Why preppers should investigate the Mosin Nagant

The government is intent on banning ARs and AK and anything they can somehow or another categorize as an “assault” weapon. In reality they mean pretty much any semiautomatic weapon that they can get on their list.

Whether their ban will pass or not isn’t really the question. That’s another issue entirely. But here’s the consequence. Even the threat of such a ban has fueled a (probably rational) quest by People to buy the available ARs and AKs while they still can. At this point it’s rare to find a gun store which still has an AR or AK style rifle in their display.

Ammunition for both types of rifles is gone as well in most places.

But here’s the interesting phenomenon. In most gun stores you can still walk in and find a case of Mosin Nagant rifles sitting on the floor selling for around $120 each. Nine months ago they were selling for around $90. Now they’ve inflated to just over $100. It’s also common to see big green spam cans of surplus Warsaw Pact ammunition for those rifles sitting in the same stores.

The Mosin Nagant is a weapon that dates to well before WWII. During WWII the Russians manufactured millions of those rifles. In typical Soviet fashion the factories kept right on turning them out for several years after the war even while the AK-47 was going into service in 1947 because no one TOLD them to stop. And with the Russians typical frugality they didn’t destroy those rifles. They stored them away in warehouses just as they had done with the artillery left over from WWI and WWII, much of which is STILL sitting in warehouses scattered around Russia today.

Then came the Soviet Union’s collapse in 1990 and ever since then the Russians have been finding more and more warehouses full of these unissued rifles and selling them to America and anyone else who wants them.

The Mosin Nagant is a very basic bolt action rifle. It holds 5 rounds in an internal magazine and kicks like a mule especially the shorter barreled carbines. The short barreled carbine is well known for the “ball of fire” it puts out of the muzzle. It fires a quite respectable 7.62×54 round that is comparable in energy to a 30-06. It has an effective range similar to a 30-06. While the basic Mosin Nagant is not a pre-64 Winchester Model 70 in terms of accuracy, you have to remember that Vassili Zeitsev the Russian sniper chronicled in the movie Enemy at the Gates used a basic Mosin Nagant with a simple scope and a turned down bolt handle. (The normal bolt handle is straight and the turned down handle is necessary because of the scope).

There are several variants and models of the Mosin Nagant but for most of us who are not historical collectors (and I can hear the purists screaming already…) there are two basic different Mosin Nagants; the long ones and the short ones.

The long ones have a 29 inch barrel and the short ones have a 20 inch barrel (actually a tad over 20 inches). The basics of barrel length holds true in the Mosin Nagants just as in any firearm. The longer the barrel the better the accuracy. The longer the barrel (all things being equal) the greater the muzzle velocity and therefore bullet energy.

The long Mosin Nagant is LONG. Most people who are used to American rifles will probably be surprised at just how long it is. The shorter Mosin Nagants (carbines actually) will be more “normal” looking to most Americans.

Reality is that if you’re looking for a 1000 yard gun you’re probably not going to be interested in a Mosin Nagant. You’re probably not going to be in a firing line firing masses of volley fire at an enemy at 800 yds as the Soviet soldiers were often doing. You’re looking for a basic rifle with which you can hunt and defend your home and family in a dire emergency. Most people are not going to be attempting to engage targets beyond 100-200 yds. In that kind of scenario the Mosin Nagant is quite satisfactory with plain iron sights and people with some experience in long range shooting are often surprised at just how well the Mosin Nagant DOES do at longer ranges. Vassili Zaitsev was happy with it.

There is a massive amount of institutional knowledge about the Mosin Nagant on the internet from basic information to how to customize virtually every aspect of it. There are entire forums and websites devoted strictly to the Mosin Nagant in all it’s variants and models.

It is bolt action. It holds 5 rounds. It doesn’t have a detachable magazine and it was one of the world’s most famous snipers weapon of choice. The gun banners probably aren’t even aware that it exists. They’re too busy looking at ARs and AKs and foaming at the mouth.

So take a look at a Mosin Nagant at your local gun store and see if it might be just the little prepper addition you’re looking for.

The Lighthouse Survival Team