Mosin 91/30 4 HD

[abominableSnowman]

hi. i have a mosin nagant. this is my only rifle other than the .22 leaver action. with soft point rounds, would this make for a good home defense weapon? i am not familiar with the ballistics 7.62x54mmR. how far would this round travel after passing through a bad guy? i have an m1 carbine on the way but until then the mosin is my go to HD weapon.

 

[mbpautz762]

it'll be better than the .22, but would still be VERY far down the list for a home defense weapon (at least my list ). 7.62x54r is a very powerful round, akin to a .308, and could travel quite a ways through a bad guy, through walls, and maybe even into other houses. not to mention the sheer size of a 91/30 will make it very difficult to maneuver in a crisis situation, especially indoors. the m1 carbine would be a much better choice when it comes in.

you may want to look into shotguns too. a good 12 gauge with buckshot is pretty much the king of home defense weapons. I have a mossberg 590 solely for this purpose. good luck!

 

[Kind of Blued]

I would imagine that it could penetrate several bad guys pretty easily. I'd also imagine that if you miss it could penetrate your wall, your neighbors wall, and a neighbor.

Regardless, you have to use what you have. If you can put rounds right where you want them with the .22, I wouldn't feel totally unprepared with that either.

You may be able to find a used pump-action 12 gauge for as little as $200 if you look around.

 

[doubs43]

Put me down for a shotgun as a better home defense gun but use #6 shot. At home distances, #6 shot is absolutely devastating.

 

[jws527]

Well, the ballistic problems should be obvious, but there's also a reason why the Red Army developed the M44 - the 91/30 wasn't particularly well suited to the close-in sort of combat that was prevalent in Stalingrad. I'd have to imagine that you would encounter the same problems that they did while trying to maneuver that thing around your house.

 

[sparkyguy66]

mosin HD

One good thing about mosins in combat is they are great clubs! The pig sticker on the end settles a fight real quick too.

 

[Claude Clay]

i have an image of a hairy legged man with his nite shirt and cap flapping running down a dark hallway in his bunny slippers laughing maniacally with 4 skinny bad guys heads all aflopping and X's for eyes hanging off of his bayonett.......

 

[mbt2001]

I would use the .22 lever action with hollow points for the first 2 or 3 loads and then the remainder solids. Out of a rifle, the .22 isn't such a laughing matter.

Quit eating out and save up your money to get a Shotgun or Handgun. In the meantime, relax, your 22 will put some lead out there and the 91/30 can also back up the handy 22.

 

[Dan Crocker]

I saw a great comparison between the AK, the AR, and the Mosin. Here it is: http://7.62x54r.net/MosinID/MosinHumor.htm

 

[takhtakaal]

 

[SimpleIsGood229]

Oh, no...not that picture again!

If you live out in the sticks, the Mosin will be okay until the carbine arrives. If you live in an urban area, I suggest the .22 for the sake of preventing collateral damage (i.e. your neighbor's life).

 

[C-grunt]

I would use the .22 first as the Mosin will probably go through the bad guy and a lot of stuff behind him. Now if you live out in the boonies thats different. Millions of dead Nazis cant be wrong.

 

[indoorsoccerfrea]

my friends and i did a comparison just to test the ballistics of various guns. a .22 from a 4" revolver went almost all the way through two phone books. a 7.62x39 from a 16" barrel went through almost 8 phone books. a 7.62x54 went through 17. I think that pretty much sums it up...

 

[trekgod3]

A 91/30 for home defense? Outside the home-sure,but I wouldn't want to shoot that thing indoors. You'd go deaf, and the rifle is like 5 feet long

 

[SimpleIsGood229]

With the bayonet, it literally is over 5 feet long!

 

[Matrix187]

MAke sure you install cameras inside your home. That way you can see where the intruder is and shoot through the walls to hit him.

