’t change the fact that mosin with matching numbers has the wrong arsenal mark on the bolt, but I can sure swap stocks and bands.
I think I will like it here