Mauser information needed
I need information about this rifle.
Did it come engraved? Approximate manufacture date... Manufactured by?
Thank you
Did it come engraved? Approximate manufacture date... Manufactured by?
Thank you
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I just bought a 35 Whelen - the action has Russian Markings but is definitely based on a Mausers action. My wife, who is from St. Petersburg Russia - read the cyrilic (sp?) writing and she thinks it was a presentation rifle awarded to a hero of the defense of Stalngrad- it's dated 1943 and has an elaborate symbol including the Red Star. As far as the rest of the rifle goes - a 35 Whelen barrel was added replacing the orignal caliber and then a baked on silver matte finish on the barrel was added - the receiver is still blue - and and the rifle looks like hell. Also an ill fitting stock came with the gun.
The barrel looks like it has never been fired.
I can e-mail photos of the rifle and my wife's computer also has cyrilic fonts so she can type exactly what is written on the receiver and I can e-mail it to you.
I'd like whatever anyone can tell me about the rifle. Also can the terrible silver matte finish can be bead blasted off the barrel?
I'll wait to see if anyone answers this post before I get into asking for stock information.
Thanks for reading this post - any advice will be appreciated
John
jmknaut@juno.com
Member NRA,GOA,DVA,LEAA & American Legion
For All The Fallen Heroes And All The Forgotten Victims
(Christopher Hyde)0 -
Sporterizied, in what looks like a English style.
Very nicely done IMHO
The hard part will be finding the proper claw mounts for the optics (they were made in matched base/mount sets)0 -
It's a really old German gunsmiths rework of a military rifle. The markings on the left side of the receiver are the proof marks that were in use prior to the First World War. It gives the weight of the powder used in Grams. Type of powder and bullet type used in proofing.
The rifle most likely is well over 100 years old. Lot of work was done in altering the original military rifle. It even appears to have had a claw scope mount. The engraving is kind of on the crude side though. Possibly it was refinished and engraved years after the original conversion work was done?
EDIT #1, Separate the receiver and the stock. There should be German commercial Proof Marks and a conventional serial number on it. If there aren't it's probably something that was made up for one of our G.I.'s right after the war. At that time all German civilian arms were turned in, and a lot of our guys got to keep them as souvenirs. A German gunsmith would have reblued and engraved it, for a couple cartons of cigarettes.
EDIT #2, Note the stippling/fine checkering? on the top of the receiver. This was commonly done by European gunsmiths to obscure the original military markings, commonly found on G 98's.
quote:Originally posted by MIKE WISKEY
I see nothing about this rifle that was 'military', back then you could buy 'bare' actions from a number of mgf., (all pre-war2 mausers had the 'thumb cut').0 -
I think it "came engraved."
It is a rather simple pattern but well worked into the lines of the action. I think likely done in the builder's shop.
It did not come with Bonanza Gold rubbed into the pattern, though.
And I think it has been refinished, the blue looks like hot tank process, not the rust blue of its era; and the stock looks kind of pale. Lots of German sporting guns were brought back by Occupation GIs and this might be one that came back and got prettied up.
You only show one proof mark which is the type used before 1912. And since the action is an 1898 Mauser, that ties it down to a 14 year period.
CAUTION: That is not the standard proof load for regular 8x57 Mauser. No way to tell the caliber from it, but it is not the usual.
...cerrosafe cast of the barrel and it mic's .323" for the bore
An S bore sporter, that's good. Maybe that is why the proof charge is shown at 2.75 grams instead of the usual 2.67 in the book examples. 8x57JS instead of 8x57J. A chamber cast would still be a good idea.
I would still stick to mild American loads, look how much metal they cut out of the receiver ring to dovetail in that claw mount base.
There might be more proof marks under the stock and could include a date code and caliber.
Maker? No way to know. Call him Herman The German, there were a lot of small shops that did not put their names on their products; or it could be a guild gun with every gunsmith in town doing his specialty.0 -
I did a cerrosafe cast of the barrel and it mic's .323" for the bore.
I will take it out of the stock and check for more proof marks... Thanks0 -
I agree with Hawk above, just to note "It's a really old German gunsmiths rework of a military rifle."...........I see nothing about this rifle that was 'military', back then you could buy 'bare' actions from a number of mgf., (all pre-war2 mausers had the 'thumb cut'). 0 -
Commerial action,imo,,and sweet spoon bolt and double triggers,,I like it,,its a piece of art-[:)] 0 -
Markings under stock. Rifle serial # 1024... also 1024 stamped on barrel. 0 -
No surprises.
(Crown) (crown)/N is the standard Nitro proof mark, in combination with the 2.75 gGBP/SB load I.D.
7.8mm is the bore diameter.
This is usually less than what you would get with a careful measurement with precision instruments. I figure it was quickly done by a proofhouse clerk with a rack of plug gauges and he was not taking a lot of pains with it.0
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