New Member - Mauser Help

[herb]

Hi Folks, Been a member of this forum for the last month or so. Left India 10 years ago.Currently in Ontario, Canada.

I have a Mauser Model 98 long action (made in Germany by Berlin-Lubecker in 1942 with 4 digit matching serial numbers on bolt, receiver & magazine) sporter in 8mm. As quality 8mm is difficult to come by I am thinking of rebarelling it to another caliber. What options do I have. I already have a pre-64 Win 70 30-06, so 30-06 is out. How about a .338 Win Mag? Any advice will be highly appreciated. Photos of the current gun attached

Unrelated question - I have a Diana model 52 in India in brand new condition, I picked it up from Al Sayad Dubai a few years ago. How difficult is it to take it out of India?

Herb

[herb]

.. added some more images to personal gallery.

[Vikram]

Such a beautiful rifle!I am sorry I am not really addressing your question.But, is 8mm such an odd calibre?My info says it's a common calibre,though not very popular a choice.Our mod Mehul has one in 8mm. Think about it.I am sure our experts will chip in soon.Also,unless the air rifle is of sentimental value to you,you will get a lot of money for it in India than in Canada.You can buy yourself a new one there or a normal rifle.I am sorry if I totally side tracked your post.

Best-
Vikram

[herb]

I am glad you liked the rifle Vikram. The factory ammo available is under-loaded ( please correct me if I am wrong) due to many old Mausers around, I think manufacturers are just being careful. I just thought this would be an interesting project.

[mehulkamdar]

Hello Herb,

A few comments:

1. The thumbcut on the action leads me to think that the rifle is a restocked military Mauser. The stock also suggests the same as I have never heard of any Mauser factory rifle being offered with a Monte Carlo or modified Monte Carlo stock (like yours) though, on the positive side, even if it was a J Bore rifle originally, it is very likely that when it was restocked, it was converted to the more modern S Bore, which is a pluspoint

2. What are the dates of manufacture? The reason ammunition in the USA and Canada is underloaded is because there are some old J bore rifles around here and these could be blown up if someone were to fire S bore ammunition. That said, in the US at least, you have always had S bore ammunition available from Sellier and Bellot, RWS etc and it should also be available in Canada. There is also some lower priced S bore ammunition loaded to European specs from Greece though I understand that that has corrosive primers and would corrode your barrel in the long run. Wolf also offer very high quality ammunition at reasonable prices over here, they may be another company for you to consider

3. While it would be a simple job for any in store gunsmith to install a barrel in 30-06 for you over here and cheap barrels threaded for various Mauser actions are available online, I am not at all sure whether you would be able to get wrk done safely in India. Usually there is some work that has to be done to the magazine as well when rebarreling to a new calibre but that should not be a problem if you find a gunsmith who knows his job

4. More importantly than that, check out the legality of getting the rifle rebarreled to a new calibre in India. If it is illegal then there is nothing that you could do

5. As Vikram rightly suggests, converted military rifles would be much more valuable in India than over here. I have seen converted military rifles offered at as low as $ 100 at gun shows and as high as $ 300 but not usually more than that on Gunbroker and Auction Arms. That being the case, it certainly would not be worth the trouble and expense either to bring the rifle to Canada to convert it or to sell it. You might just find that it makes more sense to sell it in India and buy something else there. In Canada, of course, buying anything should be no problem at all

PS A picture of the barrel would help determine whether the rifle retains the military barrel or whether it was rebarreled. I have a Mauser 8x57JS that was made on a military action but with a Douglas barrel and folding leaf sights in Texas. I did try the high velocity European ammunition - Olympic, Sellier and Bellot etc but my rifle shoots perfectly with the Federal Power SHocks and I guess that was intentional as far as the sighting was concerned. An AMerican gunsmith would, most certainly, have worked to optimise the rifle for ammunition that is easily available here. Yes, the Power SHocks are not as hot as European ammunition, but, if I wanted a more powerful rifle here, I would just go out and buy another in 30-06, 7mm Rem or bigger instead of trying to hot rod my own rifle. I don't use a scope and that is reason enough for me to leave my rifle as it is.

Cheers!

[Vikram]

See Herb,what did I tell ya.LOL.Wait for the experts and how did he come in?BTW,Mehul,Herb lives in Canada.He wants to take his air rifle from India and not the 8mm which already is in Canada.

Best-
Vikram

[mehulkamdar]

Sorry, I misunderstood the question. AFAIK there should be no problem on the Canadian side as far as taking the air rifle there is concerned. Even in Toronto which is more anti gun than other parts of Canada I have seen air rifles sold at Canadian Tire and other stores. I can't think of any restrictions there are on air rifles though, of course, it wouldn;t hurt to check with the local authorities. PErhaps, a call to Air Canada would help especially if the air rifle is being shipped through them. They would most certainly know.

Cheers!

