Re: Three PU snipers
Great work, Don!! I'm looking forward to seeing a range report!!
I recently completed restoring an Izhevsk ex-sniper - had George Tossan do the scope rail, inletting and bolt as well as working on the trigger and polishing everything to get the rifle ready for competition in VIntage Sniper matches.
I initially bought an Accumounts scope mount and had to grind it to get the scope centered - used a wire brush on a cordless drill and that worked like a charm. I just worked slowly and tested the alignment with a laser boresighter frequently.
I've bought several items from ncreptile, too. He is a top notch seller - one who can be trusted to deliver what he advertises and at a very fair price. I am waiting for an original Izheves mount I just bought from him to arrive.
For mountain1x - the trader forum on Gunboards is a great place to find original PU scopes & mounts. Finding a complete rail/scope/mount is rare but possible. Scopes are pretty frequently offered at good prices - better than you'll pay on eBay buying oriinal scopes from Ukraine, etc. With the number of PU scopes on the market, if you are patient you can easily find an original for about the same price you'll pay for a repro.
There are several potential pitfalls with buying an original scope mount and rail.
The problem with the rail only really affects you if you are restoring an ex-sniper that was previously drilled for a rail and later converted back. The Soviets used 3 different screw patterns - 53.5mm, 54.5mm and 55.5mm with the atter 2 being more prevelant. But, if you want to use the original holes and tap them, you have to make sure you buy the rail that correspondes to the existing holes. On the ex-sniper I just had restored, mine was the more rare 53.5mm and it took awhile to find one. If you are not concerned about original or repro, Accumounts sells them in all three measurements and even a blank that you can drill to your own desire.
The mount is a little more tricky. The basic elevation adjustment for the PU to boresight the scope was done using two elevation screws on the rail. By adjusting them you can center the crosshairs of the scope for elevation pretty easily and then zero to your own ammo, etc.
Adjusting the windage knob was accomplished by grinding the two pads on the inside rear of the mount (or by shimming the front if necessary). So, if you use an original mount that has been ground to match another rifle, there may not be enough of the pads left to have sufficient adjustment for your rifle. Of course, you can also always shim the front if necessary.
You can find original unground and unmarked mounts - I just bought one from the same person Don mentions as his source of parts - ncreptile on Gunboards.
I hope this helped.