 

[grimjaw]

I saw a NEF Pardner 20 gauge shotgun in a store the other day, had between a 20" and 22" barrel, used for $99 + tax. That's not much more than you'd pay for a M91/30. #2 or larger buckshot out of that is preferable (IMO) to using a M91/30 indoors in the middle of the night, especially if there are other people in the house.

Check around, you might find a decent used shotgun for not much.

jm

 

[Gryffydd]

At home distances, #6 shot is absolutely devastating.

Please not that again! Birdshot lacks penetration to reach vital organs. Sure, at close range it'll make water jugs explode and such, but until it just doesn't penetrate in tissue. You're lucky to get 6" of penetration in gelatin. 12" is normally considered to be the minimum.

If the 91/30 is all you have, it's better than nothing. You will probably want to take a fairly defensive stance and not try room clearing with it. Also spend some time looking at possible choke points (stairwells, hallways, etc.) you can use to your advantage that have safe firing lanes both interior and exterior to your house.

And there's always the bayonet. That thing is like a full sized spear with that thing on.

 

[maksim]

I would think the bayonette on the 91/30 would make a very effective weapon. Worst case... stick, shoot, kick body off the bayonette.

 

[HoosierQ]

91/30 for HD? Homeland Defense? House Destruction? Hideout Devastation? Home Defense? The first three sure. The last, not so much. Great gun and I love mine but just too much. I agree with many posters above...reach for that lever .22...load it with some hot 22lr and that will work pretty well. Really the Moisin Nagant would just work too well is the thing.

There is a lot of love out there for the Moisin Nagant but not for this role.

 

[The Deer Hunter]

hi. i have a mosin nagant. this is my only rifle other than the .22 leaver action. with soft point rounds, would this make for a good home defense weapon? i am not familiar with the ballistics 7.62x54mmR. how far would this round travel after passing through a bad guy? i have an m1 carbine on the way but until then the mosin is my go to HD weapon.

The Mosin Nagant is clearly the winner when it comes to power, but your .22 would also be much easier to operate in a house. The noise would be reduced significantly and the flash too.

Also consider that you will be able to get rounds off faster with your .22 than the Mosin. I guess you have to ask yourself which rifle you're more comfortable shooting.

I guess it's tough because neither are optimal for home defense. I think that I would prefer to take my Mosin than a .22 pump. While I know I can maybe get one round off in the time I would need too, but it also has a folding bayonet on the side. If anyone wants to (that isn't dead) stick around after that thing going off indoors, I don't think much anything can kill it (but the bayonet may help).

 

[JImbothefiveth]

According to Massad Ayoob, the noise from firing a firearm with that much power indoors can leave you stunned for a few seconds.

 

[kilo729]

The 91/30 is a bit on the loooooooooong side to move about in a house with. Mine is roughly as tall as my grandmother!

 

[WardenWolf]

I would only use one in a hole-up situation. Such as if you're holed up in your bedroom with someone else who has a handgun or more maneuverable gun. Person charges the door open and comes crashing right into that bayonet, followed immediately by a 150 grain soft point.

The Mosin Nagant is a bit too slow for home defense, though. Bolt action just isn't fast enough. You want a semi or other type of fast repeater (revolver or lever). Its length (4 feet long) is also a problem. And surplus ammo is steel core and corrosive. The first part can either be a blessing or a curse. If you want to turn cover into concealment, it's a blessing. Otherwise, it just blows clean through and tears up your house, not to mention the risk to other people.

 

[Bezoar]

if you want to use a 54r for self defense, you do have some options but they arent easy or very cheap to do.
You COULD try to go online with the importers and try to find the 7.62x54r training ammunition. its a 46-90 grain bullet. Coroner reports from the Bosnia area indicate it leaves a crater through a person like a shotgun slug does.

Or you can simply get yourself a lee loader, the wack with hammer kind, and load up some light weight .32 caliber hollowpoints up.
logic would dictate a 100 grain hollowpoint that expands at 800fps would expand nicely at 1200.