Believe it or not, during the 1930s, the basic Soviet Red Army ‘Rifle’ was a development of an original 1891 Model! This proved so effective during WWI (1914-1917) and the ‘Russian Civil War’ (1918-1921) that this model was retained for use – although it continued to develop overtime:
Main Weapon Of Workers’ and Peasants’ Red Army – Armed Forces of the USSR
Manufacturer: Izhevsk & Tula Arms Plants
Designer: Ivanovich Sergey Mosin [Мосин Сергей Иванович] (1849-1902)
Developed – 1891
Improved – 1930
Designation – Mosin Rifle Model 1891/30
Type: Manual Reloading – Longitudinally (Sliding) Rotary Bolt
Caliber: 7.62×54R
Magazine capacity: 5 rounds
Length (No Bayonet) – 1232 mm (48.50 inches)
Barrel length: 729 mm (28.70 inches)
Weight without cartridges: 3.9 kg (or 4.28 kg with Bayonet)
The ‘Mosin’ Rifle (with bayonet affixed) reached an astonishing ‘65.35’ inches (or ‘5 feet 6 inches’) in length! This made this combined weapon (of rifle and blade) a type of ‘short-spear’ designed for use upon the modern battlefield! The Mosin Rifle saw action in the Russian-Japanese War, WWI, Russian Civil War, Finnish War, Great Patriotic War, as well as in many other armed conflicts (right up to the modern day). This Rifle also saw service in China, Mongolia, Cuba and other Baltic countries!
Tetrahedral Bayonet (Model 1916):
Total Length: 500 mm (19.7 inches)
Blade Length: 430 mm (16.9 inches)
Blade Width: 17.7 mm (0.7 inches)
These four-sided Soviet bayonets were designed to cause massive internal damage through the piercing of the surface of the outer skin of the enemy – whilst fatally penetrating the inner organs. Retraction this bayonet with a firm (and twisting) action only added to this devstation. However, this design of bayonet was also very robust and could be deployed as a cutting and slashing weapon – as well as a stabbing weapon! When combined with the solid wooden butt (for sudden striking) and the elongated barrel for parrying and deflecting – this Soviet Rifle and bayonet took on a new significance on the modern battlefield!
The Mosin Rifle was equipped with a (Model 1916) four-sided bayonet which was first used during WWI by the Czarist Russian Army (which replaced an older model). The end of the bayonet was designed not only to ‘pierce’ an enemy body – but also to function as a ‘screwdriver’ that could be used to assemble (or disassemble) the Rifle. When the ammunition was spent – the bayonet became the primary weapon. The bayonet was designed as a ‘long knife’ that was so sufficiently elongated that it could pierce (in theory) through two enemy bodies at once! When shooting – the Mosin Rifle weapon was designed to be ‘balanced’ by a permanently ‘fixed’ bayonet! When firing without a fixed bayonet – the rifle invariably pulled to the side!
During the years of the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945) – about 12 million Mosin Rifles were produced. The Rifle was produced for use by the Soviet Red Aamy almost until the very end of that war – and was still officially in service until the end of the 1970s. The video clip above is of a 1938 Soviet Red Army documentary (dubbed into German) explaining how a good ‘Communist’ soldier not only studies Marxist-Leninism when not training his (or her) body – but is expected to master the use of the Mosin Rifle with a fixed bayonet to protect the International Working-Class! These Soviet Red Army soldiers are attempting to assist all those good German working-class people who are attempting to a) create ‘Cells’ of resistance from within Nazi Germany, or b) overthrow Hitler’s terrible regime by developing a Red Army of their own!
THE SANGHA KOMMUNE (SSR) 