
From the top:
54 Tula nonrefurb
54 Ishevsk ex DDR refurb
55 Tula Letter "I" unissued
53 Ishevsk refurb

Same order as above. Notice the stock on the second one from the bottom. That is a laminate stock finished in the ruby red and no picture can do justice with it. A truly outstanding stock with no marks to indicate any use. OO has one similar I believe.
These did not come cheap nor were they steals or deals. I paid premium prices for them and was glad to do so to get the quality of the collection I wanted. Would I change any of them out? Yes, if I could get hold of a prime 53 Ishevsk original. The Ishevsk ex DDR is unique from what I can find out and the Tula Letter will not come around again so I will keep them.
It took me about 18 months to accumulate them and I did not do anything in 2011 about buying Russians. OO has been buying all the good ones up leaving very little for the rest of us.





