Chinese Type 53

[Garyshome]

Where are the Chinese Type 53's? I've got 2, but there don't seem to be too many around.

[crazy mark]

One non import marked in my gun safe.

[Bored1]

Been thinking about picking up a few myself. What are your opinions on them? To me seem like a nice alternative for a mosin carbine without the cost associated with the Finn or Russian variations, or the work (knowledge needed) to cut down a 91/30 yourself.

[Blammer]

If you can find one that hasn't been dragged behind a truck on 10miles of bad road.... they are very similar to the M44's.

Not bad shooters.

[Bored1]

Everyone I have seen has the drug look. Don't much mind that. Only place I can get one appears to be online so the stock appearance will definately be a **** shoot.

[Larry Gibson]

Got mine back in '66. Traded a few 7.62 NATO rounds for it.......previous owner didn't refuse the offer..........;-)

Larry Gibson

[TreeKiller]

Got one from J&G last fall. Paid extra for a good bore. When I took it out of the box the stock looked like they had used it for a plow behind a water buffalo. was very upset at the looks until I pulled the bolt and looked at the bore. Bore was bright and shiny and looked new. It had some rust on the outside also. Not as well cared for as the Russians and packed with very little cosmoline. It is a good shooter and it i wanted something petty to look at I would buy a statue.

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

Just for information's sake: The chinese type 53, like most chinese wooden stocked rifles, used a hardwood pretty common in their area called kiu or yellow catalpa. It is just about the only hardwood suitable for rifle stocks in that country. It is similar to beech and techniques to refinish beechwood can be successfully employed with the kiu/chiu/chu wood.

The wood is a bit softer than American/European beech and tends to dry and split/crack if the the oil/grease is stripped out. If you wish to strip the grease/filth, then you'll need to re-oil the stock with something like raw linseed oil, then wait, let that dry a bit, then go over that with tung oil. This will prevent your stock from cracking.

Finally, like most chinese furniture and rifle stocks, the chinese tend to use either a shellac or varnish/stain blend to refinish the stock.

I sold the rifle, so I don't have it to take pictures, but I followed the strip/clean/remove cosmo & grease/re-oil w/raw linseed oil/tung oil and varnish process with the type 53 I had. It came out looking very nice. The rifle itself had an excellent bore and a decent amount of bluing left. Metal was well done. I got a much higher than market value offer on it at the gunshow where I was displaying it advertising stock refinishing, so I broke down and sold it.

Now, 13 years later, I wish I'd kept it. My Mosin collection is missing that rifle.

[crazy mark]

Mine is a good shooter with a nice bore, Stock is as others have described. Metal has a nice patina to it. Fun little flame thrower with commie ammo.

[wellfedirishman]

You can get them for about $100 frpm Southern Ohio Gun. They are great fun to shoot and the action on mine is much smoother than a Russian M44. Stocks are kind of beat up but they function just fine.

[taco650]

Are they mechanically the same as the Mosin or just similar? Do they use all the same aftermarket stuff a Mosin will?

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

Are they mechanically the same as the Mosin or just similar? Do they use all the same aftermarket stuff a Mosin will?

Being that not a lot were imported and the chance of any more being imported is fairly slim, not sure I'd be considering adding a bunch of after market stuff to these rifles. You'd be better off finding a Russian Mosin, of whom a bajillion are coming into the country and get one of those to jazz up. More parts availability and not to hard to find one from a distributor with a busted stock cheap that would make a good candidate for aftermarket goodies.

Having dried up in availability, those chinese rifles are going to cost a good bit more, as individuals look for them to add to their collections.

[taco650]

Being that not a lot were imported and the chance of any more being imported is fairly slim, not sure I'd be considering adding a bunch of after market stuff to these rifles. You'd be better off finding a Russian Mosin, of whom a bajillion are coming into the country and get one of those to jazz up. More parts availability and not to hard to find one from a distributor with a busted stock cheap that would make a good candidate for aftermarket goodies.

Having dried up in availability, those chinese rifles are going to cost a good bit more, as individuals look for them to add to their collections.

Sooo... you're saying they're no the same mechanically right?

[taco650]

Got mine back in '66. Traded a few 7.62 NATO rounds for it.......previous owner didn't refuse the offer..........;-)

Larry Gibson

He probably didn't say much after that did he? :wink:

[junkbug]

They are very similar, virtually interchangeable parts wise. I have seen them with Russian bolt parts, and have seen pictures of them in Russian stocks. However, if you buy one to outfit with aftermarket parts, you have no guarantees.

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

Sooo... you're saying they're no the same mechanically right?

I'm saying you'd be costing yourself money and reducing the value of what is quickly becoming a collectible rifle in any condition. Kinda like taking a thousand dollar 1903 Springfield and making a sporter out of it. You could do it, but then it would be worth 250-300 dollars. So you reduced the value 700 dollars or so when you could buy a used hunting rifle that would be a better gun for around 450.

You may or may not realize it or not, but most of the aftermarket stuff for milsurp rifles is generally designed to relieve the firearm owner of his money, not to improve the way the rifle shoots or it's accuracy.

There are a very few after market items, usually sold by individuals that build them for themselves, then decide to sell them to others, that can improve on the milsurp - mostly sights, scope mounts and triggers that don't require any permanent change to the rifle. And you will hear about them on milsurp forums, not through advertising.

