Hey... my M38 was my first rifle and I certainly love it. A wussy recoil pad is a definite must, my shoulder was black and blue many times from shooting 20 rds or so. After the pad, I can shoot 100 or more. The Mosins are a very good value, at $75-$85. Mine shoots way high at minimum range setting on the iron sights, so I stick with a scout scope setup. Basically, they are awesome because you get a real gun and a ton of ammo for very cheap. It's like the .22 of the big gun world. As a WW2 buff, I really appreciate the history. The main thing to concern yourself with is proper cleaning after EVERY trip to the range, because the old corrosive ammo ($4-5/20 rds) will make your barrel rust overnight. Every time you shoot with the corrosive ammo run a few patches with dunked in water through the barrel and front chamber, then dry patches, then oil patches, then dry patches. The corrosion occurs because the old primers coat the barrel in salts which are water soluble, but not oil soluble.
Mosin's in general aren't highly accurate, largely because of awful triggers and surplus ammo. If you are new to guns, the trigger may not seem very important... but it is. There are many examples, though that defy these expecations. It's also possible to fix up a Mosin to be a much better rifle, but at far more cost than the original price. I like mine in its mostly stock configuration (except for Scout Mount Scope). Still, a Mosin will do fine for hunting deer at 50 yards or for mass human wave bolt action assaults
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If I could only have one rifle for the rest of my life on a serious budget, it would probably be an SKS or Saiga or a 10/22. If I was going to buy another surplus rifle, it would be a Mauser K98 or a swiss K31 (reputation for accuracy and cheap... ammo a little more pricey)
Pro's: Cheap rifle, cheap ammo, great to arm the hordes, awesome fireball, many modifications available, fascinating history (mine is stamped 1944), plenty of fire power for hunting, some (esp. finn) models are accurate.
Cons: Bad trigger, bad sights (mine shoots way high), corrosive ammo, heavy, painful recoil, excessively loud, pretty poor accuracy.
Still, I love my Mosin and would certainly never sell it.
Please look at
http://www.surplusrifle.com/mosincarbine/index.asp especially, check out the cleaning video and disassembly video. Also join the surplus rifle forum
http://www.surplusrifleforum.com/index.php where folks talk about Mosins 24/7.