...and while it will not be a new gun as in newly manufactured, never before been fired, it will be new for me. My dreams of a new rifle in .308 may be on hold for awhile longer being we just bought a new car for cash last week. And by new car I mean yes new right out of the dealer's lot, fresh from the factory with only 23 miles on it and those were mostly from driving from one dealer who had it in stock to my dealer. So all the money I saved while I was out in Phoenix has already been spent and that was only enough to cover a bit less than 1/4 the price tag. The rest came out of our bank accounts leaving them pretty depleted. Still though, I have managed to squirrel away some cash for a rifle, maybe even two or three of them if I am frugal. Of course i do not mean top shelf rifles although one may yet wind up being a newly manufactured and brand new never been fired before rifle (except maybe for a test firing at the factory). The other one or two though will have to be much less expensive and something along the lines of military surplus.
That said, let me also say I have one or two in mind. They are so much in mind that I tried to order them today from Classic Arms. The thing preventing a sale was they did not already have a copy of my C&R FFL so I had to email them that first. I called them about 20 minutes after I emailed them a copy but they were not able to open it to check it because the woman who usually does so was busy. I thought I'd get back to them again before they closed today but I got carried away with clean-up after chopping down about 1/3 of a Japanese Maple Tree in my back yard (maybe I'll do the rest next week since the shoulders are aching because I only used a hand saw). When I remembered I was supposed to call them it was already about an hour and a half after they had closed. Oh well, come Monday, I guess I'll be placing my order.
What I am planning on ordering are one or maybe two Mosin Nagant, Russian, 91-30 Hex Receiver Rifles of Tula manufacture. Supposedly all serial numbers will match, I am only ordering these if that is the case otherwise I may order a single Enfield instead. Two of these, in what sounds like excellent condition will go for $260 plus shipping. Not $260 each but $260 for both of them, not a bad deal on two rifles. You can see hem here:http://www.classicarms.us/firearms.htm. Scroll about half way down the page to see them and a description of them. I am not getting the ones with the laminated stocks, but with the hardwood stocks. I will add the extra $10 a piece to get them both hand-select. Hopefully at least one will be really-really nice and a keeper. The other one, maybe I'll keep or maybe I will sell. Such is the way of a collector. buy more than one to make sure you get a nice one and maybe then keep both or hold onto one for a future private sale when you need the bucks. Of course, I may well have it forever (at least my mortal forever).
I already have two other Mosin Nagant rifles. One is a Russian 91-30 with a bent bolt in good to very good condition. The other is a Hungarian M44 in fine to excellent arsenal rebuilt condition with all matching stamped numbers. They are fun guns to shoot, the ammo is inexpensive if you shoot mil-surp, and they are one of the easiest guns to detail strip that I have ever owned.
Now if they do not still have the ones I want (they do show them on their website so I have my fingers crossed) then I may go for an Enfield #1 MK4. They go for a substantial amount more at almost $240 each but they too are great and fun guns to shoot. I have never owned one but have fired ones that friends own. Nice rifle, a workhorse of the British army from before WWI up through the 1950s. I suppose time will tell once Monday rolls around (Classic Arms is not open on the weekends).
All the best,
Glenn B
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