My new (old) piece of history

[nittany03]

Phooey

Well the range report is a big fat negative. Turns out the bolt won't close fully on a cartridge, though it works fine empty. So needless to say it's lurking at the gunsmith's till he can figure out what's wrong.

 

[Brett327]

Well the range report is a big fat negative. Turns out the bolt won't close fully on a cartridge, though it works fine empty. So needless to say it's lurking at the gunsmith's till he can figure out what's wrong.

Looks like you'll just have to go skiing instead. 87 inches of new powder in 5 days at Baker - I'm insanely jealous.

Brett

 

[nittany03]

Bump

Finally got the gun back (gunsmith got audited by the ATF and was up to his eyeballs in paperwork, hence the delay), so I figured I'd do a range report. Turns out the bolt had an extractor issue and it wouldn't properly grab the cartridge rim. Hence not being able to close with a chambered round.

With that fixed, this thing is a hell of a lot of fun! Yes, it kicks like a mule. I'd only fired a bolt-action .30-06 once before; the rest of my experience is with .22 rifles and handguns. Recoil wasn't as bad as a .30-06, but still significant. It's like shooting a .44 Magnum; you don't get an appreciation of the power you're holding until after the first shot.

The stripper clips are a pain; they don't want to lock into the weapon and rock back and forth as you try to push the rounds into the magazine; this takes some doing to get the right technique. Also, the first round has a tendency to get misaligned and not want to load into the chamber, but as I'd never used a stripper clip before, I'll put that down to operator error.

Unfortunately, my shooting sucked; I need to put a few hundred rounds downrange to stop flinching and get used to the recoil. Now to find surplus ammo. So no word yet on accuracy. But shooting my Glock afterward was, umm, "interesting," as my right shoulder muscles kept twitching after getting pounded by the Mosin.

 

[A4sForever]

.... kicks like a mule.....Recoil wasn't as bad as a .30-06, but still significant......

Ah, yes .... fond memories .... ..... my first 'O3 ... probably the "best" USGI battle rifle ever produced, at least when we're talkin' "as issued" accuracy .... it had it's original barrel, i.e., 1918 ... the thing grouped @ 1 1/4 " @ 100 yards, iron sight, sandbag rest. I was impressed ...

I put 50 rounds through it .... original GI metal buttplate and all ... my shoulder was sore for a week. :sleep_125

*there you go* ..... USN sailors and 'O3's ... the thin blue line ... and a GREAT combo.

 

[Fly Navy]

With that fixed, this thing is a hell of a lot of fun! Yes, it kicks like a mule. I'd only fired a bolt-action .30-06 once before; the rest of my experience is with .22 rifles and handguns. Recoil wasn't as bad as a .30-06, but still significant. It's like shooting a .44 Magnum; you don't get an appreciation of the power you're holding until after the first shot.

What's fun is when people shoot it and don't listen to you when you tell them to hold it TIGHT into their shoulder. Mefesto, I'm looking at you.

The stripper clips are a pain; they don't want to lock into the weapon and rock back and forth as you try to push the rounds into the magazine; this takes some doing to get the right technique. Also, the first round has a tendency to get misaligned and not want to load into the chamber, but as I'd never used a stripper clip before, I'll put that down to operator error.

Strippers are tough on those rifles because of the rimmed case. A stripper on an SKS is like magic

Unfortunately, my shooting sucked; I need to put a few hundred rounds downrange to stop flinching and get used to the recoil. Now to find surplus ammo. So no word yet on accuracy. But shooting my Glock afterward was, umm, "interesting," as my right shoulder muscles kept twitching after getting pounded by the Mosin.

You get used to it, no worries