[herb]

Thanks Mehul for the detailed reply, I really appreciate it, yes its converted German military Mauser 98 made in 1942. It has a excellent trigger and a Buehler wing safety which allows for low mounting of a scope. Just love the Mauser 98 action, I know I will never get back the money I invest in this gun, but I will enjoy the project & the gun.

Here in Canada I am looking at the following cost (Canadian $)-

Krieger barrel - $350 to $400, Shilen - $150 to $200
Open the bolt face for Magnum caliber $100
Barrel installation: true action face, lap locking lugs, (thread ?), (chamber?), headspace, crown, polish, test fire, and stamp cal - $200 to $300 ( by a very good gunsmith)



I know I can buy a new Rem 700 or Ruger Hawkeye for this cost but it will not be Mauser 98.

My main concern is can a Model 98 military action take the 338 win mag? Is it safe? If 338 win mag is not safe in a old model 98 action then the project is off.

Thanks
Herb

[mehulkamdar]

Herb,

If you go to a top Canadian gunsmith then he would most certainly get your action re-hardened. I have no idea of prices as I have only bought guns that were already completed but the cost of getting an action upto scratch for the 338 or whatever other round you wish to chamber the rifle for should not be more than US$ 200 in addition to other costs. At least that is what it costs in the USA.

I would suggest registering on www.nitroexpress.com or www.accuratereloading.com and posting on the relevant forums there to find out who might be a good gunsmith to contact. Canadian gunsmiths like Bill Leeper post there and they would be able to help you with whatever queries you may have.

You could also look at leaving your rifle as it is and buying a new Zastava action - about $ 400 in the US but definitely cheaper in Canada for the short belted magnum class of cartridges and get a custom rifle built around it if you would like to take that route. That way you would have a true Mauser in a belted magnum round that you could use while your 8mm could be a standby for whenever you feel like using a standard round.

I agree with you that Mausers are special - they have to be or they wouldn't be the design of choice for some of the world's foremost bolt action authorities.

Cheers!

[Mark]

Greetings Herb, it is a nice rifle you have there!

Your rifle will handle a 338 just fine, or a 458 for that matter. When you click on the link below you'll see quite a few chamberings for them.

Because you have a mauser, I'd say the best value in barrels is from Lothar Walther. They are a very high quality, and you can buy the barrels "long chambered" which means they are already reamed a little deep, and so your gunsmith just needs to machine the breech face and collar to set headspace. I believe they are still priced at $180 US which is a bargain.

http://www.lothar-walther.de/html/268.php

For a 338, you'll most likely need to have some work done on the feed rails in addition to everything else but whomever opens up the bolt face would be the person to look into that.

A chambering that would fit right in for your neck of the woods but lothar does not make is 35 Whelen, which is a 30-06 necked up to 35 caliber.

Enjoy your rifle!

Mark

P.S. Something that should be done before any work is to have the receiver checked for hardness to make sure it is properly hardened. That would be the only concern I'd have.

[Sakobav]

Handsome gun Herb and you are in great company for advise and guidance. Looking forward to reading and seeing pictures of your restored gun.

Cheers

[Hunter]

Hi Herb,
Welcome to the forum.Can u suggest any friendly gun store I can visit in Toronto or may be on the outskirts, as , the last time I visited ,most of them would not even let me in without a valid PAL!
Am planing a visit shortly.
Many thanks for your help.
Regards//Clarence

[mehulkamdar]

Hunter,

You have set your account here to disable PMs. I tried replying but couldn;t for this very reason.

You have my e-mail. Send me a mail or enable PMs so that I could reply.

Cheers!

[Hunter]

Hi Mehul,

Although have taken flak for that before,try as much as I can,just cant seem to get it right(enabling my pm field that is)
Can someone give me a step by step guide as to how to get it right?

BTW will email u soon.

Brgds

[herb]

Thank you once again for all your input. I was tempted to take Mehul's advice and and leave the gun untouched which is the right thing to do, but sometimes our passion makes us do some foolish things. So the gun is going to the gunsmith in a week or two.

Mark - I spoke with the guys at Lothar Walther, I need an import permit to get the barrel into Canada. There is one importer in Canada but could not get in touch with him.

I have one gunsmith here in Ontario who imports blanks made by Montana Rifleman and will do all the required work.

Any inputs on Montana Rifleman barrel???? (http://www.montanarifleman.com)

Hunter - There is Basspro in Vaughan about 45 minutes from Toronto. They will not allow you to handle any guns without a PAL. If you are looking for a very good gunsmith contact S C Gunworks, Markham ("http://www.scgunworks.ca/Custom%20examp ... rifles.htm"
). They do custom work. Another dealer is Ellwoodepps (http://www.ellwoodepps.com) in Orilla, about 3 hours from Toronto. I live in London Ontario, about 2 hours from Toronto. I can guide to shops around here.


Herbert