Not a cool kid, but still....

adopt your own virtual pet!

First noticed at Weerd's site.

On paper, at least

Range time with the M44.

This is at 50 yards, S&B 180 grain, with the sight picture at full 6 o'clock hold.

Same target, same ammo, center hold, 2 more rounds.

6.8 SPC, 90 grain Speer TNT, 30 grains H322, CCI450 primer, Hornaday brass. 100 yards. I'm going to make more like these. Of course, this was the first group of the day I shot.

9 shots of the surplus 7.62x54R. 100 yards. All were on paper. Why not 10? Because I forgot one on the bench! (Same target as the 6.8) 6 o'clock hold.

I shot the 10th round, then more 6.8- upper left and left center aim points, different load . Also some Hornaday 75 grain steel match through the 11.5. After that, I loaded the M44 to capacity twice and blasted away.

5 more 7.62 shots fired mag dump style (as fast as I can run the bolt) 50 yards. P.O.A. centered. Sighted in some steel match on this target, then shot 25 rounds at the four outer targets, alternating each shot to a corner

 31 7.62 holes on the targets. 31 7.62 rounds fired today. Okay, that is not MOA accuracy. Yep, its more a pattern than a group. But compared to Monday's berm fest, this is better than I expected.

The front sight on the m44 looks like someone drifted it to the right at some point in the past. Might need to go a little more right  (F.O.R.S.) to at least line up the pattern on the center of the target. Seems to be 2-3" right at 50,  6" right at 100 yards. (Slow fire, anyway)
Cleaned the rifle's bore with windex, then hot waterwashed it out at home, then Hoppes patches, brush, then oily patches.

Here is ze list list

What exactly does a gun offender list do?
Optimally, he said, the registry would change the mind-set among some that gun crime is acceptable. “That’s the mentality,” Howard said. “It’s a lot of handgun violence out there. . . . If we could drive those numbers down, that would be a win-win for the community.”

Shouldn't the punishment for the original crime be the deterrent? The gun is just the tool. Of course evil profiling will rear its head too. Plus, apparently non gun crime is cool with them and not deserving of a public warning.

TL;DR version: if you can't trust someone in society, do not keep releasing them.
H/t uncle

Under the handguard

Grew some nasty rusty patches. These actually look worse than they are, but are not encouraging by any means. Again, this is a rifle my brother bought to be a wall hanger at best. Going to get some ammonia/ Windex and swing by the range tomorrow to see how it does with the surplus stuff.

I also 'floated' the barrel in the stock. Anything has to be better than floating on the cosmoline/rust mixture it had before.

More Mosin Nagant stuff

Stopped by Rhine Group to buy some mil-surplus 7.62x54R, and when I told them it was for an M44, Tom almost tripped over himself going to get something from the back room. He came back with a 1955 Polish M44- it looks like it has never been out of the original cosmoline since leaving the factory. The bluing is perfect, the bore is shiny (other than the slime), the bolt is smooth- no catching, and the cosmoline is still grease, not dried at all. I asked how much, he shot me a price then laughed- that one he is keeping. Dang, because the price he shot me was too low to resist.....

Cosmoline removal for dummies

2 1000 watt halogen lamps do the trick so far. Yes, I cleaned the barrel and chamber before shooting. At least, I think I did. I'm amazed at the load of crap in the stock. It just weeps out.

Mosin-Nagant 14, me, um, 3

Borrowed my brother's M44 today, cleaned the grease out of it and shot it. With and without the bayonet extended. The big holes on the target are the only ones I hit at 100 yards. I don't know if it was me or the gun, but I could not hit squat with that thing.* 4 were standing, I think they hit cardboard- they did hit the backstop ;) There is a fair pattern (not shown) to the right about 12" and up 12". I ran ten through it, got bored, then remembered I had some new handloads to try. It was a cast iron bear to hold steady the rest of the day.


The .223 holes are 22.1 grains of H322 with CCI 450's and 55 grain V-Max. In my 16"- no pressure signs on those or the 23 grain loads. And some are Tula- they ran fine today in the 16" barrel, plus some sat in the sun to "help" the pressure level.


*I shot 6 or 7 with the bayonet extended and got a spread from right to left of damn near 2'. I don't think a single non-bayonet shot hit the target. Which is consistent with what I have read today- fix the bayonet, and shoot. I was using S&B 180 grain, as there was no Tula 148 grain at Sportsman's on Sunday. Something is bent in the front sight on this gun anyway- maybe I'll take some pics soon. Or I just suck at shooting.....

6.8: Speer 90 grain TNT 30.2 grains H322, CCI 250's. 100 yards.

More of the same. I did yank the flyer on the top left target.










The bottom right target was factory Hornady 110 grain BTHP. I was getting sloppy by then.So I shot 4 more rounds through the Mosin, now I'm a lefty for the rest of the day.

6.8 at 50 and more

Morning range time:

Finally the damn scope doesn't move. Handloads. 110 grain Hornaday BTHP 27.2 grains H322. 6 shot group. CCI 450 primers.

Speer 90 grain TNT over 29.2 grains H322, CCI 250 primers.

Sight in target- a mix of factory S&B, and 110 grain Hornaday reloads.

Some Hornaday 75 grain Steel Match through the 11.5. With a 1 in 9 twist barrel, I am surprised that it groups at all. 10 shots.
I also got the 11.5 to run on handloads. 23 grains H322, magnum primers. That is over the maximum amount per some reloading guides by using the magnum primers.No bulges on the primer.

The new lower works fine. Yay.

So that is what skittles and iced tea are for.

Getting high when mixed with cough syrup. I've never heard of 'lean' before. In Iowa we're still focusing on the dumbshits smoking socks incense and offing themselves. Next time I hear "Skittles and iced tea" I guess "Lean, Yo!" is the proper answer.

Sure this will count as a gun death

But some people need put down. Holy crap! Eating sumdoods face!!!!

App test

Failing 1 2 3
Be nice if the first post actually published instead of  the app crashing.





Sorry, issues with the Android Blogger App. Can't edit at all with the browsers on my phone. Stupid App loves to insert wacky HTML into the posts if edited too much; so screwy that it screws up the layout of the blog and I have to manually reedit each post to clean them up on a real PC.

Heh, might get some Mosin-Nagant action...

Last time at the range the guy next to me had a Mosin-Nagant. I only noticed it after the damn thing about knocked me off the bench I was sitting on when he fired it. Between than and the Squirrel Report last night discussing using the monster in a dream to defend yourself, I decided I need to get some trigger time. Well, I never knew my brother had the M44 variant. Or that it is stored at my dad's house. Using a family member's rifle is only slightly cheaper than buying one outright. (still have to buy the ammo, anyway)

The guys at Rhine Group exchanged the AR-10 bolt catch for the proper AR-15 catch. I told them I wanted it away from me before I built an AR-10 around it.....