Mosin Nagant m44 Russian rifle?

Question

Can it be used for deer huntin?

Is it worth 85 bucks? HAHA

But seriously is it a good hunting gun?

Answer 1

Ideal caliber for anything on the north american continent; cross between 308 & 30-06.  Excellent sights on most of them; many manufactured by Remington and sold to the Russians.  In fact we diverted some of the sights for our 03 Springfield line at the beginning of WW I as we came up short.  The M44 carbine is easy to carry and simple to maintain; think about it, if it can do a job in Siberia where wouldn't it work?  It has been called the ultimate soldier's rifle due to its reliability and ease of maintenance and yada.  How can you tell I own over a dozen of them and am still buying.  Your price is in the current range btw.  Ammo is plentiful and available; you can get soft point fodder for hunting anywhere, J&G, AMMOMAN.COM, Cheaper Than Dirt, Sportsmans Supply, Graff & Sons, Outdoor Marksman, just to name a few.  S&B makes some good stuff for hunting.

Answer 2

Used for deer? Absolutely. The cartridge has similar ballistics to the 30-06 and .308. About as much power as between these 2 cartridges. Use soft point bullets..... The only downfall I see to using the Mosin is its sights. They are accurate to only about 100 yards. Sure the rifle cartridge has a lot of power and reach but the sights on those old Nagants arent that good for long distance shoots...........

Answer 3

Yes its an excelent gun to hunt deer with. you can find 7.62x54R in a soft point, Silver bear makes them.

Answer 4

Be prepared to buy a new shoulder after firing a long-action highpowered shell out of a carbine like an M44.  I fired a Remington 788 (?) in .308 (short-action) and it was like a ball ping hammer until I found the right spot.

Answer 5

There is nothing wrong with it, you might have a problem finding soft point ammo for it. I think it takes 7.52x54r ( may be mistaken ) so you may have to reload to hunt with it.

Answer 6

I have an M38, which is pretty-much the same as the M44, (no bayonette) I can hit a pie plate at 100 meters all day with open sights. It's big enough to kill deer for sure, and just heavy enough to tame the recoil. My 12 yr. old loves to shoot it. But be prepared for some scoffs from the boys toting more modern $porting rifle$. 7.62 x 54 russian pans out balistically close to a .308. watch out for old military ammo, it usually shoots good, but is very corrosive, don't let it go very long without cleaning after a day of shooting.

Answer 7

(Q1. Can it be used for deer hunting?

(A1. Given that its the Russian equivalent of our .30-06 cartridge, the answer is yes. It packs more than enough energy for hunting deer. However you should make sure you use commercial ammunition instead of military surplus ball ammunition since it is designed to perform better on game animals.

(Q2. Is it worth 85 bucks?

(A2. If it is in good condition and mechanically solid, then yes.

(Q3. But seriously is it a good hunting gun?

(A3. Depends on your definition of good hunting gun. The Mosin Nagant has plenty of power for hunting medium and large game animals. Its also a reasonably accurate rifle/cartridge combination (assuming the sights or scope work well for you). The M44 Carbine version is light enough to be fairly easy to carry in the field. However Nagants have a well deserved reputation for heavy recoil. The 9lb M91/30 rifles are bruisers and the 6lb M44 will be even worse. Then again if you're hunting deer you won't be shooting large numbers of shells at a time.

Answer 8

Yes it is adequate for deer and soft point ammo is not hard at all to find

I would prefer a 38 or 39 or a 91/59

The design of the 44 makes it accurate only when the bayonet is extended

They all cost around the same price

Answer 9

In my opinion, it is a great value for the price. I have 2 M44's and a 91/38.

The 7.62x54R is a great hunting round. the link below goes to a page that has a bunch of different ammunition listed, many of those are soft points like you would want to use for hunting.

The only drawback I'd have to point out, is that it takes a little more effort to put a traditional base and mounts on it if you want to use a scope. I believe there are scout type extended eye relief scopes that are a little easier to mount. But, if you want to practice with the iron sights, I believe you can have a sucessful hunt too.

Good Luck with your Nagant.

Answer 10

I have owned dozens of Mosins and the 7.62x54r is a fine deer cartridge.

You may have to own more than one rifle to find one suitable for deer hunting....remember these are military surplus and while they can be accurate enough, some will be worn to the point that they are not anymore. It's sort of a gamble to find one worthy of a hunt. I usually find one in three is good enough.

In terms of accuracy, you will have much better luck with the medium length 91/30 over the short carbines.

The sights are not that bad....there are guns with worse sights. Too many people are soft from using scopes so the art of actually shooting with sights has been lost. A little practice and patience will cure that.

The best factory soft point ammo comes from Sellier & Bellot. Found easily online, order yourself some boxes of it and practice then hunt with it.

I have a M44 heavily modified into a Scout-style rifle with forward mounted scope, synthetic stock and "Y" sling that I use for hog hunting. It's a champ and has put bacon on the table every time.

Answer 11

Yes it can. The 7.62x54r has plenty of power and range for CXP2. A full length Nagant would be preferable, but the M44 is perfectly sufficient. Ensure that the bore is in good condition before purchase (no rust, rifling is intact).

A B-square scope mount with a low power scope would allow more accurate shots to be taken at a greater distance for relatively little extra cost.

Possible negatives about the rifle are that the light weight and steel butt-plate may make it uncomfortable to shoot, and the wooden stock may warp if wet or crack if dry. A synthetic stock and slide on butt pad could remedy these factors if they are a problem.

If a hunting specific rifle is desired, the Stevens 200 from savage arms may be a desirable alternative.

Answer 12

I own this exact rifle and I bought it brand new never fired, but paid $125.  These rifles are awesome! I have not yet used it for deer hunting, but have done about 200 rounds worth of target shooting and this rifle is quite accurate for what it is.  It is one of my favorites in the arsenal.  If you can get this for $85 jump on it, have fun and watch people jump when you bring it to the range, mine shoots flames out the barrel about 12 inches and moves the grass in front of the bench about 8 feet out......very, very powerful!   Have fun

Answer 13

You bet your *** its worth 85$!

Its a great piece of history, and when unissued its a great shooter. I love my M44 and keep it close by my side all the time. My next goal is to buy the M91/30 and mount the WW2 scope on it.  

Answer 14

It's certainly powerfully enough provided you shoot the correct loads through it.

The sights are somewhat crude so you might have a hard time seeing them at first and last light.

The worst part is the safety. Whoever thought of that needs a swift kick in the nuts !

It's totally worthless and very difficult to opperate. Many choose to keep the gun on fire and close the bolt when they see a deer. I think this is the best choice but then you have the problem of deer comming in quietly and you still have to mess with the bolt.

I think for the extra 50 dollars, it's certainly worth getting a Mauser m48 or 24/47. It's pretty much the same sights, ammo is pretty similar, and you actually have a good safety.

The stevens, mossberg, or howa would be a lot better than the military rifles. It depends on whether you want to spend 400 dollars. I think it's certainly worth buying over military surplus.

Answer 15

It is a great gun, takes 7.62X54r ammo hunting rounds are made by Winchester, Silver Bear and I think Wolf, the rifles are sight out to 1000 meters but practical up to 100 yards, you can put a scope on them but it is not easy but deer, bear, moose or bigfoot it is fine.