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Mossberg Model 352

17K views 8 replies 7 participants last post by  shanebrews 
#1 ·
Her Imperial Majesty never gets me anything I want for my birthday. So I got myself a birthday present: a vintage Mossberg Model 352-K semi-auto .22.

Like most people, when I think of Mossberg I think "Shotgun." But back in the day, Mossberg also made quite respectable smallbore rifles. This one has barely been fired enough for the parts to work in, from what I can tell. (Note to self: see about locating a manual. Cleaning it will be a LOT easier if I can figure out how to lock the bolt back!) It also has a magazine with a feature I have never seen before. The magazine can be adjusted to feed .22 Short, .22 Long, or .22 Long Rifle. That in and of itself ought to tell you that this is a C&R gun! My kind of rifle.

It also has a feature that from what I recall was unique at the time and at least on .22s is still rare today. The fore-end can be folded down to become a handgrip. The fore-end it came with is black plastic. But I've done some searching, and I can get a walnut fore-end. I'd have to fit it and finish it, but I just may do that. Plastic furniture, with the exception of the Nylon 66, has never been my thing.

It came with a narrow red cotton web sling that I don't like at all. Looks like I will need to go to the gun shop and buy something better. I wonder how she'd look in a Model 1907 US GI sling?

It also came with a Tasco 3-7 x 20mm .22 rifle scope. Just the thing for my older eyes to use for plinking and/or small game.

And because nothing is real without pics, here are some:
 

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#2 ·
I've got one of those old Mossbergs, too, but mine is bolt action. It was actually branded Western Field and sold through Western auto stores. When I got it, it was a single shot, but I found out that the only thing needed to covert it to magazine fed was...a magazine! (and a very, very minor Dremel touch).
It has no serial number, so it's pre 1968, but not really old enough to be an antique. Shoots quite well.
 
#3 ·
The bolt locks back by pulling to the rear til to bolt handle lines up with the rearmost larger indent, then push the bolt handle to the left, into a recess.
I find cleaning much easier by taking the bolt and hammer unit out of the receiver to the rear - you may need to remove the action from the stock (not necessary on my earlier Model 152).
The bolt aslo locks in forward position, for firing without the semiauto cycling.
I love the old Mossberg .22 rifles and have seven now. They are as addicting as Mosins and Mausers!

For any parts or info, check with Havlin Sales - they are The Mossberg Source!

Steve's Pages contains MANY gun manuals.......
These two should get you going.....

http://stevespages.com/pdf/mossberg_151k.pdf

http://stevespages.com/pdf/mossberg_353.pdf

Same basic actions, and the M151K has the same buttstock feed system.
 
#4 ·
Thanks, Big Dog. I must not be pulling the bolt back hard enough. I can't get it back far enough to lock into the rear indent.
 
#5 ·
Thanks, Big Dog. I must not be pulling the bolt back hard enough. I can't get it back far enough to lock into the rear indent.
I have a model 352K, I used to shoot it as a kid when my dad owned it, who got it from his older brother when he died, who bought it from a native.. (interesting, if only guns could tell stories) - anyways, it was a great gun to shoot, although locking the bolt in safe wasnt obvious (maybe Im not that smart lol) and something I just learned is what the forward locking recess is for.. I lost the clip in a move and as a result havent shot this gun in well over five years, maybe eight, but when I was re-organizing the gun room the other day I found the clip (!) so I will be soon heading out to try out this excellent little .22 BTW I found the fold down front stock helped the accuracy, but maybe thats just the recollection of a kid who adored 'army' guns and somehow the fold-down front stock made it more 'armyish' than dads hunting rifles ;P
 
#6 ·
Oops on my part. Use the next-to-last indent! The rearmost is for when dismantling and removing the bolt. The forward most indent is a "SAFE" postion and will not shoot in that position. Just looked at my own M152 Mooseberg. (I was confusing it with the Savage/Stevens M87 - I got too many twentytwo rifles!)
I like the fold-down fore end too - sometimes comes in handy as an ersatz 'monopod on the bench.
If you can ever find them - gunshow or online - my two fifteen round magazines are a hoot! I paid as much for them together as for the rifle! The 7-round mag that came with the rifle has never worked properly.
The long mags make it look like a wee Tommygun, especially with the fore end down!
This little carbine was my first Mossberg, and started me into collecting them! Like a mini-Mosin!
 
#7 ·
Sounds like my wife, Cyrano. So, I too, usually buy my own presents and most of them go bang bang.
I remember that model...many more years ago than I like to remember...lol
Congrats!

BTW...belated Happy Birthday!
 
#9 ·
CPR to this old thread.

Dad scored a beat-down Mossberg 352 at a swap meet a while back. He told me he paid as much for a spare magazine as he did for the rifle. It's missing the fold-down grip and the stock looks like it went to Korea. He told me to take it down to my local shop: Scheffler's Straight Shooters and enquire about the options.

Scheffler told me the gun wasn't worth more than $50 to him and he thought the realistic sale price was $70. Then we looked at repair costs. I ended up ordering the parts and I'm going to give the rifle back to Dad with the repair parts and let him amuse himself patching it up when the cold weather comes. That's the type of thing he likes to do and his birthday is in October. I don't care if I ever see the thing again. I've got plenty of rimfire rifles. Cost of the repair parts: $72.
 
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