Mauser 98 Conversion

Peter Paul Mauser designed the definitive bolt action rifle in 1898. Nobody has improved on that design and most modern bolt guns are mostly copies. But it was designed as a military rifle with no thought to sporting use. A modern CZ or Sako is a superb 98 sporting rifle.
 
My understanding is that Mauser military actions have good and bad vintages, late war ones assembled by forced labor using lower quality materials are to be avoided. I have read of ones with excessive headspace from using hotter machine gun ammunition.
 
I recall an article in Rifle magazine about the sporterized military Mauser as the Gunsmith's Full Employment Program.

Starting with a sound Mauser that has been Bubbafied enough to avoid the ire of the collectors, let's see what it takes.
Throw away the barrel. Who wants an 8mm? Besides, those vibration damping steps are ugly. Buy and fit a new barrel. Better check the feeding, Mauser had specific actions per caliber.
Gotta have a scope sight. Cut down clip hump, drill and tap, alter bolt handle, install Winchester style scope safety.
Install adjustable trigger.
You don't want to have to poke at the floorplate latch with a bullet nose, you don't want lock screws on your guard screws, you don't want a big broad trigger guard to jump in and out of foxholes with. Replace or heavily modify bottom metal.
Make and inlet sporter stock.

Wyosmith and a few others can really make them look nice, but there is a lot of work involved. By the time he gets done, the price of the action is lost in the noise. A friend here used to work on them. He was mainly doing target and varmint rifles and says it was a lot easier to start with the FN single shot.
 
The DWM made Argentine '09 has nice bottom metal as is. Hinged floor plate with an release in the triggerbow.

Low swing safeties are cheap and easy if don't have to have the Winchester style.
 
Yes, I know about the 1909. Are there any others that use the commercial type floorplate latch?

I recall when it was popular to barrel a 1909 in .280 Rem, then overload it until it "approached the 7mm magnum with bullets up to 154 grains." Some loaded it so hot that they reformed WW .270 brass which was harder than RP.
But the gunsmith didn't have to bother with bolt face and magazine mods for a belted magnum, he could put his time and your money into style.

If you settle for a Buehler scope safety, you just aren't kewl.
 
Nothing wrong with a Buehler and btw some folks actually like a 8x57. Myself , I even like me a 7.65 Arg. cartridge.

Another option for the stock floor plate is an old world style lever latch.

I got the impression the op wanted some hands on experience doing some smithing. If that the case it's not about what's easy, or even what's practical cost wise. Everybody knows he can go to Walmart and buy a 270. I think it's great when a person wants to try to add a skill set.
 
I am all in favor of skill sets, but doing a NICE sporter on a Mauser is not like assembling a LegoGun out of commodity AR parts.

Hiring one built from an expert like Wyosmith is not for the budget minded, either.

It is fun to go into a thread assuming that there is equipment and skill - or money - ample for the project being discussed. But sometimes you run out of gas.
 
Who wants an 8mm?
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I like it actually.

One of my favorite rifles to shoot is this stock VZ24 (on the right)

That said, I actually am having my 8MM sporter (on the left) converted to .308 this year. It was a hard decision to make - I really like that the gun was in 8MM and I feel like I am losing something changing to a different caliber - but I use this as a serious hunting gun and I wanted greater ammo selection. If I could I would buy a Ruger M77 or a Sako or something with a similar action, but it just isn't in the budget anytime soon.

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I also have a great respect for the 8X57.
I am making one now with a 19" barrel and a full length "Mannlicher stock", shotgun guard, engraved and rust blued with a carved and engraved set of panels on the stock like what was offered by Mauser in the 1920.
The 8mm Mauser is efficient in shorter barrel. It works very well with bullets in the 150 to 200 grain range. It's fine for all game that a 30-06 will handle.

It never got very popular in the USA because there was nothing it could do the 30-06 could not do as well. That's true,---- but it's not much worse either.
 
So Jim, you're saying SAGW shouldn't try to build a mauser because it might be hard ? Maybe he's the next Wyosmith and he will make it NICE.
 
Not at all, if he wants to get into it, he has to start someplace.

Been a long time since I read about "safety breeching" a Mauser. I would have thought that out of style.
 
Commercial 98

Keep your eyes open for a commercial 98.

I have a Sears model 50, one of the best "sleepers" in the world of used rifles. It has a commercial 98 action made by FN, and a chrome lined barrel by High Standard.

Keep an eye peeled for these old Sears rifles. Unfortunately the word is out now on just how fine a rifle these old Dept. store specials really are.

I do sometimes feel like I need to add wheels tho......it's a heavy beast.
 
oldscot3

Safety breeching amounts to shaping the bolt nose and barrel breech to reduce case wall exposure. It was standard on the Yugoslavian Mausers and a once-popular gunsmithing procedure on other Mausers and Springfields.

Said to be best described in Harold McFarland's book, which I do not have.
Roy Dunlap did not bother.
 
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