I have the chance to buy a 1943 Izhevsk pu sniper with an original matching serial scope not electro penciled, the blueing and rifle look like an 8 out of 10 but the stocks shellac is peeling, anyone have an idea on a value? We haggled a bit and i got him to 750 going this weekend to check it out.
Mosin sniper value question?
- Thread starter tinviper
- Start date
Could be a good buy at 750 if it's not a repro. Need pics of the serials to tell for sure.
BeaverMeat
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Nanaimo, B.C.
$750 is a bit steep. They aren't particularly rare in comparison to No4Ts or M1903 Snipers. People list them at $750... But they move at $500-600.
It is about equal to the average "high" retail price paid ($650 + tax) when they were imported. It is worth it if the bore condition is excellent and the optics are flawless. The price difference will end up to be pretty small if you plan to shoot anything other than surplus.
Reloads run about 70 cents a shot after buying cases ($70 +tax @ shipping). Cheap non corrosive ammunition (MFS) isn't much better than surplus for accuracy. Better ammunition is hard to find. There are no 0.310-0.311 bullets widely available in Canada. Cheaper bullets (Hornady 174 gn FMJ) are out of stock everywhere. Sierra 174 g HPBT are ~$55/100 plus tax they are available only sporadically.
You never know. Next week a boatload might appear and they will be $600 retail everywhere with lots to choose from. The were thousands recently imported into the US. All those who bought 5 years ago paid too much for lesser quality.
Reloads run about 70 cents a shot after buying cases ($70 +tax @ shipping). Cheap non corrosive ammunition (MFS) isn't much better than surplus for accuracy. Better ammunition is hard to find. There are no 0.310-0.311 bullets widely available in Canada. Cheaper bullets (Hornady 174 gn FMJ) are out of stock everywhere. Sierra 174 g HPBT are ~$55/100 plus tax they are available only sporadically.
You never know. Next week a boatload might appear and they will be $600 retail everywhere with lots to choose from. The were thousands recently imported into the US. All those who bought 5 years ago paid too much for lesser quality.
I love your optimism, if this is the case I'll buy another PU without hesitation!
They sold for 650 plus taxes and shipping when they were avialable. So where i live thats 13 percent sales tax which is 84 dollars and lets not forget at least 40 for shipping being such a long rifle for a total of 775, so 650 is a good price if you can avoid taxes and the shipping
IMHO there will be no more of these coming into the country. My opinion is based on discussions on russian forums. This is refurbished original sniper with original scope made in 1944, so in my opinion the prices of these will go up eventually. All we need is another epic movie about Stalingrad or something similar few years down the road. LOL 750 is a good price.
Yeah I will take a good solid look at it and examine the bore, the gentleman I'm buying it from had a hard time figuring out how to set up the scope so I don't think he fired it much. I will put a shell down the end of the barrel and examine the rifling see how it goes. Pics to come if the deal goes through.
From what I have learned the Izhevsk plant used to make their sniper rifles with selected barrels from main production line, when Tula produced their sniper barrels in the separate shop within the factory. Just look at the bore condition. From what I have seen the most Molot imports do have excellent bores. Almost seems like these rifles didn't participate much in the combat. I have scored one totally intact, I can almost say unissued, (except the layer of shellac over wood and metal) and mirror bright bore. This one loves 208 grain .308 Hornady A-Max bullets. Good luck with your purchase!
It is fairly unlikely that a 1943 PU did not see extensive service since there was a lot a heavy fighting left on the eastern front. The "bullet in the muzzle" is a good easy test for counter bore but not very useful for bore condition otherwise.
Land diameter is the best measure of wear. Nominally the land diameter is 7.62 (0.300). Lots of Mosins that saw extensive field use are 7.68 or larger. My benchmark for good shooters is 7.65 (0.3012).
I previously posted that you could make your own gauge from a 5/16 drill bit shank. You can also make one (more easily) from an M8 bolt. The unthreaded shank of an M8 bolt is ~7.72. Cut off the bolt head and chuck the threaded portion in a hand drill. Running this against a sharpening stone at a slight angle allows you to make a rough taper gauge. This is a 10 cent 1/2 hour basement project that can be really useful at gun shows and gun stores. Most stuff for sale has dirty bores so it is quite difficult to estimate the bore condition until after you clean it - then its too late.
Land diameter is the best measure of wear. Nominally the land diameter is 7.62 (0.300). Lots of Mosins that saw extensive field use are 7.68 or larger. My benchmark for good shooters is 7.65 (0.3012).
I previously posted that you could make your own gauge from a 5/16 drill bit shank. You can also make one (more easily) from an M8 bolt. The unthreaded shank of an M8 bolt is ~7.72. Cut off the bolt head and chuck the threaded portion in a hand drill. Running this against a sharpening stone at a slight angle allows you to make a rough taper gauge. This is a 10 cent 1/2 hour basement project that can be really useful at gun shows and gun stores. Most stuff for sale has dirty bores so it is quite difficult to estimate the bore condition until after you clean it - then its too late.
