3006 FNBrowning or Mauser or IOF

[chengis gun]

Legal varmints? Yup, no one will guess what you are alluding to.
How accurate are these rifles?
Has the owner let you shoot them?

In my part of the country periodically wild boars constitute legal varmints during crop ripening/harvest time (i.e. legally allowed but restricted in time and area).Domestic swine are also legally allowed to be terminated by the owner of the field if trespassed during the same season( hogrearing is a common undertaking in villages here). A particularly violent or destructive wild elephant is also sometimes allowed(wild elephants are not uncommon here), though the norm is for Wildlife/Forest/Police or paramilitary to corral it and terminate.

[TwoRivers]

"...only issue is that the Barrel gets heated up."

Well, you are burning powder at high temperature inside that barrel, and pushing a tightly fitting bullet down the bore. That friction also creates heat. Ergo, when you fire a rifle, any gun, the barrel gets hot. That, after all, is to be expected.

[Amit357]

"...only issue is that the Barrel gets heated up."

Well, you are burning powder at high temperature inside that barrel, and pushing a tightly fitting bullet down the bore. That friction also creates heat. Ergo, when you fire a rifle, any gun, the barrel gets hot. That, after all, is to be expected.

TwoRs,the next great Indian invention is gonna be a barrel that remains cool,expect a cpl of MISTY's to put a few water jackets on the Barrels of an IOF 06,a proper Le MAXIM design & fleece some poor B***** for a cpl of Ks Rs ,.

[chengis gun]

I got hold of my FN Browning 1950..


pros : 1.Its beautiful 2.No major scratches or nicks 3.Smooth bore ,smooth feed, smooth fire 4.Less kick than anticipated 4.Relatively short and light for such a large bore
Cons : 1.No attachments for scopes 2.Rudimentary iron sights(100,200,300m leafs) 3.Seriously cracked stock..will need a new one 4.Very tight trigger safety_catch(which putting it 'on') and too lax trigger safety(while flipping to 'off'/ready)..will require redoing

[chengis gun]

But the bums in the gunshop had crudely welded in 'attachments' when i had requested them to make arrangements for putting scopes...its ugly and the levels dont match


can any knowledgeable member suggest a way to LEVEL the scope_hold using my local gunsmith(or anywhere in India) as the current welds have different heights..?

regards C_G

[xl_target]

I too bought a FN Browning 3006Rifle in Jan 2014. This is an awesome stuff with the name embossed as FAB NAT D'ARMES DE GUERRE HERSATAL-BELGIQUE. This is with a chrome Vandaium Steel Barrel. One of the rareset of rare steel. I had an option for a Mausser 3006 and Remington 30express, while comparing the weight, look and the feel - FN is the best. I have fired 20 round at a stretch and have observed that the GUN is just like a new one .... only issue is that the Barrel gets heated up.

I have also heard that majority of the Mouser 3006 are with Duplicate Barrel and one of my friend has a bad time with one of his ingure blown up with a Barrel blowing issue with one of the Mouser 3006.

There is nothing rare about Chrome Vanadium Steel.
Chromium and vanadium are added to low alloy steel to increase its hardenability and to impart a grain structure that is finer than that of the standard chromium low-alloy steels.
It is used for making axles and shafts of automobiles, aircraft and locomotives.
It is also used for making tools and gun barrels. For example. Almost every gun barrel made by FN (USA) is made using a CMV steel.

As far as a gun barrel getting hot; all gun barrels get hot, even one chambered for the lowly .22LR

[Vikram]

But the bums in the gunshop had crudely welded in 'attachments' when i had requested them to make arrangements for putting scopes...its ugly and the levels dont match

Those vandals should not be allowed near a gun, especially such a nice gun.

[timmy]

chengis gun: Are you sure that those bases are welded to the action? If they are really welded, I would have to give the welder props for the job. Looking at your picture, I would tend to think that those bases are soldered or silver soldered to the action. If this is true, they should be able to be heated and knocked off, as long as there are no screws holding them to the receiver, which I don't see from your pictures.

If these are soldered on, get them knocked off. You should be able, then, to find some proper bases and have the action drilled and tapped (hopefully, not by some shoemaker) and have the proper bases screwed on. They would cover most of the area where the soldering has taken place, if the person knocking the current bases off is somewhat skilled in wiping the solder left behind off of the receiver. (This is mandatory, since, to screw the proper bases down, all the solder must be removed so the new bases can seat directly on the steel of the receiver.)

Once you have some proper bases, you can get rid of those hideous high rings (they will lift your cheek so high off of the stock's comb that you will get nose bleeds, anyway) and get the scope mounted lower. You already have the low safety, so all you need to worry about is getting the scope low without encountering problems with the bolt handle. The bolt handle you have looks pretty low, so you shouldn't have a problem getting the scope down to a reasonable height.

