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Finn 28-76 precision (sniper?) rifle

Pthfndr-CA

Sergeant
Full Member
Minuteman
I got my Finn 28-76 target rifle a couple years ago when they were first being imported. They're based on the Finn M28 action/barrel which (most all) have a true .308 bore.

I'm a big fan of wood stocks, and this style in particular which is very similar to my Tikka 595 & 695 Master Sporter stocks. I shot in a couple 3x600 prone matches with the aperture sights and did ok with it, with a couple scores in the high 90's and decent X count. But I struggle with aperture sights for some reason and thought I need to find a way to scope this thing.

I regularly compete in a Vintage Military Rifle Silhouette match, which has an "open" class for modified, target, or scoped vintage military rifles. If I scoped my 28-76 I could shoot it in that class.

Not being able to find an affordable original 28-76 scope base and mount for it I bought a Rock Solid Ind. scope base. I sent the rifle and base off to Ken Breda in Aptos, CA. He's a fellow High Power shooter and gunsmith.

I have 2 other hex receiver Mosins and the base fit on them quite well, not so my 28-76. It wobbled in every direction possible. But Ken is a good smith, and bedded the base to the receiver so well that when I installed the scope - a Bushnell 3200 Elite fixed 10x ($199 on sale at Midway with a $75 rebate from Bushnell) - that it was almost dead on for the mechanical windage.

I worked up a load for it that looked very promising at 100 & 200 yards, using a 175 SMK over 48.5gr of 4064 in Norma brass with a Wolf LRP.

A few times a year I run a semi LR match for the vintage military rifle group which also has an open class, where we shoot 10 rounds for record at 300/500/600/800 yards on the regulation HP iron sight targets. We did one Sunday (but due to mud at the 500 yard line shot 2 strings at 600 instead) and this was the rifles first outing with the scope.

I couldn't have been more pleased. I only dropped 4 points total, and shot a clean 100-8X on my first string at 600 yards. My come up at 800 yards was 6.4 mils from my 100 yard zero.

This first picture is my first 600 yard target. It wasn't a fresh target, but I shot 8 of the 10 Xs on it. Not too bad IMO.

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Re: Finn 28-76 precision (sniper?) rifle

Very nice. Been on the lookout for an M28 barreled action for another Mosin build but haven't seen one (reasonably priced, anyway).

How's the trigger on that? I know the Finn triggers are supposed to be far better than the Russian ones, did they use something different on the 28/76 than the standard one on the M28?

First thing I did with my 91/30 build was replace the crappy Russian trigger with a Timney.