SAKO M28 Ski Trooper

[phugoid123]

[phugoid123]

SAKO M28 Ski Trooper

More photos

[easy]

So... where did you find it and how much wa$ it?

[easy]

Cheap enough I guess.

Nice rifle by the way.

[G-Man WC]

I'll take it!

-g

[Flyin Brian]

Overall, that's a nice M-28 and other than the way too shiny stock, looks original. I can't help but think someone rubbed some Tru oil or something on it, but at least they didn't sand it.

The rear sight is RARE. Big time. I'm trying to remember how many are known to exist but I bet it is less than 5. I have a friend who has one and will pay a crazy price to get another

The civil guard number is in an odd spot, but that was where they stamped the cg number on many M-24 Lotta rifles, so either they did this one the same or maybe this receiver came off a worn M-24 and was going back to the same district? Who knows, Finns are always popping up that don't fit what has already been seen and accepted as the norm.

Cool rifle and thanks for sharing it. FB

[phugoid123]

It does look like someone did a Tru Oil job on the stock. I always liked Tru Oil when refinishing my O/U stocks... but on a M28 like this... man, I wish they hadn't done it.

I didn't realize the rear sight is that rare. :-) And I had never thought about the M24 angle... that's a definite possibility.

Thank you, FB, for the information!

[mosinnagantm9130]

Looms more like a polyurethane finish to me, which is a shame. But the rifle is rare enough that the value isn't impacted too much, and a restoration to the original type of stock finish would do wonders for this rifle.

[phugoid123]

9130, do you have any recommendations on how to restore the stock? Thanks.

[Bobby Ricigliano]

That is a lovely Finn. I am guessing someone shined it up to smooth out the rough wartime stock, which was a mistake. However, all Finns are collectible and I bet this one is really collectible!

[SanPedroShooter]

Love the double dog collar holes.

Ive been looking mighty close at Finn Mosins. Might be time to pick one up.

[SanPedroShooter]

Did the Finns use shellac? I thought it was strictly oil or pine tar or something?

My suggestion to kill that shine would be, as always, do little harm. Can it be buffed down with fine steel wool or wax?

If not, you'll have to gently strip it off. No sandpaper, don't sand it. Once you get it off of there, you might find the original in good shape underneath. Sometimes a new top coat will come right off where a 60 or 70 year old finish will just hang on.

Don't sand it. Did I say that already?

[Capybara]

That is a really interesting rifle. Have you posted the same to http://russian-mosin-nagant-forum.com/viewforum.php?f=5 There are lots of knowledgeable posters here but the guys over there make Mosins their religion and might be able to share some more details about your rifle. I have read threads over there from people who have more knowledge than the best museum curators about the minutiae of Mosins and especially Finns.

Thanks for sharing it.

[Flyin Brian]

Did the Finns use shellac? I thought it was strictly oil or pine tar or something?

My suggestion to kill that shine would be, as always, do little harm. Can it be buffed down with fine steel wool or wax?

If not, you'll have to gently strip it off. No sandpaper, don't sand it. Once you get it off of there, you might find the original in good shape underneath. Sometimes a new top coat will come right off where a 60 or 70 year old finish will just hang on.

Don't sand it. Did I say that already?

There are plenty of opinions of what a normal Finnish finish is, but it's pretty much agreed they did not use shellac. There are a couple of Finn members on gunboards that have researched it and found old bottles of stock oil with pine tar and other ingredients in it, and they've done a good job at replicating it.

The one Finnish finish that seems to throw people off is the one applied to the M/28-30s by SAKO in the mid 30's. It was Pomo brand Lacquer and was marketed as "4-hour Pomo". Here is a good thread on it from a guy in Finland that knows a lot about it: http://7.62x54r.net/Forums/index.php?topic=1888.0

Here is a close up of the Pomo Lacquer finish on one of my rifles:

[SanPedroShooter]

All the pictures Ive seen look like oiled artic birch. Interesting

If that's the case, taking off whatever is on there now wont be such a stretch.