Here's an odd one!

[millman]

The 5 is a five.

The 5 in the OP's post looks like a 5, but it is on a 30's style rifle. It would be like finding a 1935 Ford with a 53 date on it. You can look at the whole picture, add a bit of experience, and you will know it is just a misstamped 3.

[Mosinhope]

Yes, I understand your point that the five was supposed to be a three and a mistake was made. However, there is another 1950's date Tula (1953) picture shown on this forum: My new "1953" 91/30 by Corpo Sun. March 24,2013 3:47 pm. Probably another mistake. After all, those with experience know that Russian 91/30 rifle production ended in 1944/45. I mean there is absolutely no way-it's gotta be impossible(!) that 91/30's could have been made for some special contract or reason in the 1950's by Russia.

[Mosinhope]

My last comment on this. I did find this at: 7.62x54r.net//MosinID/MosinM91/30S: .."Tula M91/30s dated after 1944 have been reported up to at least1948 and any of them would be a good find." Also: ..."Izhevsk did produce rifles in 1945, but they are uncommon, as are any later dates, reported into the early 1950's."

[Junk Yard Dog]

The experience part is being able to spot an overstamped number because you have seen them many times before and have such in your own collection, as I do. 1922-3 overstamp, and a 1942-3 overstamp, I believe I have one other from the late 1920's but I forget. Odd later dates happen, nobody knows the full story on them, highly likely to be put together from parts rifles as Izhevsk, and Tula were well out of the Mosin making business by the 1950's. The question rifle is a Tula, the second number is a glaringly obvious overstamp, and that leads me to believe the 5 was also stamped in error. Tula was highly unlikely to be in the Mosin making business after the 1940's, it's hard enough to come across even a 1944 from that arsenal. We are still waiting for the tang date on this one.

[Miller Tyme]

All Mosin Nagant 91/30's produced from 1945 on used round high wall recievers.

In all my years collecting I have seen only 1 post 1944 Mosin Nagant 91/30 on a hex reciever, it was dated as a 1945/48 MO stamped Tula that recently sold on GB. If you look closely at the 4th pic in the link below you can see the barrel shank was scrubbed and it was a redated 1945 and then MO stamped. This is verified by the lack of any alpha pre-fix on the S/N, something Tula had been doing since the late 30's. There have been several of these Tula rifles dated 1944 that have surfaced in the past year ( I own one) and they all have the same triats and are MO marked



http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewIt ... =382193959


Now with all that said the OP's rifle has a very poorly struck 3 on it and not a 5.

[Cheshire]

At first I was sure it was a 5 but now with that pixel closeup I think it's a 3 that was stamped heavy on the left.

[Rongo]

It is common for 1934 dated Mosins to have a restamp/overstamp on the 3 making it a 4. This rifle has multiple overstamps all over the place. Looks like it was practice day on the numbers for some newbie or the stamping guy was suffering from being roaring drunk. It's a weird anomaly amongst countless thousands of other weird examples you will run into collecting these fine old weapons. It's what makes them interesting if you ask me. So it's a 5, or it's a 3... Matters not. It just is & enjoy it.