Tell me all about Mausers please.

D

DaHaMac

New member
Lately, I have heard alot of talk about mausers. "You build a custom rifle on a mauser action" "You can get a mauser for less that $200 or sometimes $100" and on and on.

If these guns are rebuildable, and they must be after what I have seen in the Midway Catalog. And if they can be had for less than $200 in shootable conditions, I am very interested in knowing all about the Mauser. So point me in the right direction to get a mauser education please. I heard someone on TFL mention a mauser forum, hmmmm?

Thanks TFL'ers in advice.

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Know Yourself, Know Your Weapon, Know Your Enemy; then Know Victory! ---DaHaMac
 
The history of the Mauser bolt-action rifle is huge. Many good books are available on the subject. To narrow it down a bit, you seem to be asking whether a vintage Mauser bolt-action military rifle, which can be had for a couple hundred dollars, is suitable for custom coversion to a sporter.

Some history: After World War II, when the armies of the world were dumping bolt rifles, many bolt-action Mausers were imported into the U.S. and became the foundation for conversions to sporters. After fifty-some years, this game has pretty much played itself out. A vintage Mauser bolt-action miliary rifle is now worth more in its original condition. Using one now as a basis for a sporter seems like ruining a piece of history. These vintage rifles should be acquired and preserved as they are.

If you want a bolt-action sporter with controlled feed (Mauser-type extraction), a new production Winchester or something similar would probably be best. However, producing controlled feed rifles is more expensive than the push feed variety, so most new bolt-action rifles are push feed.

Many threads have appeared on TFL regarding the push feed versus controlled feed concept. Take you pick. Both systems work. Both have their supporters and critics.



[This message has been edited by Trevor (edited May 08, 2000).]
 
Well just my opinion, but I like sporters based on the Mauser action.
Trevor, I will agree with you on one point. If you can find a really mint military Mauser, sporterizing it would be literally a crime. But most of the average run of the mill Mausers, well you have to decide. I have several rifles built on military Mausers. A beautiful .35 Whelan on an Oberndorf action. I have another in .280 Remington on a 1909 Argentine by Steyr, and a .5 pound .308 built on a Steyr built 1909 Argentine. Building rifles such as these get very expensive, very quickly.
I'll give you an example, on the .280. I don't know who did the metal work, but the papers said that there was $600 in that alone. The Trigger was anter $75, and the stock blank $300. That's what it cost the previous owner to have the work done. I bought the package from the widow for $300. Having the package properly put together by a reputable gunsmith ran another $2800. Now I have a work of art.
So what does one do if the Mauser action is a "must have" item. Search the gun shows for commercial versions of genuine Mauser sporters. There were a bunch of them in the 1950's and 60's. J.C. Higgins model 50's go for anywhere around $200 to $350. Do a little reshaping of the stock, or leave it be, and you'll have one sweet rifle. Colt made a few called, I believe, the Colteer back in the early 60's. High-Standard made rifles with commercial Mauser actions. Any one of those wil save you some serious coin on metal work. All the above used the FN action made in Belgium, right along with the early Brownings, and we all know how nice they were.
There are the Mark X rifles as well. They are very accurate, at least the ones I had were.
I just picked up another Steyr Mauser
1912-61 Chilean Mauser. They were converted to 7.62 Nato in 1961. The rifle is minty as heckb but the barrel is a total loss. If I can find a good 7.62/ .308 Win. military barrel, I'll restore it. If not?????? What caliber do I want this time? Decisions. Decisions. Decisions.
Paul B.
 
It is a shame to "sporterize" a nice military rifle. I have defined "sporterizing" as "Spending $400 to convert a $700 gun into a $200 gun."

But there are many good Mausers around that are in mediocre condition and which can be the basis of a good sporter. But you should consider that making a military rifle into the equivalent of a Winchester 70 , Ruger 77 or Remington 700 can easily cost more than one of those rifles. But the Mauser will be unique to you, and for many people that is important.

Another option is to do minimal work, and use the rifle as a utility rifle. If it is dropped on a rock, if you and it slide down a mountain, if it gets run over by a truck, it is not a Weatherby.

