Originally Posted by Gunplummer

I used one, like you when I was a kid. I am an old goat and bought it through the mail for 15 or 20 bucks. I was so happy to get an honest to goodness deer rifle to use instead of the single shot 12 gauge I was using. Then I found out a box of ammo cost as much or more than I paid for the gun! We were not importing anything from the Commies at the time and Russian bolt guns were around but few people had heard of them. This rifle (still have it) was almost as long as I was tall. I did get a deer with it that year, and it was one of the farthest shots I have ever taken at a deer, scope or not. It really shot if I could lay it over a log to steady it. If you sit to hunt the safety won't bother you much. That is a major drawback on that rifle. I do my own work and converted one to 30-40 Krag, got rid of the split bridge, put the bolt handle behind the bridge, Timmney trigger, some other mods to it. You seem to want to spend money on it. Take my advice and use it as is and save the money to buy a cheap used civilian deer rifle with a scope. There are a lot of good deals out there if you look. If you can't do the work yourself it will turn into a money pit.