BTW, guy local here in Georgia bought around 500 worth of aftermarket whizbang stuff for his Mosin Nagant and made it into what he thought was a wally whopper sniper rifle. (Still shot about like most average mosins out of the box using military ammo.) He decided to sell it and wanted to recoup his expenditures. He's been asking $750.00 for about six months now. No takers yet on a board where every rifle I've put up for sale there has sold in 24 hours or less, most within the first hour.

[taco650]

Dave,

I'm not planning on getting a 53 or Mosin, just wanted info on the similarities & differences and I agree with your take on mods-some work, some don't but they usually don't make the rifle more valuable.

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

Dave,

I'm not planning on getting a 53 or Mosin, just wanted info on the similarities & differences and I agree with your take on mods-some work, some don't but they usually don't make the rifle more valuable.

Mechanically, they're pretty much the same with the Chinese versions often having a bit better build quality than the Russians they were copied after. But that's often off set by the fact it's just about impossible to find a Chinese that doesn't look like it's been drug down 10 miles of bad road.

[prsman23]

You guys are terrible influences. My type 53 shows up tomorrow.

[Larry Gibson]

He probably didn't say much after that did he? :wink:

Nothing at all actually:guntootsmiley:

:drinks:

Larry Gibson

[Charley]

Bought a Type 53 back when Century was importing them. Think I paid about $60 for it. Almost identical to an M38. Chinese figured why waste money on bayonets, I suppose.

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

You guys are terrible influences. My type 53 shows up tomorrow.

You should thank us for helping you make an investment decision on an item that will never go down in price, only up! :drinks:

[prsman23]

I'm not complaining! Just stating a fact. BAD INTERNET. NO COOKIES

[plinky56]

Sold my 91/30 to a friend in order to pay for a chinese model 53 last fall. The stock is like pock marked bamboo but most of the cosmoline came out after a hot water bath. The metal was used but about 1/2 bluing remained-about standard for the current batch coming in the country. Paid 150$ for it. Most all the 91/30s have dried up and the price is increasing dramatically. Well, after de-greasing and cleaning, cleaning and more cleaning, a little trigger work, welding a peep hole to the rear sight blade and making a front blade raise/lower with a set screw, this thing shoots! Truly amazed at the accuracy at 50 yards, about 3/4 of an inch with my old eyes and a .125 peep hole with surplus ammo(silver tip). It's my new 150-250 yd plinker. The trigger and bolt have been used so much that they're extremely smooth, as were all of the rifles I looked at. So, if you don't mind the stock being not as nice as an m39/m44, the barreled action is actually much better, smoother and more accurate than all of my friends mosins. This is true of two others that fellow sportsman club fellows bought also. Don't be afraid of the 53's, they're awsome, and for the fact you can't really get decent priced carbines any longer, they are a bargain!

[prsman23]

My type 53 came in today. I was expecting the stock to be glued up matchsticks but was pleasantly surprised. $130 shipped from southern ohio gun. Used my C&R so no ffl fees. Best $30 I've spent.

I'll see what the bore looks like when I clean it up. Right now looks like there mud in there lol.

The action is very smooth. Anyway. Thanks for the info guys. I'm glad I got this!

http://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/04/17/2u3agyre.jpg

http://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/04/17/mamy6aty.jpg

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

prsman23,

Go down and buy yourself a lottery ticket. That's the nicest stock I've ever seen on a Type 53. Either SOG has some extremely nice guns in or you're luck is running way above normal.

[prsman23]

I'm going for the lotto ticket!

[frkelly74]

I noticed on the one I got that the trigger is much better than any of the russians or the one finn that have passed through my hands. I have told my boy that it is his rifle as it comes from his native land. If he ever breaks 100 lbs I will have him shoot it.

[prsman23]

Load up some gallery boolits for it. I use the lee 312-155 and 5 gr of shotgun powder. It's a mousefart load but my woman can handle them like a .22

[frkelly74]

I have that mold but wondered if it was too small for the bore. I haven't slugged it obviously. My russians all go .314 to .315 but maybe subsonic they wouldn't be too bad. I use those boolits in my .308 bore garand sized .311

[I'll Make Mine]

I have that mold but wondered if it was too small for the bore. I haven't slugged it obviously. My russians all go .314 to .315 but maybe subsonic they wouldn't be too bad. I use those boolits in my .308 bore garand sized .311

The Finns used to use round balls at bore (not anywhere close to groove) size for "cat sneeze" loads, reportedly with good accuracy. A little undersize probably makes a lot less difference at low pressures and velocities; further, a fast powder (like the pistol and shotgun numbers commonly used for cat sneeze) has a better likelihood of upsetting the bullet to fill out the groove than the slower powders we usually use for higher velocity loads.

[shooterg]

Definitely a flame thrower with the surp ammo, as mentioned above !

[prsman23]

Dang. That is some fireball!

[woodbutcher]

:shock: Good grief.Size for size,that thing outclasses a 16" rifle.
Good luck.Have fun.Be safe.
Leo

[CHeatermk3]

Got a pair of these in yesterday--no C&R so had to pay tax and transfer so the bill came to $250 out the door--wood is horrible; very dark and scabby--looks like they were stored in a gravel pile and dragged out whenever needed. I'm calling them "the ugly sisters".
The metal on them is quite nice though--good blueing all over and you can see strong rifling right out to the muzzle even through the cosmo--the crown on one of them looks like it's only had a very few rounds through it.

If I can figger out how I'll post pix after I clean 'em up.

[prsman23]

There was about 200 pounds of cosmoline in mine when I got it. Everywhere. Good luck. Looking forward to pictures