Jim
 
I'm jumping in on this a little late. I have bought and rebuilt several surplus Mausers over the last year. I caught the bug. Anyway, there are plenty of inexpensive ways to redo a mauser. First, in my area (Tucson, AZ)there has been a whole bunch of $50 VZ 1924 BRNO carbines showing up a a chain sporting goods store. this is where I get my stuff. One I restored to as close to new condition as possible. The barrel was in great condition and the metal had all the stampings. Even the Chech crest was clean. a little elbow grease and $70 to a local refinisher and this puppy is as good as new. Total: $120

Next: Rebuilt into a .243 Sporter. Again, $50 for the VZ. Bought a Mauser Sporter kit from Midway, on sale, $190. (Timney trigger, sporter stock, barrel and bipod). $75 at local gunsmith to swap barrels and headspace.
Again, time at the buffing wheel, $45 set of scope bases and rings (had the scope). I'm undecided on putting color on the metal.
Total: $360 and the pride of knowing that I did everything except the barrel swap.

current project: I bought the $50 VZ, still deciding what to do with it, any suggestions? Maybe one of those 7.62X39 conversion kits from Gunparts (under $200). Or a long range silhouette gun.

The upshot is that, no you don't have to spend $1500 to make a $600 rifle worth $300.
do this stuff for fun and love of the art.


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Joe Portale
Tucson, Arizona Territory

True Gun Control: Weaver or Isosceles.
 
Try:
http://www.mosin-nagant.net/ & http://www.gunandknife.com/ both have Mauser forums.

WHB Smith's book on "Mauser Rifles and Pistols" is a good read and a classic. Also good is Ludwig Olson's, "Mauser Bolt Rifle" and Ball's, "Military Mausers of the World." Don't forget Richard Law's, "Backbone of the Wehrmacht" which is comprised of two volumes (the first on regular rifles and the second on snipers).
 
Hey thanks for the replies guys. I am going to have to remember all those books and buy them as money allows. I'll probably go ahead and get that book for $2.95, that fits my budget.

Joe Portale, what you are talking about is what I am wanting to do. Find inexpensive shootable guns that don't possess very much interest as collectibles and build my own custom rifles for myself. I can't decide between a couple of calibers, so I want to build a gun in each caliber and experiment with the different calibers. When I find the caliber I prefer, I hope to have the experience then to build me a "target rifle" that will shoot bug-holes. :)

I am going to head over to those forums, I've been to mosin-nagant but missed the forums, crap. I'm going to check out the other link in a few.

Thanks for all the replies and info. Say Nester you didn't used to live in GA did you, if you did we have met before. Knew someone with your name once upon a time.

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Know Yourself, Know Your Weapon, Know Your Enemy; then Know Victory! ---DaHaMac

[This message has been edited by DaHaMac (edited May 12, 2000).]
 
If a surplus Mauser has problems ejecting the brass, what causes that? This is a surplus 98k IIRC. Might be Yugoslavian. Not mine, belongs to a buddy.

Edmund
 
Edmund:
Causes of poor extraction in Mausers:
1. Corroded, scored or dirty chamber: This is the most likely cause, and in a military rifle of this age is no doubt the end result of all those nasty corrosive primers fired with less than ideal cleaning conditions.
2. Excess head space: be sure to have any Mauser you fire get a clean bill of heath in this regard. This is also a fairly common.
3. Excessive ammo loads. This compounds the first two problems.
4. The extractor itself can be malformed. In this case it will slip off the rim and fail to extract, which I take is not your problem.
You should always be paranoid about extraction problems in Mausers and stop firing as soon as you notice the problem. If it is a bad chamber, OK. But time after time this is the symptom that a shooter ignores just before the case sepparates due to excess head space and all that nasty gas comes back towards his face.
 
My dad got me an Argentine Mauser, 7.65 cal. in the early 70’s. Cost $40.
It’s a short little thing but back then when my eyes were better 200 to 300 yard shots were common. Looking down the barrel there must be 20 turns in the rifling. Don’t know if it punched a hole in the target or drilled through it.
 
Edmund,

You said ejection. Not extraction. Mausers use a "standing ejector", as opposed to the plunger found on most modern bolt action bolt faces.

As the bolt is moved to the rear, the slot cut in the left side of the bolt passes over the ejector and at the rear most (last few tenths of an inch) travel the ejector is exposed and rotates out whatever the extractor claw has a hold of (as we say here in GA). It's a pivoting motion. See if the ejector is broken.

Does the brass try to rotate out or does it just come straight back with out any budge to the right?
 
Apparently it has little or no "flip out" action to the right. I'm relying on my buddy's description so I might have it all wrong. I told him take some empty brass and the rifle to a gunsmith.

Edmund
 
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