Gangster "Obrez" Mosin Nagant Confiscated by Las Vegas PD

Miles
by Miles

Jim Fuller of Rifle Dynamics recently shared this photograph of a cut down 91/30 Mosin Nagant that was recently taken to his shop by an officer of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department who needed some help identifying it. Apparently, the weapon was confiscated from a local criminal in the Las Vegas area.

The illegal rifle-pistol combination that was turned in appears to be in very rough shape and is an example of a hasty job done on what was probably a legally or stolen 7.62x54r 91/30 Mosin Nagant. The magazine floor plate is popped out, most likely from inspection of the piece. Notice also that the rear sight is set on the furthest setting, maybe a result of examining the piece instead of any actual intent to use it at that setting (either way, there is no front sight that could co-witness with it). With a capacity of 5 rounds (plus 1) and some wicked recoil to boot, this is probably one of the more uncomfortable firearms out there to fire. But, if this is all a criminal element could come up with, then it probably fits their bill.

Nick-named “Obrez” by some, the concept of creating a concealable “pistol” length version of a full-length Mosin Nagant has been around for some while. Usually, these are very crude pieces of work, often done by criminal elements in need of serviceable small arms that can be carried in a short form or even concealed. However, there is some work out there that takes the Obrez concept to another level entirely, making it a very legitimate conversion into a pistol length firearm with all the finishing touches required. As a perfect example in 2015, we shared this image of a finely done version, complete with mounted red dot optic and what appears to be a refinished stock with some sort of light finish applied to it.

Miles
Miles

Infantry Marine, based in the Midwest. Specifically interested in small arms history, development, and usage within the MENA region and Central Asia. To that end, I run Silah Report, a website dedicated to analyzing small arms history and news out of MENA and Central Asia.Please feel free to get in touch with me about something I can add to a post, an error I've made, or if you just want to talk guns. I can be reached at miles@tfb.tv

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  • Carl_N_Brown Carl_N_Brown on Jun 10, 2018

    What gets lost in discussions of the Obrez it was common to pull the bullet and cut the powder charge down to manageable levels. The excess powder was used for other purposes. You don't shoot that thing with full tilt boogie 7.62x54R rifle loads.

    The Obrez gave the guerrilla a concealable weapon perhaps to ambush an enemy sentry. The reward being maybe an MP40, magazines, grenades, rarely tho' a Luger. And it was used by common criminals.

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    • Carl_N_Brown Carl_N_Brown on Jun 12, 2018

      @iksnilol I read that they were used by Russian partisans in Nazi-occupied Soviet territory in WWII. With a history going back before WWI.

  • MichaelZWilliamson MichaelZWilliamson on Jun 10, 2018

    This was from the Russian mob at the mall. They had the mayor's cousin in the bathroom and were threatening to abuse him. Gecko 45 put everything five by five and the shoppers at The Gap never even noticed. Professional.

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