Sporterized Spanish Mauser
Okay, I know without photos it's difficult but my questions are kinda more general than specific to this particular gun!
Anyway, I'm at a small gun show in Arizona, (haven't been to a gun show in a long time 'cause I make my own beef jerky and the wife has plenty of jewelry and that's half of what you find in gun shows these days). So, this guy walks up with a rifle and tries to sell it to the dealer whose table I'm standing in front of but he doesn't want it. It's a sporterized/bubba conversion of a 7x 57 Mauser military rifle and he's asking $150. After the dealer declined buying it I dickered with the guy and wound up with the rifle, sling, and two unopened boxes of S&B ammo for $115.00.
A mismatched numbers 1893 Spanish Mauser, original stock with the front wood cut at the first barrel band (top wood still present) military sights, bolt handle turned down, crests and markings ground or polished and hard to read (Fabrica de Armas Oviedo 19?5), olive drab carry sling, Pachmeyr White line recoil pad, stock refinished in light oil, sanded but not gouged and in clean condition, looks like all metal reblued. I put a bore light on it (I carry my own to gun shows) and the barrel looked like a mirror with sharp, well defined rifling throughout the 28 inch barrel.
Two boxes of new Sellier and Beliot 139 grain 7x57mm ammo with a price still on it. One Olive Drab web quick detachable sling with no fraying or marks.
Identified at home as an 1893 (flat bottom on the bolt face, cock on close), probably 1925 date because it has the gas relief hole on the left of the bolt; A little break free on the safety freed that up, a double check on the chamber and bore size (7x57 chambers easily, .308 will not)a .282 dia bullet dropped in the barrel goes exactly the same distance as on my 7mm Mag.
The military sights suck unless I want to shoot volleys at a 1000 yards, even flat it's a tiny notch at the rear and supposedly set at 300 yards.
I know the small ring mausers are not as desirable as the large rings unless they're Swedish and after Bubba got on it there is no collectability. I know the 7x57 round is a good, solid cartridge and easily available.
Now, I need a sporterized military rifle like a hole in the head, almost as much as I need another caliber to shoot and load for but I'm a sucker for a good deal. The question it; "Did I get a good deal ?"
More to the point, does anyone have any ideas on how to gat a better rear sight without drilling and tapping? They make replacements for the 98 mausers but I can't find one for the small ring Spanish. I know I pulled the ladder sight on my SKS and put in a peep sight keeping the original front sight, that's what I would like to do with this one. Also would like to have a shorter (22", 24" ??) barrel but then I gotta get a new front sight which influences what I do with the rear. Maybe just bite the bullet and drill and tap a scope mount on it.
I just hate to spend more on a rear sight than I paid for the whole gun and ammo.
Should I just pass this on to someone who needs a good inexpensive deer rifle and move on to some other project ?
Thanks for the advice, Dan R
Anyway, I'm at a small gun show in Arizona, (haven't been to a gun show in a long time 'cause I make my own beef jerky and the wife has plenty of jewelry and that's half of what you find in gun shows these days). So, this guy walks up with a rifle and tries to sell it to the dealer whose table I'm standing in front of but he doesn't want it. It's a sporterized/bubba conversion of a 7x 57 Mauser military rifle and he's asking $150. After the dealer declined buying it I dickered with the guy and wound up with the rifle, sling, and two unopened boxes of S&B ammo for $115.00.
A mismatched numbers 1893 Spanish Mauser, original stock with the front wood cut at the first barrel band (top wood still present) military sights, bolt handle turned down, crests and markings ground or polished and hard to read (Fabrica de Armas Oviedo 19?5), olive drab carry sling, Pachmeyr White line recoil pad, stock refinished in light oil, sanded but not gouged and in clean condition, looks like all metal reblued. I put a bore light on it (I carry my own to gun shows) and the barrel looked like a mirror with sharp, well defined rifling throughout the 28 inch barrel.
Two boxes of new Sellier and Beliot 139 grain 7x57mm ammo with a price still on it. One Olive Drab web quick detachable sling with no fraying or marks.
Identified at home as an 1893 (flat bottom on the bolt face, cock on close), probably 1925 date because it has the gas relief hole on the left of the bolt; A little break free on the safety freed that up, a double check on the chamber and bore size (7x57 chambers easily, .308 will not)a .282 dia bullet dropped in the barrel goes exactly the same distance as on my 7mm Mag.
The military sights suck unless I want to shoot volleys at a 1000 yards, even flat it's a tiny notch at the rear and supposedly set at 300 yards.
I know the small ring mausers are not as desirable as the large rings unless they're Swedish and after Bubba got on it there is no collectability. I know the 7x57 round is a good, solid cartridge and easily available.
Now, I need a sporterized military rifle like a hole in the head, almost as much as I need another caliber to shoot and load for but I'm a sucker for a good deal. The question it; "Did I get a good deal ?"
