Yugoslavian M48 8mm Mauser

Q

Q-Man

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A friend of mine just bought an un-issued Yugoslavian M48 8mm Mauser soaked in grease for $100 at a Big 5 sporting goods store. It came with the bayonet, vintage cleaning doodads, and an old leather strap. It appears to be in excellent condition. We cleaned it up pretty well, because grease was everywhere. The bore seemed to have a few small pits, but didn't look unshootable.

Is there anything to look out for before we shoot? It won't blow up in our face will it? :)

We bought a 20 round box of new Remington 8mm Mauser ammo for $15. Ouch! I've found surplus Turkish 8mm Mauser ammo on the Internet at Century and Aim Surplus for $0.08 per round or so after shipping. This Turkish ammo is reported to be CORROSIVE!! Is this stuff safe to shoot or is there a better source of inexpensive ammo? What do you have to do differently when shooting corrosive ammunition?
 
If he got that for $100, that was a great deal!

If you want to be extra cautious, you can have the rifle checked out at your local shop for headspace, etc. With all matching serial #s, this should not be a concern.

On ammo: not only is the Remington stuff expensive, it is loaded really weak compared to the milspec, and shoots in a rainbow trajectory. The Turk milspec is like a beefed up .30-06 -> 154 grainers at 2900-3000 fps.

Don't be too worried about shooting the corrosive stuff if you (1) have access to soap and water at home - I sure hope so! - and (2) are willing to clean the rifle shortly after shooting - right after you get home.

All I do is squirt some brake cleaner down the bore right after shooting and then pour lots of hot soapy water down the bore when I get home. Don't get it all over the stock. That neutralizes the salts in the corrosive ammo. Then after rinsing and drying, oil the bore and leave it 'til next time. Be sure to use a dry patch to wipe the bore before shooting.
 
Thanks!...

Does anyone have a specific process that they like to do for cleaning after shooting with corrosive ammo? Should we use solvent (Hoppes) after the soapy water? Do you use a boar brush with the soapy water? Do you use a funnel for pouring the water down the boar?
 
Procedure

You can use a funnel or an attachment to a length of hose to get the water down the barrel. You can then use a bore brush to scrub it a bit and loosen up any junk in there. You may want to use a solvent like Sweets or Hoppe's Copper remover, too.

Another method is to dunk the muzzle into a bucket of hot soapy water and make a pump by pushing your cleaning rod with jag & tight patch down the barrel. When you pull the patch back toward the chamber, it will suck water up into the barrel. You can them play her like a slide trombone a few times and the corrosive salts should be gone.

Don't get water between the stock and the action or you may get rot or warpage. To guard against this, I finish the that part of the wood with extra coats of Tung Oil (or you can use Tru-Oil) to "waterproof" it.

Then do your normal cleaning routine. I recommend cleaning from the chamber end using a bore guide. Your .30 cal one should work fine if you have one. I leave either oil or Hoppe's #9 in the bore after I'm done cleaning.
 
Don't forget about the bolt, it needs to be cleaned with soap and water as well. Remember, it's the primers that are corrosive. After you clean the bolt with soap and water, pop it in the oven for a while to dry it out, then oil it up, inside and out. It's OK to oil the firing pin VERY lightly, especially after such a thorough cleaning. For the bore, use very hot water. That way it will almost dry itself. Once dry, clean and lubricate as you would any firearm.
 
I use ammonia to clean the interior of the barrel first, and then follow up with breakfree for lubricant......fubsy.
 
Is ammonia better than hot soapy water?

Is there anything else to watch out for when shooting the surplus Turkish ammo?

Is there an increased risk of some of the gunpowder becoming more explosive or generating excessive pressures?

What about too little pressure and getting a bullet stuck in the bore?

What about cracking of breaking of the brass cartridge?
 
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