Mosin Nagant 91/38

[fort_maceo]

(Also posted in the Rifle section, but thought I might reach a different audience here.)

I recently traded a scope for a Mosin Nagant. Knowing next to nothing about them (old Mausers are more my thing), I decided to figure out which model it is. Little did I know that, considering all the countries of manufacture, years of production, arsenals, stock variations, barrel lengths, etc., etc., etc., there are about a million different possibilities.

Here's what my research revealed. It is a M91/38 carbine, a hex-receiver Russian M91 with the barrel later cut down by the Czechs to the M38 length (hence the 91/38 designation). The M91 was made in 1904 according to the date stamp. It was made in the Izhevsk arsenal based on the receiver markings. The stock is a blond-colored Czech stock in M44 configuration.

The rifle is in good shape. The finish on the metal is great. There are some handling marks (little dents) on the wood. Numbers on all parts match. Below is a picture:



As far as value, there's not a single Russian 91/38 on gunbroker or auction arms currently. There are lots of 91/30's and some M38's and 91/59's. So I'm asking for you all's help. Any ideas on value?

Thanks in advance for any information you can provide.

 

[Cosmoline]

You've got a real gem there. I've seen a few Czech 91/38's on GB and a few over on the collector's forum sales boards, but not many. The value is tricky simply because so very few people even know these exist, and they're very easy to confuse with other carbines esp. the much more common cut down 91/30's. Sale price would be over $350 easily, but the inherent value is more than that. It depends on who notices the thing. I remember one bidding war on one I was involved in a year and a half ago that quickly went beyond $400. They are a fascinating piece of Cold War history.

Here's Vic's writeup on them

http://www.mosinnagant.net/global mosin nagants/mosin_nagant_m9138_carbine.asp

 

[fort_maceo]

Cosmoline, thank you for the information. I've had fun researching it and learning more about Mosin Nagants in general. Finding out that I came out ahead on trading a $110 scope for it is just a bonus.

If anyone else has additional information about this 91/38 or thoughts on its value, please let me know.

 

[theory]

You're going to want to clean the internals before use. Just do a search for "sticky mosin" to see what I'm talking about.

 

[fort_maceo]

Theory, thanks for the advice. When I first got it, it still had a lot of Cosmoline in it. I took it completely apart, cleaned it all out, oiled it well, and put it back together.