from what I'm reading here, it would seem that being in my position of not being able or even know how to reload ammo it would'nt be worth it to buy a mosin nagant 1942 type of rifle. It looks cool but I dont want a gun that I cant shoot. Its bad enough I cant even find 22 lr, 9mm, 40 cal. or 7mm weatherby mag rounds in CA. other than a yard sale. 
Any thoughts on weather I should buy the mosin unregistered & for 50 bucks?
What would it be worth to you?
do you even have to register these old guns?
I dont mean to thread jack, I am just curious if you all think it would be worth buying it?
Absolutely. They are cheap,and shoot well. Surplus ammo is also very cheap. Locally I can get a "spam can" of 440 Berdan primed (not re-loadable) cartridges for a little less than 100 dollars. In fact,many people argue that its not WORTH reloading because surplus ammo is so cheap. The only down side to surplus ammo is its usually (some say always) corrosively primed. What that means is,after you shoot your gun,you MUST clean it. Dont leave it over night and make sure you do a good job. Some people use household ammonia,others use commercial cleaners,and there are as many opinions as cartridges in a spam can of ammo,but you must clean it or it will rust. My opinion is that most of the methods work. I suspect few people will have a method they "think works" but are mistaken about because if you don't do it right,you WILL know the next time you take the bolt out and look up the bore.
At around 23-25 cents a round,I agree,you cant justify reloading based on price. If I'm careful (I COULD save a few cents over surplus if I used cast bullets,which I plan on doing as I can save around at least 10 cents a bullet which is nothing to sneeze at) I can reload for around 20-25 cents a bullet,but that's only if I'm lucky and get a good price on bullets,which isn't always the case. What I do get though is a cartridge made from fire-formed brass that perfectly fits MY gun,made from high quality components and non corrosive primers. What I mean by fire formed is that once I fire a cartridge in my gun,I keep track of which gun it was shot from. I then only re-size the neck to seat the new bullet,but try my best to avoid touching the other dimensions. That way,that once (or twice or whatever) fired cartridge fits the gun it was fired from perfectly to create the most consistency between shots that I can get. That leads to better accuracy.
If you go to the gun store,you will see things like surplus "Sniper" ammo for the Mosin or even the "Sniper" ammo made by Buffalo Bore. Think of all that stuff as laying somewhere between a slightly higher grade ammo for "designated marksmen" (who are the ones that get the "sniper rifles" in the Russian army,and marketing hype that sounds alot better than "match grade". If you absolutely MUST make a shot,you want the custom ammo that hand loading supplies,that is, custom fit and loaded to YOUR particular gun. Of course most of us dont HAVE to make the shot,we just want to (even if that trophy elk to beat all others is standing before you at 200 yards,if you miss,your just going to be telling that story about how the wind picked up or it moved at the last second for the next 20 years,but you will be alive and kicking to tell the story). For us its fun to have really accurate ammo.
If you go to the store and buy "Black Adder Super Ultra Advanced Tactical Sniper" ammo,you going to be paying 3 bucks a round or more. Maybe you will get some sort of oxide coating or a snazzy looking bullet (chances are though,you will get 40 cent Winchester brass with a 20 cent Sierra bullet,all good stuff,but still..) and you get a nice box with silver raised lettering and a shiny red cross-hair over the silhouette for a soldier. Thats about it. If you load your own,you pay 40 cents for the brass (which you re-use) and 20 cents for that same sierra bullet,but your ammo shoots better. Alot better. Not only can you save money,you get a better product.
Reloading is not really that expensive either. For around 100-150 dollars you can get the stuff from Lee Precision to get started. Lee makes the lowest cost equipment. Many people like it,some people fall between the spectrum of preferring the more expensive stuff,to be being outright snobbish about it. Still,the Lee stuff works,and my suggestion is,if your going to start hand loading,go with the Lee. Its so cheap,when you find pieces of the kit (I suggest the kits) that don't meet your needs or expectations,just replace it. If you bought the expensive stuff,then it still might not be what you want or like,but you have a lot of money in it. Starting out you don't have the understanding of what you need,what you want ,and what you can get away with,so go cheap so you don't have a large investment in something to prevent you from upgrading.
As for registration,that depends on your state laws. In Utah,we don't have to register guns. Most places do not require registration of most guns,but some do. For the most part,the registration myth comes from TV where the detective or investigator mentions how someone had a 'gun registered to them" (a plot device so that the police know the suspect had a gun,but is hiding it or disposed of it) or that a suspects gun "wasn't registered" You defiantly want to check your state (and local) laws,but if your buying your gun from a gun store they will know what is required. In some places,be careful of private party transactions. In a few places,ALL gun transactions must go through a licensed dealer,which means if your friend sells you an gun,you are both breaking the law. If you live in one of those places,its no big deal,just go to a gun store and they will help you do the transfer. (OK,its a royal PITA,but its routine,you just pay a fee,and in some places there is a waiting period,then you get your gun)
