Bob, that is a sweet gun man, congrats. I'd be willing to come shooting sometime soon, I'm still not sure im going to be in town for thanksgiving, but somewhere around there would be nice.

So not only did you NOT buy America

you bought a Ruskie gun made by China?!

X
(Bah ha ha ha)

If there is one thing you can't diss on the Russkies for, it's their Cold War era military.  The Russians had an amazing military, all the way from their ICBM's all the way down to their CZ-52 carry pistols.

I'll buy American surplus someday, but they're freakin' expensive.  Take the M1 Garand, for instance.  It's a beautiful firearm and definitely something I plan on adding to my arsen... err, collection.  It's yours for a measly $1,100?

As far as the Chinese manufacturing, you can't confuse firearms with cheap dollar store garbage.  Yes, it came from China, but China (specifically, the Norinco corporation) was easily the #1 manufacturer of Soviet small arms.  That's why I jumped on buying this one as soon as I saw it.  The stock is beautiful, the parkerized finish is intact, and the springs feel as fresh as they do on a newly manufactured piece.  That kind of quality is virtually unheard of in a 30-year old military surplus rifle, regardless of country of origin.

Anyway, I took it out after church today with Mike and Spanky.  We only put 100 rounds downrange since it was rather cold outside.  The thing is quite accurate and cycles flawlessly.  I definitely need to buy some stripper clips for the ammo, though, because it sucks loading the internal magazine by hand.  It was a blast to shoot (no pun intended) and I can't wait to take it back out.  It was definitely worth the measly amount I paid for it.

-b0b
(...shot at a tree.)

Thanks Caitlin dear...

I didn't want to be the one to say it...

In case you guys were wondering why I bought 500 rounds, I forgot to mention that November 19th was National Ammo Day.

http://www.ammoday.com/

500 rounds of Russian military surplus ammunition.  Can I get a heck yeah?

-b0b
(...heck yeah!)

Are you talking about the Thompson M1927-A1 sub-machine gun chambered in .45ACP, also affectionately referred to as the "Tommy" gun?  That's a dead sexy gun, and it's definitely on my "Top 15 Guns to Buy Before the World Ends™" near the top.

You can buy either a surplus World War II era piece manufactured between 1928 and 1945 and pay a ridiculous amount for it, or you can buy a newly manufactured piece made by Thompson Centerfire, the same company that created the original.  Here's an example of just such a firearm that's currently selling for $975.

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.asp?Item=40286389

You can use either tradition World War II-style stick mags, or gangster-style drum mags.  Very neat indeed.

When it comes to Enfields, I'd recommend getting an original British Enfield chambered in the cartridge named after it, .303 Enfield.  Even though the cartridge is over three quarters of a century old, it still has amazing ballistic properties.  With the proper scope, it makes one heck of a cheap sniper rifle.

You can spend anywhere from $100 to $1,000 on an original British Enfield, depending on condition and "history."  Generally, you can find a perfectly serviceable Enfield for about $175-$200.  You have a choice to make when it comes to Enfields.  You can either buy a "re-arsenaled" model that looks great and performs well but has lost some historic value, or you can buy an "original" model that hasn't been touched in fifty years that will look rougher but be worth slightly more.  The cost of re-arsenaling an Enfield offsets the decrease in collectors value, so either model costs the same price.

Because of the overwhelming number of Enfields on the market, they aren't a big collectors piece.  As such, I'd recommend buying a rearsenaled piece because they were designed with function in mind, not form.  I'd rather have a piece that works and looks great over a piece that is worth more but might not be as useful.  Here's an example of a rearsenaled piece.  The bore has been re-rifled, the metal has been re-blued, and the stock has been stripped and re-varnished.  This is an excellent piece for $199, assuming it sells at that price.

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.asp?Item=40293340

In the end, it just depends on what you're looking for in a gun, and how much you can spend on a piece.

-b0b
(...will take two, please.)

Man, that episode rocked...
I was seriously dying.