Russian Tokarev M1940 (aka SVT-40) Semi-Auto Military Rifle.
The Samozaryadnaya Vintovka Tokareva (SVT-40) was designed by Soviet arms designer Fedor Tokarev. It was manufactured between 1940 and 1945, this one is dated 1942. The SVT-40 is an improved and simplified rifle design over the SVT-38. Apparently, during WWII, the SVT-40 rifles were highly prized captures by both German and Finnish troops. They were very accurate compared to other rifles of the period, had a higher rate of fire, and very reliable in trained hands. These weapons first saw combat in the Winter of 1939-1940 during the invasion of Finland. Many were captured by the Finnish Army or "Suomen Armeija"; these are usually found stamped with SA in a "box" (this particular gun has the magazine stamped in such a fashion). I could not find any import markings on this gun, so I am assuming it was a bring-back.
These were also produced in a full-auto-fire version and can be recognized by the safety/selector lever behind the trigger. The semi-auto version is a two-position lever acting as a safety; the full-auto version uses the same lever but in a three-position configuration, selecting safe, semi, and full operation.
Factory Specifications are as follows:
- Barrel Length: 24.02 Inches
- Overall Length: 48.27 Inches
- Weight: 8.9 lbs.
- Rifling: 4 turns, right hand twist
- Action: Semiautomatic
- Caliber: 7.62x54R
- Magazine Capacity: 10 round, detachable box