A Rare Early 1939 "As Issued" Soviet M38 Mosin Nagant Carbine from the Winter War.

Today we're looking at a pair of Soviet M38 Mosin Nagant carbines. These handy guns were first fielded in 1939, and while primarily intended for second line and specialty troops, they still managed to see extensive combat wherever Soviet forces fought. The examples in this video are both as issued, all matched guns, captured by the Finns during either the Winter War, or the Continuation War. One M38 was made in 1939 at the Izhevsk Arsenal, and it still bears the early rearward spaced rear barrel band, placed just in front of the rear sight. Shortly after production commenced, the Soviets standardized their rifles to place the rear barrel band a the same distance from the rear sight as the 91/30. The second rifle is a 1941 Izhevsk and it has this later manufacturing change. Neither gun has an import mark, and the only way to tell that they are Finnish captures is by the "D" mark on the top of the receiver, denoting that they had been modified for the Finnish Model D 7.62x54R round.