Mosin Nagant #2
So, more on this.
When you buy a Mosin that’s been in some Russian storage unit for the last 40 years, it’s going to be positively SOAKED in Cosmo. I’m not talking about a little bit of it here and there. It’s in the wood, it’s inside EVERY moving part. The barrel of my Tula was clogged for a good 16 inches with this tenacious shit. You have to literally take the rifle apart to every single piece, scrub it, and deal with a seeming flow of neverending cosmoline. And when I say tenacious, I do mean that word. The stuff is slippery grease that was built to last. I scraped a bunch of the gunk off and used it to grease the chain on our backyard gate.
STILL finding flecks of it here and there in the kitchen, and this was almost a year ago. At least it kinda smells interesting.
All of that said, it does a phenomenal job of keeping the gun rust-free. That’s part of the fun of getting a Mosin – you have a historical rifle, that was probably used in a war at some point, and it’s likely in alright condition. It will still put a few rounds into a 6 inch pattern at 100 yards with iron sights. With practice, of course, and part of that practice is getting used to the hellish recoil. Mosins fire a huge, fuckoff bullet that shows no mercy to either target or shooter.
How merciless? This motherfucker right here scored THE highest official kill count in a war, using a Mosin as a sniper. Read that article. You’re welcome.
My Mosin has adjustable iron sights that go to 1 kilometer. I have yet to test it at that range, but at 100 yards, it does pretty damn fine.
Here’s a guy trying it long-range. As in about one kilometer.
All this was certainly true of the SKS I bought in the ’90s. I took a shortcut: a wallpaper trough, a couple quarts of gasoline, and a two-hour soak. I still had to clean out the cosmoline, but it had improved greatly, from the consistency of axle grease to the consistency of headcold snot, and much more cooperative to a good rinsing out (with the gasoline).
Wallpaper troughs … what a great idea! I’ve been using mineral spirits, though. It’s safer than gasoline and still does an amazing job of cutting right through the cosmoline. The solution for getting it out of wood where it’s crept into the grain is remarkably simple, too – use a heat gun. Or set the wood out in the bright, hot sun. Wipe it down to remove the cosmo that seeps out of the grain every now and again. Steam it lightly if you want to speed the process, but remember that steaming wood can soften it temporarily.
I had one Mosin that was just butt ugly until I used a heat gun on the wood. It looks amazing now. That stuff was down in there DEEP.
As a proud owner of 3 MN rilfes (91/38, 44, and a chinese varient) I can identify completely. I ended up using solvent, and a trip to the car wash to power wash off that crap. Ironically, my chinese mosin has the slickest action of any MN I’ve encountered, but the wood is easily the worst I have ever seen on a functioning firearm. Clerk at the gunstore lapped the action with rouge to take care of the horrible machining marks – took hours of patience. Nobody *ever* picks it at the range, but if forced to use it, they find it the most accurate and easiest cycling of any MN they’ve ever used. Love the strip – reminds me of early two lumps in art style and darker humor. Love the lads, but this speaks to my other hobby rather than Fur Covered Overlords.
Abbie
Black garbage bag with a rudimentary hanging system works pretty well. Hang part in the sun, put the garbage bag around it, wipe down every hour or so. If you don’t mind your kitchen smelling like a cosmoline factory, extremely low heat on the oven works as well, but depends on your oven, large stocks and such won’t fit too well.
Dashboard of the car wrapped in newspaper is a good method, usually doesn’t stink up the car past the 3rd day. Mineral Spirits or brake cleaner for the metal works well, and Simple Green for the remainder hard to reach areas.
Over my time dealing with cosmoline I’ve found that heat, break cleaner, and the simple green to be the most effective way to combat it. I don’t even know how many SKS’s, Mosin’s and Norinco’s I’ve seen come in that have literally been 2 pounds over the weight they should be simply because they’re caked with the cosmoline.
That said and done my Mosin Sniper variant with PU scope and mount literally had the entire bore caked with cosmoline to the point that I thought there was a round stuck in the barrel, but once I pushed that tube of concentrated evil I nearly blinded myself when I held it up to the light.
Spelled my gorram name wrong, man I need more coffee lol.
So, what’s this about heavy recoil? I’ve only ever shot the surplus rounds that come in a spam can, but other than the time I let the butt plate touch my collarbone I barely felt a thing. Granted, I’ve only taken it out 3 times, but I put 60 rounds through it last time, and that was the fewest I’d ever brought to a range. Honestly, a 12 ga. with birdshot kicked harder even using a rubber plate, and being about half the weight had far more muzzle flip.
Pretty much any aficionado of Commie Iron(tm) knows the lovely smell of cosmo. I’ve got a Yugo SKS, and a Yugo M48 Mauser. Both of them still sweat cosmoline from the wood, when they get hot.
Steam!
The 7.62x54R has a bit less energy than the 1903A3’s .30-’06. Course, neither one is to be sneered at.
God bless the man that invented Wussie Pads.
And after you read the article about Simo Häyhä, check out this song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5CaQ37VYvw
That was fucking awesome. Really, you need a Netherlands power metal band if you’re going to sing about Simo.
*Cough* Swedish actualy.
I’ve found a capped off section of 3-4″ PVC will fit a stripped Mosin muzzle to tang, simply fill with mineral spirits and let it soak. Easy peasy.
Ok, so Texans use commie guns? Did not expect that at all. Although, I have to admit you make gun loving people seem alright. I grew up in the country and my friends had guns. I think I just used the all my friends are part of your group as a defense for judging you without know you.
Your best arguments that guns are ok but some people are not have been made in the comic. The rhetoric after is a little heavy handed but I understand the reasons.
So you use a sight in your video, how does it keep zero with such a rough kick from your rifle? I mean, it has one of the meanest kicks of all rifles, it must be pretty difficult to keep your scope accurate!