Where to find- 98 Mauser

C

Coop de Ville

New member
I am interested in building a scout type rifle and have heard great things about the Mauser style action. I have been reading peoples opinions and it seems that the 98 version is best suited for .308 Winchester rebarrel. The problem is that I can't find one anywhere. I've tried searching the web auctions and similar places with no luck... I would go to the next gunshow here in NC, but I wouldn't trust myself to determine the condition of one. Any thoughts?

Thanks for your ideas, -Coop
 
Best suggestion I can give. go to www.cruffler.com download the .pdf file of the curio and relic license application, fill it out and mail it to the address on it. When the license comes send copies to all the addresses on the cruffler website. Those folks will be more than happy to fill your mailbox with flyers full of '98 Mausers and lots of other rifles too.Last bunch of flyers had Turk Mausers selling around 40 bux for the whole rifle not just the action, other variations were more.

Send a copy to Brownells and MidwayUSA as well and they will give you dealer pricing on everything they have. The savings on my first order to Brownells paid for the license:D
 
You might consider a Yugoslav M48 Mauser from www.aimsurplus.com (or from a Big 5 sporting goods store if there are any in your area). I believe the action is a little shorter than a standard K98, but the ones I have are in like-new condition. I believe Aim has excellent rifles for $110 or so. The M48 has a turned down bolt, unlike the Turkish and other low-cost Mausers, and are available in much better shape than most of the other Mausers I've seen. Here's a link to Mitchell's Mausers, another vendor of M48s. They have a nice web site, with good pictures and an on-line manual, but their prices are high: http://www.mitchellsales.com.

I recently bought another M48 from Big 5 for $150 or so. It is like new, with a new bayonet, scabbard, sling, leather ammo box, oil can, etc. (as shown on the Mitchell's web site). The downside of the M48 is that I suspect that some K98 accessories (after-market stocks, scope mounts, etc.) may not fit. But I'm not sure of this.

Doug
 
I heeded the wisdom of fellow member Paul B. (I think) who recommends finding a J.C. Higgins Mauser rifle which is actually a FN Mauser action. I located a Higgins for $250- excellent metal, the stock was trashed... a definite candidate then I found a genuine FN Mauser .30-06 for $400 and bought that one.

All the action work is done for you. It's slick, drilled and tapped probably for both scope mounts and peep, and the bolt is nicely turned down, one stage trigger and handy safety... this way you save enough money to get a decent barrel... standard long magazine box might effect short cartridge feeding...
 
Coop,

ON Monday I just took delivery of an "excellent to unissued" M48-A Mauser from AIM, along with a new bayonet and scabbard and a used cleaning kit, frog, ammo pouch, & sling. All for $149.95. Also ordered a sealed can of Romanian 8mm ammo, dated 1956.

I got a BRAND NEW RIFLE, all matching serials, complete with 100% blueing everywhere. There was not a single wear mark inside the action (or outside either, for that matter). The top of the magazine follower and the bolt raceways were as untouched as the day it was assembled. No wear marks, no brass or copper marks. The inside of the bore was still blued.

The stock was a beautiful wood that looks a bit like oak, but the crufflers say that, even looking like oak, could still be teak. I don't know what teak looks like, so can't say for sure. One or two tiny dings and a small bruise from 50+ years of storage is not bad at all.

I debated long & hard about whether to shoot this puppy or not, but I did take it out for a test drive yesterday. Am glad I did.

At 100 yds. off a bench, my first 5 shot group measured 2.44 inches. After drifting the front sight a bit to the right, my third 5 shot group measured 1.78 inches and was dead center in the 10 ring.

Fired the last 5 shots offhand at a 12 inch dia. 200 yd. gong. Hit 4 x 5. This one is a keeper.

I'm impressed by this old Mauser, my first Mauser.

You could go much further wrong than to consider getting one of those and turning it into a .308 (keep the original barrel though).

Go HERE: http://www.swampworks.com/SwampysStuff-1.html

to see my latest little jewel and the target I shot with it.

Later,
Swampy
 
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I agree with DeeBee 100 per cent. I too own an FN Sears rifle. The only thing I had to do to the rifle was put a decent ajustable trigger in it. Mine is in cal. 270 and shoots better than a lot of newer rifles that I have owned. The workmanship of the FN action will literally take your breath away. The machining is just as smooth as glass. If you haunt the gun shows or haunt the net you can usually find thes rifles at very reasonable prices. Most ignorant people shy away from these rifles because they have Sears stamped on them. Little do they know that the J.F. Galef company imported these actions and half of them went to Roy Weatherby. He used these actions to build the very first Weatherby rifles. Collectors fight over these guns and pay big bucks for them but the same people would not touch the Sears guns that have the same identical action. I guess this just shows you how little collectors really know about the guns they collect. W.R.
 
Coop--

I've been thinking along the same lines, but I remembered that one of Cooper's criteria was a detachable magazine. I decided to use my Ishapore 308 Enfield as my starting point. I'm told you can buy Enfields in 303 for about $75, and composite stocks are easy to find. I can't vouch for which type of Enfield (#1, #2, whatever) will fit the aftermarket stocks available, but you should be able to make something work. I think B Square makes a Scount mount for them, too. Century Arms had replacement mags available, and a bipod shouldn't be a problem either. That's the nice thing about the concept, you can customize it to whatever strikes your fancy. :)
 
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