Guns and Gear Review # 2: Russian M1895 Nagant Revolver

Hello folks, 12-Gauge Chimp back today with the second gun review of the series. Today I present to you the Russian M1895 Nagant revolver.

Designed way back in 1889, but produced in 1895( big surprise there, huh ?)by Leon Nagant (the same guy that helped design the Mosin Nagant rifle) and his brother Emile. Officially adopted by the Russian Army in 1895, the Nagant revolver was produced until 1950, but it is still being used by rural police and railway officers, that's pretty cool, don't you think ? Ok, I think that's enough history for now, on to the review.

I purchased my Nagant revolver after some debating on which gun I should purchase. I wanted a semi-auto pistol, but money-wise, I could only afford the Nagant. I ended up with a unique firearm and a piece of history. My Nagant is an officers model, which means it is double action/single action and is a bit rarer than the standard soldiers model. The Nagant revolver fires the 7.62x38R or 7.62 Nagant cartridge, which is a pain in the neck to find by the way. It uses a "gas seal"system, which means the cylinder moves forward when the gun is cocked, giving it a slight boost in velocity. It also can use a silencer to its full potential, making it one of the few pistols that can do that. Here's a couple things I found out after firing my revolver.

1. The trigger pull is long and heavy. Firing it in DA mode is possible, but the best way to fire the Nagant is in SA.

2. I found out that I cannot hit squat without aiming a bit low, as the Soviet sights absolutely suck, but then again these guns weren't made for target shooting.

3. The proper ammo is expensive and a little hard to find. As far as I know no company in the US domestically produces 7.62 Nagant, as all of the ammo currently available is all imported.

4. I want another Nagant revolver, they are just like the Mosin Nagant rifle, you can't own just one.

While some people may look down on these guns, they have to admit that the Nagant M1895 revolver is a unique firearm, a piece of firearms history and a relatively cheap addition to a Russian military weapons collection. That's it for my review of the M1895 Nagant, stay tuned for my next review when I take a look at the SKS, yet another Russian firearm.
As always, this is 12-Gauge Chimp signing off.