Mosin–Nagant

Mosin–Nagant M91/30 With PU Scope

Info :

• Type: Bolt action rifle
• Place of origin: Russian Empire , Soviet Union
• Designer: Captain Sergei Mosin, Léon Nagant.
• Designed: 1891
• In service: 1891–present
• Cartridge: 7.62×54mmR
• Effective range: 500 m (550 yards), 800+ m (with optics)
• Feed system: 5-round non-detachable magazine, loaded individually or with five-round stripper clips.

The Mosin–Nagant (Russian: Винтовка Мосина, ISO 9: Vintovka Mosina) is a bolt-action, internal magazine-fed, military rifle, developed by the Imperial Russian Army in 1882–1891, and used by the armed forces of the Russian Empire, the Soviet Union and various other nations. It is one of the most mass produced military bolt action rifles in history with over 37 million units produced since its inception in 1891, and much like the AK-47 it has shown up in various conflicts around the world, despite its age and obsolescence.

Initial design and tests :

During the Russo-Ottoman War of 1877–1878, Russian troops armed mostly with Berdan single-shot rifles suffered heavy casualties against Turkish troops equipped with Winchester repeating rifles, notably at the bloody Siege of Plevna. This showed Russian commanders the need to modernize the Imperial Army.

In 1889, three rifles were submitted for evaluation: Captain Sergei Ivanovich Mosin of the Imperial Army submitted his "3-line" caliber (.30 cal, 7.62mm) rifle; Belgian designer Léon Nagant submitted a "3.5-line" design; and a Captain Zinoviev submitted another "3-line" design. (One "line" = 1/10".)

When trials concluded in 1891, the evaluators were split in their assessment. The main disadvantages of Nagant's rifle were a more complicated mechanism and a long and tiresome procedure of disassembling (which required special instruments – it was necessary to unscrew two fasteners). Mosin's rifle was mainly criticized for its lower quality of manufacture and materials, resulting in a slightly larger number of stoppages. The Commission voted 14 to 10 to approve Nagant's rifle. However, the head of the Commission, General Chagin, ordered subsequent tests held under the Commission's supervision during which Mosin's rifle showed its advantages, leading to its selection over the Nagant.

Technical details :

Compared to the 1898 Mauser rifle, which defined the modern bolt action, the 1891 Mosin has a commonality in that it uses two front-locking lugs to lock up the action. However, the Mosin's lugs lock in the horizontal position, whereas the Mauser locks vertically. The Mosin bolt body is multi-piece whereas the Mauser is one piece. The Mosin uses interchangeable bolt heads like the Lee-Enfield. Unlike the Mauser, which uses a "controlled feed" bolt head in which the cartridge base snaps up under the fixed extractor as the cartridge is fed from the magazine, the Nagant has a "push feed" recessed bolt head in which the spring-loaded extractor snaps over the cartridge base as the bolt is finally closed. Like the Mauser, the Mosin uses a blade ejector mounted in the receiver. The Mosin bolt is removed by simply pulling it fully to the rear of the receiver and squeezing the trigger, while the Mauser has a bolt stop lever separate from the trigger.

Like the Mauser, the bolt lift arc on the Mosin–Nagant is 90 degrees, versus 60 degrees on the Lee-Enfield. The Mauser bolt handle is at the rear of the bolt body and locks behind the solid rear receiver ring. The Mosin bolt handle is similar to the Mannlicher: It is attached to a protrusion on the middle of the bolt body, which serves as a bolt guide, and it locks protruding out of the ejection/loading port in front of a split rear receiver ring, also serving a similar function to Mauser's "third" or "safety" lug.

The rifling of the Mosin barrel is right turning (clockwise looking down the rifle) 4-groove with a twist of 1:9.5" or 1:10".

Refinement and production :

The 3-line rifle, Model 1891, its original official designation, was adopted by the Russian military in 1891. There have been several variations from the original rifle, the most common being the M1891/30 (commonly referred to as "the 91/30" by shooters), which was a modernized design introduced in 1930. Some details were borrowed from Nagant's design. One such detail is the attachment of the magazine spring to the magazine base plate. In Mosin's original design the spring was not attached to the base plate and, according to the Commission, could be lost during cleaning. Another detail is the form of the clip that could hold five cartridges to be loaded simultaneously into the magazine.

Mosin Nagant 91/13 & CZ -83 Pistol

Another detail is the form of the "interrupter", a specially designed part within the receiver, which helps prevent double feeding. The initial rifle proposed by Nagant lacked an interrupter, leading to numerous failures to feed. This detail was introduced in the rifle borrowing from Mosin's rifle. Although the form of the interrupter was slightly changed, this alteration was subsequently borrowed back by the Commission for the Model 1891 Mosin–Nagant. During the modernization of 1930, the form of the interrupter was further changed, from a single piece to a two-piece design, as the part had turned out to be one of the least reliable parts of the action. Only the clip loading cartridges and the attachment of the magazine spring to the magazine base plate in subsequent models were designed by Nagant. Considering the rifle could be easily loaded without using a clip, one cartridge after another, the magazine spring attached to the magazine base plate is the only contribution of Nagant to all rifles after 1930.

Nagant's legal dispute:

Despite the failure of Nagant's rifle, he filed a patent suit, claiming he was entitled to the sum the winner was to receive. It appeared that Nagant was the first to apply for the international patent protection over the "interrupter", although he borrowed it from Mosin's design initially. Mosin could not apply for a patent since he was an officer of the Russian army, and the design of the rifle was owned by the Government and had the status of a military secret. A scandal was about to burst out, with Nagant threatening he would not participate in trials held in Russia ever again and some officials proposing to expel Nagant from any further trials as he borrowed the design of the "interrupter" after it was covered by the "secrecy" status given in Russia of that time to military inventions and therefore violated Russian law. Taking into consideration that Nagant was one of the few producers not engaged by competitive governments and generally eager to cooperate and share experience and technologies, the Commission paid him a sum of 200,000 Russian rubles, equal to the premium that Mosin received as the winner. The rifle did not receive the name of Mosin in order not to provoke further debates with Nagant. This turned out to be a wise decision, as in 1895, Nagant's revolver was adopted by the Russian army as the main sidearm. However for the same reason and because of Nagant's attempts to use the situation for publicity, the "Mosin–Nagant" name appeared in the western literature (the rifle was never called this in Russia). The name is a misnomer from the legal point of view (taking into consideration the legal provisions of Russian law at that time, i.e. the law of the country to adopt the rifle) and from technical point of view, as none of the details borrowed from Nagant's design, even if removed, would prevent the rifle from firing. Moreover, from the technical point of view the rifle that came to be called "Mosin–Nagant" (or "Nagant–Mosin") is the design proposed by Mosin, as further amended by Mosin with some details being borrowed from Nagant's design.

Production of the Model 1891 began in 1892 at the ordnance factories of Tula Arsenal, Izhevsk Arsenal and at Sestroryetsk Arsenal. An order for 500,000 rifles was placed with the French arms factory, Manufacture Nationale d'Armes de Châtellerault.