This Finnish M28-30 is built on an Izhevsk-manufactured receiver dated 1896 and carries a barrel marked SKY and dated 1939. It is chambered in 7.62x54R. The rifle is Finnish matching, the bore is excellent, and it is in excellent mechanical condition.
The receiver on this rifle is dated 1896. Under the federal definition at 18 U.S.C. 921(a)(16), a firearm manufactured in or before 1898 is an antique firearm and falls outside the Gun Control Act definition of a firearm, and this rifle is offered on that basis: no FFL transfer is required and it can ship directly to the buyer’s door. Antique status under federal law does not override state or local law. Some states and municipalities regulate pre-1899 arms as firearms regardless of the federal exemption, so buyers are responsible for confirming that a direct shipment is lawful at their delivery address before ordering.
Finland built the M28-30 on receivers recycled from older M/91 rifles, and reusing Imperial Russian receivers was standard Finnish practice rather than a later alteration. An Imperial Russian receiver date such as 1896 therefore records the original Russian manufacture, not the year the Finnish rifle was assembled, so the rifle is correct as issued rather than a conversion. The SKY marking stands for Suojeluskuntain Yliesikunta, the headquarters of the Finnish Civil Guard, and was applied as a property marking rather than as a maker’s mark. The Civil Guard was a separate organization from the Finnish Army, which identified its own property with a boxed SA stamp adopted in 1942. Civil Guard marked rifles are therefore cataloged separately from Army marked examples.
Specifications
Model: M28-30
Country of origin: Finland
Receiver: Izhevsk manufacture, dated 1896
Barrel: SKY marked, dated 1939
Action: Bolt action
Caliber: 7.62x54R
Matching: Finnish matching
Bore: Excellent
Mechanical condition: Excellent
Federal classification: Offered as an antique firearm under 18 U.S.C. 921(a)(16)
Transfer: No FFL required federally
Shipping: Ships direct to the buyer, subject to state and local law
