Old Russian Lady rescued, N.E.W M91

Pre 1945 action rifles. Muzzle loading.

Moderator: dromia

Message
Author
User avatar
snayperskaya
Past Supporter
Posts: 7234
Joined: Fri Oct 04, 2013 6:43 pm
Home club or Range: West Bank of the Volga.....
Location: West of The Urals
Contact:

Old Russian Lady rescued, N.E.W M91

#1 Post by snayperskaya »

I received a couple of photos out of the blue a couple of weeks back of what was a very dirty sad looking M91 Mosin, that on closer inspection turned out to be a New England Westinghouse produced example.

With my interest piqued I went to have a look at it a few days later and I have to say that it appeared that this rifle had been to Hell and back and was by far the dirtiest, greasiest Mosin I've ever seen!!!..... But I could also see the potential and once I found out the ridiculously low price I could have her for and picked myself up off the floor I decided she was well worth restoring.After a couple of hours once the worst of the muck, Cosmoline and grime was cleaned off she was starting to shine bit more.The stock and handguard are the original American walnut items, the magazine assembly and sights etc are all original (the rear sight is still marked in Arshins) and other than the N.E.W stamps and marks and Russian proofs there are no other countries marks on it.....she wasn't Finnish-acquired/captured nor did she end up in the Balkans like many M91's so where she has been all these years is anyone's guess.

The cleaning rod was missing, as were most of the parts for the bolt assembly and both the barrel bands had snapped screws (which are a pain as they are captive screws!).

Fortunately with the help of folks across Europe I was able to source the parts I needed, which are all N.E.W-marked, and all arrived within a week.The bolt parts were from Finland, the cleaning rod from Sweden, barrel bands from Estonia and a period Russian leather sling from Bulgaria......all for a Russian rifle made in the USA!!! lol

I was able to assemble her yesterday and took the opportunity to check the headspace, which was spot on as the bolt closes on a "Go" but won't close on a "No-Go", and set the firing pin protusion etc and give her a final clean.The chamber and bore are in amazing condition for a 106 year old rifle, the rifling is still very sharp and the crown is original with sharp rifling right to the end, in fact the muzzle is a tighter tolerance than both my '26 ex-Dragoon and the '44 PU sniper!.

All that needs to be done now is a trip to the Birmingham Proofhouse (unfortunately!) and she'll be coming home.

An interesting article that details the New England Westinghouse Mosins.......

http://www.mosinnagant.net/USSR/US-Mosin-Nagants.asp

A few quick photos I took yesterday, I would have taken some outdoor ones but the weather wasn't the best......
_20200209_163251.JPG
_20200209_163404.JPG
_20200125_183821.JPG
"The only real power comes out of a long rifle." - Joseph Stalin

Give a man a gun and he can rob a bank.....give a man a bank and he can rob the world!.

More than a vested interest in 7.62x54r!
User avatar
snayperskaya
Past Supporter
Posts: 7234
Joined: Fri Oct 04, 2013 6:43 pm
Home club or Range: West Bank of the Volga.....
Location: West of The Urals
Contact:

Re: Old Russian Lady rescued, N.E.W M91

#2 Post by snayperskaya »

Maybe it was fate but the first three digits of the serial number are the month and year I was born....June '71.
_20200204_121150.JPG
Passed the "bullet test"!.....
_20200125_184005.JPG
"The only real power comes out of a long rifle." - Joseph Stalin

Give a man a gun and he can rob a bank.....give a man a bank and he can rob the world!.

More than a vested interest in 7.62x54r!
TRG-22
Posts: 365
Joined: Tue Jan 14, 2020 5:41 pm
Home club or Range: Make me an offer.
Location: West London

Re: Old Russian Lady rescued, N.E.W M91

#3 Post by TRG-22 »

snayperskaya wrote:Maybe it was fate but the first three digits of the serial number are the month and year I was born....June '71.
Not the 6th July 1691? lol

Did you take any "before" photos?

snayperskaya wrote:
_20200125_184005.JPG
It's not a muzzle loader - it don't work like that
Tory voters. Next election. Stay at home. Protect the NHS. Save lives.
User avatar
snayperskaya
Past Supporter
Posts: 7234
Joined: Fri Oct 04, 2013 6:43 pm
Home club or Range: West Bank of the Volga.....
Location: West of The Urals
Contact:

