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Rifle of the system Mosina-Kholodovskogo or the
Holodovsky Prototype 1912
This rifle was introduced as a prototype in 1912 and a
limited number were produced for field trials between 1912 and 1914. The
rifle contained a number of innovations that were appealing but
unfortunately costly in manufacturing time and resources. These were two
things that Russia could not afford at the time.
Some of the features of this rifle were absolutely
revolutionary in their design such as a fluted barrel to improve accuracy
through cooling the barrel. I can not find any other rifle that used this
innovation in production until long after the Second World War and then only
in the manufacture of rifles for competition. This visionary suggestion was
as radical as stealth technology was in the 90's!
Here you can see the fluted barrel. The barrel appears
over all to have been manufactured from heavier stock that the standard
Model 1891 Mosin.
In addition, in order to lighten the over all weight
of the rifle, Holodovsky incorporated
the use of aluminum throughout the design. You can see the use of aluminum
for the cleaning rod and barrel band retaining spring in the illustration
above. Aluminum was also used in the rear sight assembly, receiver bedding,
cross bolt and sling attachments.
You can see the aluminum cross bolt in this
illustration.
Other improvements consisted of a redesigned trigger
group, elongated bolt handle and variable length butt stock. The butt stock
length could be changed by adding or removing sections.
The over all effect of these innovative modifications
to the original 1891 design combined to produce the following:
1) The rifle is lightened by 550 grams.
2) Improved balance and accuracy due to the lighter
barrel and variable stock length.
3) Improved rear sight.
4) Better cycling of the bolt due to the longer bolt
handle.
5) Better clip strip guide.
6) Fluted barrel with better cooling capacity.
7) Narrower wrist and fore stock produces improved
grip.
Notice the improved rear sights.
Here you can see the longer bolt handle and the
modification to the cocking piece.
Although all of these changes combine to produce a
highly innovative rifle, they also added to the cost of production,
complicated the maintenance and lengthened the production time. Although
the rifle was an accurate shooter, it did not fit the needs of the Russian
Army at the time.
Photos by Margay2716
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