I _had_ a beautiful 91/30...

[dyst0pia]

...until I was about 10 seconds from the end of my cosmoline removal ritual. Didn't even have a scratch on the finish, until I tried to slide the rear barrel band back in. Heard this awful noise, and lo and behold, there's a massive gouge across the top of my handguard

What am I supposed to do next time? I'm clearly going to go out and shoot this thing, but how am I supposed to reassemble it without taking out more of the handguard's finish?

It's an Izhevsk, 1929 ex-dragoon, hardwood, hex receiver. And some pictures, just for fun. Left side:


Right side:


And my once-beautiful handguard...

[sd_shooter]

You'll be able to fix that without too much trouble. Shellac is the usual finish for a Mosin.

[mosinnagantm9130]

You won't need to take the stock off every time you clean it, so that should guard against future scratching on your handguard.

I could be wrong on this, because I've never needed to do it myself, but you could use a small amount of denatured alcohol on the immediate area, then spread the shellac from around the area over the scratch.

[olhunter]

.. but you could use a small amount of denatured alcohol on the immediate area, then spread the shellac from around the area over the scratch.

Yep, that'll work. Just don't use anything absorbent to rub the alcohol/shellac around. You want to smear it, not remove it. And like he said....go small and easy at first. You might have to smear a lot as you go, but you'll know when.

[Alex$]

Bad idea, if you don't know what a small amount of alcohol is you will have the shellac gumming up and peeling off.

It gives it character, live with it. If that is not good enough answer, small amount of shellac to touch up doesn't look too horrible.

P.S. you still have a beautiful m91/30, just with a bit more character than before.

You won't need to take the stock off every time you clean it, so that should guard against future scratching on your handguard.

I could be wrong on this, because I've never needed to do it myself, but you could use a small amount of denatured alcohol on the immediate area, then spread the shellac from around the area over the scratch.

[Tanner68]

Don't sweat it. The gun came to you covered in cosmoline and you didn't have a lot of options. It has happened to me too. Your rifle has seen tougher days. Shoot and enjoy. You can get some shellac and try and cover it up. Thankfully, an option is to get another rifle and try again.

[dyst0pia]

Yeah, I'll just learn to live with it, or maybe grab one of my friends who knows antique furniture and try to touch it up. I just came to vent because I myself just put more damage on the finish than years of combat did

I have 2 other 91/30s, and their finishes are all busted up, but I've never cared because _I_ wasn't the one who did it

[Interloper]

Don't let it bother you. Just the first scratch among many.
I've had good luck using snap ring pliers to spread the bands for removal. Though like mosinnagantm9130 said, you won't need to take the stock apart too often for future cleanings.

...I just came to vent because I myself just put more damage on the finish than years of combat did...

Actually, it was refinished right before storage. Packed away in cosmo and ready for the final showdown with the bourgeoisie.

[Dr.Mauser]

Still a beautiful 91/30 dont frown charlie brown

[Milsurp Collector]

Shellac is very easy to repair. New shellac will blend in with the old. See this post for instructions http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/s...54&postcount=2

[rojocorsa]

That is a sexy Mosin.

My 91/30 has similar "scratches" from the barrel bands; I just live with it.

This isn't the best picture to exemplify this, but you can see the handguard's gouge if you look carefully.



Then again, that's a matching 1943 Izzy round. A very good one for what it is, may I add.

But I don't loose sleep over it, never have. I figure one day when that shellac gets very bad, I'll just give it some new shellac and be done with it.



ETA: Your gouges don't even look that bad, honestly. She's still beautiful. No need to overreact.

[johnthomas]

When I get a Mosin, I boil all the metal parts, cosmo soup. Strip the wood using orange stripper. Use light sand paper, then 0000 steel wool, stain and rub about 15 coats of birchwood casey true oil. I like a high gloss, the guns turn out great and end up with a hard protective finish.

[Toast]

I feel your pain, I did the same thing to my 91/30...

[Dr. Peter Venkman]

When I get a Mosin, I boil all the metal parts, cosmo soup. Strip the wood using orange stripper. Use light sand paper, then 0000 steel wool, stain and rub about 15 coats of birchwood casey true oil. I like a high gloss, the guns turn out great and end up with a hard protective finish.

[7.62x54R]

I do nothing but clean cosmo out. I don't mind scratches