Finnish M28-30 'D' Stamped Rifle - RI4382A - Mosin Nagant, Model 1928 Rifle 7.62x54R, 5 Round, Bolt Action - C&R Eligible

In the 1920s, Finland began to re-evaluate the M1891 Mosin Nagant as the country's primary infantry arm. Originally purchased from Russia, these rifles were beginning to show their age. Rather than replace the rifle entirely, a program of refurbishment and updating the rifle began in 1924 with the Civil Guard's M24, essentially an M91 with a heavier foreign-made barrel and updated sights. But, following the trends at the time for shorter handier rifles, both the Army and the Civil Guard then began experimenting with designs to improve the M91 rifle.

The Army fielded the updated M27, with a shorter barrel than the M91, improved front sight with protective ears and a rugged new nose cap, and reinforced rear sight with a replaceable sighting plate. The Civil Guard introduced its own updated design a year later in 1928, designated the M28. It shared many of the M27's design features, but with some notable differences. While the M27 had an elaborate and expensive nose cap designed to lock the handguard in place, the M28 employed a milled front band reminiscent of the Mauser Gewehr 98 front band. The M28 made use of a rear sight design without the reinforcing tabs of the M27 and a different method of attaching a replaceable sighting plate. Barrels were provided primarily by SIG and Tikkakoski, with less than 100 Sako-produced barrels being used at the end of production

The Finns continued to make progressive modifications to the rifle's design, and the M28-30 was introduced in 1930. The M28-30 had an improved rear sight, a front sight adjustable for windage, a coiled trigger spring to minimize pre-travel, and magazines redesigned to prevent jamming due to the rimmed cartridges interlocking. The new front sight retained the protective ears used on the M28 but did not require a special tool for adjustment as it used standard screws. In addition to the 40,000 rifles produced under the M28-30 designation, a substantial number of M28 rifles were reworked into the M28-30 configuration. 

Beginning in the 1930s, Finland adopted the heavier 200gr D-166 cartridge as a standard issue. The heavier projectile has trouble with chambering in the older F-marked rifles, so an alteration to the chamber was made to expand the throat area of the chamber. Existing rifles could be retrofitted with the new chamber specifications, and it was incorporated into the production line, and rifles with the new chamber specs were marked with a D to distinguish them from rifles without the modified chamber. Of note is the fact that even to the day the Finnish M28 and M28-30 rifles are considered to be some of the most accurate military rifles ever produced. No collection is complete without one. Important note - all of the rifles listed under this SKU or available in the custom options will have either a minor non-function inhibiting crack in the stock or will be missing a minor non-vital part. See further details below.