Re: Old Russian Lady rescued, N.E.W M91

#4 Post by snayperskaya »

TRG-22 wrote:
snayperskaya wrote:Maybe it was fate but the first three digits of the serial number are the month and year I was born....June '71.
Not the 6th July 1691? lol

Did you take any "before" photos?

snayperskaya wrote:
_20200125_184005.JPG
It's not a muzzle loader - it don't work like that

I know mate lol, it does give an indication of the wear at the muzzle though....I have seen Mosin muzzles that will swallow a .311" bullet down to the case neck!.
"The only real power comes out of a long rifle." - Joseph Stalin

Give a man a gun and he can rob a bank.....give a man a bank and he can rob the world!.

More than a vested interest in 7.62x54r!
User avatar
snayperskaya
Past Supporter
Posts: 7234
Joined: Fri Oct 04, 2013 6:43 pm
Home club or Range: West Bank of the Volga.....
Location: West of The Urals
Contact:

Re: Old Russian Lady rescued, N.E.W M91

#5 Post by snayperskaya »

Some before pics......
IMG-20200121-WA0008.jpg
IMG-20200121-WA0029.jpg
Stock was far dirtier than it looks in this photo!
IMG-20200121-WA0039.jpg
"The only real power comes out of a long rifle." - Joseph Stalin

Give a man a gun and he can rob a bank.....give a man a bank and he can rob the world!.

More than a vested interest in 7.62x54r!
User avatar
snayperskaya
Past Supporter
Posts: 7234
Joined: Fri Oct 04, 2013 6:43 pm
Home club or Range: West Bank of the Volga.....
Location: West of The Urals
Contact:

Re: Old Russian Lady rescued, N.E.W M91

#6 Post by snayperskaya »

IMG-20200121-WA0036.jpg
IMG-20200121-WA0038.jpg
IMG-20200117-WA0000.jpg
"The only real power comes out of a long rifle." - Joseph Stalin

Give a man a gun and he can rob a bank.....give a man a bank and he can rob the world!.

More than a vested interest in 7.62x54r!
User avatar
Ovenpaa
Site Supporter Since 2015
Posts: 24680
Joined: Fri Nov 05, 2010 8:27 pm
Location: Årbjerg, Morsø DK
Contact:

Re: Old Russian Lady rescued, N.E.W M91

#7 Post by Ovenpaa »

What a superb looking find, I like your folding rest as well.
/d

Du lytter aldrig til de ord jeg siger. Du ser mig kun for det tøj jeg har paa ...

Shed Journal
User avatar
snayperskaya
Past Supporter
Posts: 7234
Joined: Fri Oct 04, 2013 6:43 pm
Home club or Range: West Bank of the Volga.....
Location: West of The Urals
Contact:

Re: Old Russian Lady rescued, N.E.W M91

#8 Post by snayperskaya »

Ovenpaa wrote:What a superb looking find, I like your folding rest as well.
Thanks mate, the rest is just old tarted up pallet wood with a car jack and some steel plates to add some weight.It works for cleaning and shooting, the rear rest can be dropped down so a rear bag can be used instead when shooting.

I dropped lucky with the M91 as I had been after one for quite some time and the fact she's a N.E.W Is a bonus
"The only real power comes out of a long rifle." - Joseph Stalin

Give a man a gun and he can rob a bank.....give a man a bank and he can rob the world!.

More than a vested interest in 7.62x54r!
Musclebob
Posts: 51
Joined: Sun Apr 10, 2016 9:26 pm
Location: Wairarapa, New Zealand
Contact:

Re: Old Russian Lady rescued, N.E.W M91

#9 Post by Musclebob »

Why does it need to get proofed?
User avatar
snayperskaya
Past Supporter
Posts: 7234
Joined: Fri Oct 04, 2013 6:43 pm
Home club or Range: West Bank of the Volga.....
Location: West of The Urals
Contact:

Re: Old Russian Lady rescued, N.E.W M91

#10 Post by snayperskaya »

Musclebob wrote:Why does it need to get proofed?
Because it has never been proofed since it left the factory and my RFD can't sell it to me out of proof.
"The only real power comes out of a long rifle." - Joseph Stalin

Give a man a gun and he can rob a bank.....give a man a bank and he can rob the world!.

More than a vested interest in 7.62x54r!
Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 1 guest