Ordering Rifles Tomorrow SKS & M44 (or 91/30)

[cjlandry]

I'm planning to order an SKS and a bolt rifle. Trying to decide between M44 and M91/30.

The M91/30 ad says "Very Good to Excellent Condition", and to add $10 for hand select, hex receiver, or choice of arsenal.

The M44 ad says "Very good to excellent condition", but doesn't mention the option of hand select or arsenal choice.

I will pay the extra for hand select on both the bolt rifle and the SKS.

Which bolt rifle would you go with? If the M91/30, would you pick a certain arsenal or the hex receiver?

Edit: This is from the J&G Sales ad in Shotgun News.

[NitLion]

I like the 91/30's personally. The collectors get more wrapped up in which arsenal, etc. Tula seems to be a little more sought after - not sure why - maybe because it was close to Moscow. I don't think the quality is that much different between arsenals. I did ask for a Tula and a 1930's production date ( figuring the later into the war years they got, the more corners were cut ).
I love mine - a little piece of history ( almost old enough to draw Social Security ) and fun & inexpensive to shoot.

[jack19512]

I have two 91/30's, a M44. and a M38. I like the 91/30's the best. I have a round receiver and a hex receiver. I like the hex receiver the best.

[ylide]

Hi although I have never dealt with them http://www.classicarms.us/

has "New ready to shoot" SKS' advertised.

[cjlandry]

Thanks for the link. J&G also has "New Condition" SKS rifles for a good price. My FFL is already set up with J&G, so I'm gonna use them this order.

I'll get him set up with Classic Arms for the next time around. One can't have too many battle rifles. Especially at prices like these! :cool:

[cjlandry]

Just an update:

I ordered one of their Unissued SKS rifles and asked for a 91/30 hand select Tula. If they can't find a Tula, I asked them to try for a Hex receiver.

The funny thing is that I'm flying to Kazakhstan tomorrow, and I'm returning to the U.S. to pick up my Russian Rifles.

Thanks for your input on this, guys! Even those of you who have posted in other threads. I read a lot of your posts before I ordered.

[kf4zra]

should have seen if they had a tula hex

best of both worlds that way. i have a 1920 and 1933 tula hex 91/30

[Rick O'Shay]

The SKS is very likely to shoot very well.

If the 91/30 is not accurate (shoot 5 rounds in short order, and you'll know--first round good, next 4 may be strays!), try shimming the barrel and receiver. Some of these are just fine, some need some brass shims under the receiver. I have high-temp O-rings around my barrel in two places, and that helped the accuracy a lot.

Hope you get two shooters.

[Decguns]

I've been dealing with the guys at J&G for over 10 years. They're good people to deal with. They are a middle-man, so their prices tend to be higher than if you just went to the importer. Most of their surplus guns are imported by Century Arms. You can't trust Century (Or Southern Ohio Gun/SOG) to accurately rate their rifles, so one has to be careful.

Classic Arms is another middle man. He buys most of his wares from Inter-Ordnance who do a far better job of rating their rifles than Century. I have bought a lot of rifles from Classic Arms, usually face to face at gun shows. Nice guy to deal with and has a huge selection.

Get your FFL set up with Inter-Ordnance. Like most importers, they are slow to ship, but the quality of the rifles tends to be better.

[cjlandry]

I plan to set up with Inter Ordnance when I return to the States.

I'll probably pick up a K31 and a WWII German Mauser soon. I'll also get a Garand when my TSRA membership credentials arrive.

[Russ in PA]

Originally posted by cjlandry

I'll probably pick up a K31

A no-brainer at today's prices!!! ;)