But, please take a lesson from what you see: Don't let some village blacksmith mess with that thing. Get it to a reputable gun smith and get some good bases and rings meant for a 98 Mauser action.

I hope I am right and that they are soldered. Then, the problem won't be nearly as bad as it looks presently.

[timmy]

PS: The safety to get is a Buehler. Here's a new one from Brownell's:

http://www.brownells.com/rifle-parts/sa ... 13149.aspx

[chengis gun]

chengis gun: Are you sure that those bases are welded to the action? If they are really welded, I would have to give the welder props for the job. Looking at your picture, I would tend to think that those bases are soldered or silver soldered to the action. If this is true, they should be able to be heated and knocked off, as long as there are no screws holding them to the receiver, which I don't see from your pictures.

If these are soldered on, get them knocked off. You should be able, then, to find some proper bases and have the action drilled and tapped (hopefully, not by some shoemaker) and have the proper bases screwed on. They would cover most of the area where the soldering has taken place, if the person knocking the current bases off is somewhat skilled in wiping the solder left behind off of the receiver. (This is mandatory, since, to screw the proper bases down, all the solder must be removed so the new bases can seat directly on the steel of the receiver.)

Once you have some proper bases, you can get rid of those hideous high rings (they will lift your cheek so high off of the stock's comb that you will get nose bleeds, anyway) and get the scope mounted lower. You already have the low safety, so all you need to worry about is getting the scope low without encountering problems with the bolt handle. The bolt handle you have looks pretty low, so you shouldn't have a problem getting the scope down to a reasonable height.

But, please take a lesson from what you see: Don't let some village blacksmith mess with that thing. Get it to a reputable gun smith and get some good bases and rings meant for a 98 Mauser action.

I hope I am right and that they are soldered. Then, the problem won't be nearly as bad as it looks presently.

@Timmy,
thanks for the detailed &crisp info..your replies in any thread are a pleasure to read.I had to actually look up the words welding vs soldering (and brazing) in Yahoo answers lol.I think its soldering and it looks like i can just knock them off myself without effort.Unfortunately i am unaware of any gunsmith of repute in my woods to carry out your suggestions

[chengis gun]

PS: The safety to get is a Buehler. Here's a new one from Brownell's:

http://www.brownells.com/rifle-parts/sa ... 13149.aspx

Is there any way to get these foreign (?restricted) items to apna desh, folks? Or is there any outlet in India legally retailing such products( safety lever, gunsights etc)? any info will be highly appreciated...

[TwoRivers]

PS: The safety to get is a Buehler. Here's a new one from Brownell's:

http://www.brownells.com/rifle-parts/sa ... 13149.aspx

Is there any way to get these foreign (?restricted) items to apna desh, folks? Or is there any outlet in India legally retailing such products( safety lever, gunsights etc)? any info will be highly appreciated...

The safety on your F.N. Is quite similar in action to the Buehler safety recommended by Tim. It looks like another American "low-scope" safety for Mauser actions, the Dayton-Traister. It simply requires fitting to make it work more smoothly. But since these safeties are not indexed like the original Mauser safety, care in fitting is required. Otherwise they release too easily when brushed against.

[timmy]

I think its soldering and it looks like i can just knock them off myself without effort.

chengis gun: It would be nice if you had a little experience with soldering before trying to do this. Doing some copper pipe plumbing with wiped soldered joints would set you up nicely. The solder will melt around ~200° C, depending on the lead/tin mixture. If the person who did this had a little craftsmanship, he should have used silver solder which will melt at ~250° C. A propane torch should be more than sufficient. Use a rather small flame and warm the bases, working with one at a time. Take the bolt out and take the action out of the stock, as well.

You will be heating the base long before it starts to glow even the dullest red, so make sure you don't even get near that hot. You don't want to ruin the temper of the receiver or ruin any more of the bluing. You can try striking the base with a small hammer handle -- something wood would be ideal. You won't need to hit it too hard. Tapping it smartly will work. You will do this and the base will come free just as the solder gets hot enough to flow.

Have a good rag (not something paper) that is pretty damp, but not dripping,handy. As soon as the base comes off, wipe the area with the rag, so you can get all of the solder off. Since you have the action out and the magazine off, too, you shouldn't have to worry about the solder. The trick here is to wipe the solder off of the metal, and not spread it around, because that could further ruin the bluing. So try to wipe toward the loading cutout.

If you want to put a scope back on, you are going to have to see a gunsmith anyway, because he should have the drill press and jigs needed to center, drill, and tap the screw holes needed to mount the scope properly. If you have the bases ready, you can just go to him and have him remove the bases, too, at the same time.

Regarding the safety: The thing with the one you have is that it is on the left side of the bolt. Most people, being right handed, want the safety lever on the right side of the bolt, since they will flip it with the hand that works the bolt. The Buehler safety is on the right hand side.

