Looking for an odd big bore Mosin rifle, that isn’t?
Russian arms maker Molot has released a bunch of info on their VPO-220 bolt action rifle that isn’t– the Lancaster-bore 9.6x53mm (ballistically between the old .350 Rem Mag and the newer .376 Steyr)– designed to skin a gun control cat.
The Vintovka Mosina VPO-220 (ВПО-220) looks like a classic Mosin M91 rifle, a longarm familiar to Russia for more than 120 years and typically chambered in 7.62x54R. However, to comply with regulations in Russia since the time of the Bolsheviks, the gun is not “legally” a rifle, but uses a Lancaster oval-bore system instead to impart spin.
The oval squeeze to the barrel is elliptical, turning to give the desired twist without traditional lands and grooves. Why? Because owning a legal rifle in Russia is tough….