I am so excited today because I had the opportunity to go to the shooting range today and try out some new ammunition that Lucky Gunner provided for me to test out. The ammunition was 7.62 x 54, also known as 7.62 x 54R, and this particular load was 174 grains Sierra Match King Hollow Point Boat Tail from Sellier and Bellot which usually runs $29.00 a box. Well this ammo was a pleasant surprise when firing my 1891 Mosin Nagant rifle today. One of the things that I like about this particular ammunition was that it feed through my rifle without any problem whatsoever. This is important because I had fired some cheaper ammunition through it before and had the notorious "sticky bolt" problem that seems to be prevalent in Mosin-Nagant rifles. Well, it turns out that I had absolutely no problems feeding ammunition, pulling the bolt back, ejecting the spent cartridge and reloading a fresh one into the chamber. I am sure that there may be people out there who have had this problem when using inexpensive ammunition, and I have to say, maybe you should try out a box of Sellier and Bellot ammunition, its a little bit more, but it is quite worth it.
The other reason I was so impressed with this rifle was the accuracy and recoil I experienced when firing this rifle. First of all, the recoil seemed very light for a Mosin-Nagant, it was actually a pleasure shooting it and quite comfortable shot after shot. Accuracy was astounding, I was able to hit a very good group at 50 yards standing, as can be seen in the picture bellow.
I should mention that it was quite windy today, in fact my first target was taken away by the wind and then I had to set up this second target, and you can tell it was a pretty good group for 50 yards standing in the wind, I hope next time I can take it out a bit further. Keep in mind also that I am not the best shot with a bolt action rifle, I was actually surprised I was able to shoot this good.
Just so you know what I was shooting, this is a photo of the exact rifle!
So anyways, if you own a 7.62 x 54R rifle, whether it be a Mosin-Nagant, Dragunov, PSL, or a modern sporting rifle that fires this cartridge, with or without a scope, I highly recommend using the Sellier and Bellot Match Ammo that I have reviewed, it is flawless, accurate, and has manageable recoil. If you want one box or a couple of boxes, check out Lucky Gunner, at http://www.luckygunner.com and order yourself a box of that, and while you are there, I highly suggest that you look at the rest of their ammunition selection and shooting accessories. They have great prices, great service, and fast shipping, what more could you ask for?
* I received a sample of Sellier and Bellot Ammunition from Lucky Gunner to share my opinion, all of which are my own personal opinion*