More to the point, does anyone have any ideas on how to gat a better rear sight without drilling and tapping? They make replacements for the 98 mausers but I can't find one for the small ring Spanish. I know I pulled the ladder sight on my SKS and put in a peep sight keeping the original front sight, that's what I would like to do with this one. Also would like to have a shorter (22", 24" ??) barrel but then I gotta get a new front sight which influences what I do with the rear. Maybe just bite the bullet and drill and tap a scope mount on it.
I just hate to spend more on a rear sight than I paid for the whole gun and ammo.
Should I just pass this on to someone who needs a good inexpensive deer rifle and move on to some other project ?
Thanks for the advice, Dan R
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Pass it on. Any time or money you would put into it, wouldn't be recoverable. IMHO. 0 -
I know you tried a muzzle test more or less; but without slugging the bore I wouldn't be convinced that the gun wasn't over sized on the bore; nor woudl I be convinced that the lugs hadn't set back a bit as Spanish guns are notoriously soft. Leading to excessive headspace.
Depending on the quality of the job, you either did ok or got fleeced.
I would check headspace adn shoot a box of the S&B for group and see, before investing more into it. ANY sight will cost something.0 -
Just an FYI, the S&B 7x57amo I have is much hotter than domestic commercial ammo. I have 1 of those rifles left in 7x57(the others are rebarrelled now. My thoughts are to shoot a few rounds and see if the bolt seems overly difficult to open-indicating likely lug recess battering. If that seems OK, you have options.
#1 Sell it for a little profit to someone who has lower standards than you.
#2 Cut and recrown the barrel(no one can live with a 28" barrel) and D&T for a scope.0 -
quote:Originally posted by Mobuck
Just an FYI, the S&B 7x57amo I have is much hotter than domestic commercial ammo. I have 1 of those rifles left in 7x57(the others are rebarrelled now. My thoughts are to shoot a few rounds and see if the bolt seems overly difficult to open-indicating likely lug recess battering. If that seems OK, you have options.
#1 Sell it for a little profit to someone who has lower standards than you.
#2 Cut and recrown the barrel(no one can live with a 28" barrel) and D&T for a scope.
Option 3 - convert to 45acp and make something similar to a DeLisle carbine. Rhineland arms used to sell a kit for this...0 -
"#2 Cut and recrown the barrel(no one can live with a 28" barrel) and D&T for a scope."
#2.5 check out the 'mojo' sight, replaces the rear sight blade, the 28" barrel is a 'bit' long but wth. adding a scope will up your 'investment' by at least X3 (d&t, lower bolt handle, scope safty, mounts, & scope).0 -
See if anyone makes a 'scout rifle' type scope mount for an intermediate-eye-relief scope that replaces the rear sight leaf - no bolt or safety alteration needed, may not need any drilling/tapping. 0 -
Sounds like a lot of time and dough being put into a mismatched Spanish Mauser. I'm with Rufe......too many other good "projects" out there to start to work on a......mismatched Spanish Mauser. I would pass[^] 0 -
Thanks guys, for all the input. I checked out the Mojo sights but they specifically reference '98 Mausers and I don't think the 1916 Spanish they show is the same as a '93 so that's no joy. Same for the 'scout' scope mount that replaces the rear sight, can't find one for this model.
I did remove the wood and the barrel is numbered to the receiver, bolt and floor plate are different though. Then I tried the rifle on a 50 yard target, it grouped around 2" with the awful military sight and 60+ year old eyes.
I'm thinking to check the bend on the bolt handle to see if there is sufficient clearance the way it's bent to accommodate a scope, if so I'll cut the barrel, re-crown, and drill and tap for ten bucks worth of weaver mounts and an inexpensive scope.
If the bolt handle needs more work than is already done to it then I think it's going on to another owner as is.
Thanks again,
Dan R0 -
I have a different point of view than most on sporterized mil guns.
I like them.
You have a decent deer rifle there for only about $200 total.
Back in the 50's and 60's when mil guns were dirt cheap there was many converted and many books even written on how to do it.
It is now "out of favor" because the old guns are not $39 from the dealers any more.
Now today, it's okay to take a ar15 type of gun and add all the junk plastic do-dads to it and call it tacticool.
I wonder if in another 40 years some of those people are going to say
"Pass on that Bushmaster with that ugly quad rail and halo site"
[;)]0 -
quote:Originally posted by babun
I have a different point of view than most on sporterized mil guns.
I like them.
You have a decent deer rifle there for only about $200 total.
Back in the 50's and 60's when mil guns were dirt cheap there was many converted and many books even written on how to do it.
It is now "out of favor" because the old guns are not $39 from the dealers any more.
Now today, it's okay to take a ar15 type of gun and add all the junk plastic do-dads to it and call it tacticool.
I wonder if in another 40 years some of those people are going to say
"Pass on that Bushmaster with that ugly quad rail and halo site"
[;)]
+1 take it out and shoot it! If it shoots good keep it.[:)]0
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