However, there's a downside to this: The original Mauser safety is rotated clockwise to apply. This means that it's ridges cut into the grooves of the cocking piece from the right hand side of the gun. The Buehler safety cuts into the cocking piece from the left hand side of the gun. It will be a bit of a pain to apply the safety, but that's no problem. What you want is to be able to flick the safety off with your thumb when the time comes to fire, and that's what the Buehler will do.

If you are ok with the left hand side safety and it isn't applying properly, make sure someone did not apply jugaad engineering to the one you have. Someone may have altered it.

BTW, where will you get a new stock? Is there no hope of repairing the one you have? It looks attractive to me.

[chengis gun]

I think its soldering and it looks like i can just knock them off myself without effort.

chengis gun: It would be nice if you had a little experience with soldering before trying to do this. Doing some copper pipe plumbing with wiped soldered joints would set you up nicely. The solder will melt around ~200° C, depending on the lead/tin mixture. If the person who did this had a little craftsmanship, he should have used silver solder which will melt at ~250° C. A propane torch should be more than sufficient. Use a rather small flame and warm the bases, working with one at a time. Take the bolt out and take the action out of the stock, as well.

You will be heating the base long before it starts to glow even the dullest red, so make sure you don't even get near that hot. You don't want to ruin the temper of the receiver or ruin any more of the bluing. You can try striking the base with a small hammer handle -- something wood would be ideal. You won't need to hit it too hard. Tapping it smartly will work. You will do this and the base will come free just as the solder gets hot enough to flow.

Have a good rag (not something paper) that is pretty damp, but not dripping,handy. As soon as the base comes off, wipe the area with the rag, so you can get all of the solder off. Since you have the action out and the magazine off, too, you shouldn't have to worry about the solder. The trick here is to wipe the solder off of the metal, and not spread it around, because that could further ruin the bluing. So try to wipe toward the loading cutout.

If you want to put a scope back on, you are going to have to see a gunsmith anyway, because he should have the drill press and jigs needed to center, drill, and tap the screw holes needed to mount the scope properly. If you have the bases ready, you can just go to him and have him remove the bases, too, at the same time.

Regarding the safety: The thing with the one you have is that it is on the left side of the bolt. Most people, being right handed, want the safety lever on the right side of the bolt, since they will flip it with the hand that works the bolt. The Buehler safety is on the right hand side.

However, there's a downside to this: The original Mauser safety is rotated clockwise to apply. This means that it's ridges cut into the grooves of the cocking piece from the right hand side of the gun. The Buehler safety cuts into the cocking piece from the left hand side of the gun. It will be a bit of a pain to apply the safety, but that's no problem. What you want is to be able to flick the safety off with your thumb when the time comes to fire, and that's what the Buehler will do.

If you are ok with the left hand side safety and it isn't applying properly, make sure someone did not apply jugaad engineering to the one you have. Someone may have altered it.

BTW, where will you get a new stock? Is there no hope of repairing the one you have? It looks attractive to me.

@Timmy, thanks for the advice.I dont think repairing is an option on the stock as it is cracked starting from beneath the bolt to halfway thru..;what is your opinion regarding a clamp_on mount for this rifle? And since your Buehler Safety link says its installed in the right side,but my FN has it on the left.Will it still fit? ( The same rifle i found out was marketed in the US as J.C.Higgins Model 50 &51 http://www.chuckhawks.com/j_c_higgins_50.htm
regards C_G

[timmy]

Chengis gun: about the clamp on mount, I have one. To use it would require a lot of I letting and cutting of the stock. The main part of it clamps around the large receiver ring. I don't know which one you have, but the one I have is quite ugly. As far as how well it would work, I can't say. It is made of aluminum, so there wouldn't be any option of soldering it to ensue that it didn't move. You hVe to suit yourself on these things, but on a nice gun, I don't think I would choose one.

Regarding the safety, they all will work if they are meant for a Model 98 Mauser action. It's only a matter of whether you want the wing not he right or left. If you are happy with the one you have, I would stick with it. In other words, get the rest of the gun up and running, and try it out. If you don't like what you have, you can always change it later.

I have looked at those JC Higgins models - that's a Sears brand. It makes little difference as far as the action is concerned -- they are all FN actions, whether stocked and sold by others, like Sears, Wards, Weatherby, Husqvarna, Harrington & Richardson, and a boatload of others. After WW2, European labor was cheap and lots of companies found FN actions to be cheap and well-made. We all know that they certainly are well made! So, any of them are good. The wood and the sights may differ, but the basic action is good stuff. Browning ended up using a different bolt stop, but they are all FN and they're all the good stuff. Consider your gun a prize of workmanship and materials that would cost a bundle new today. Just look at a Yugo Mark X Mauster action and you will see what I mean!