Carl Gustafs Stads rifle
The widow of a friend has a Carl Gustafs Stads rifle with a metal band indicating 1914 on it. It's bolt action but I don't know the caliber. It has the last three digits of the number HK58413 in two other locations on the rifle. Does anyone have any idea what this might be and how much it might be worth? I have digital photos available if that will help.Thanks in advance for any help you can offer.
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pholliday,
I think that it would be nice to see the photo of the widows rifle.
If it is a Swedish Mauser made in 1914, it is in Caliber 6.5 x 55 Swede. This is pretty much the national cartridge of Sweden. It is still use by a large number of hunters and target shooters. It is considered to be potent enough to hunt their Moose.
These rifles have a lot of notoriety for being very accurate even though they are 90 years old. The metal used to make these rifles is some of the very best ever produced in Europe and the Scandinavian countries. Some of these rifles were produced in Germany but come with a banner that says 'Oberndorf' on the front ring. The majority are marked as yours is, Carl Gustafs.
Best.
There, I thought that maybe a drawing would help with the cartridge designation.0 -
Here are (2) excellent links, that give you much information on the Swede Rifle that belonged to your friend. IMHO, they will pretty much answer all your questions.
https://lockbox.dwave.net/northcapepubs/swmauser.htm
http://www.surplusrifle.com/mauserswedish/index.asp0 -
Here are a couple of photos of the Swede:
This looks like a very nice Stutzen Sporter conversion. It might be a M38 by the looks of the bolt handle but the barrel has been cut back. These were the two best of the 4 sent to me, the others were out of focus so I didn't bother posting them. Nice rifle.
Best.0 -
i believe this is a 'sporterised' m-94. they also used the turned down bolt and a similar (from the profile photo) rear sight. besides a '38 would have a receiver date in the 1940's. 0 -
I think my heart just sprang a leak...if that is an M-94 , although it's pretty I hate to see the rarer types get sporterised when it negates the value so much! Still a nice looking little sporter with a fairly nice looking piece of wood. Looks as though the blueing has dropped to about 60% or so which doesn't help either. Should likely be worth about $200 I would think unless provenance for an original sporter can be established which I believe it cannot. Are all the numbers that can be seen matching? At least on the last 3 digits? Mike...Isn't the bolt handle on the M-94 curve bent and not squared off at the bolt body? I'm not too sure but it seems to ma as though they were. Who knows! Post back if you find pictures that show reference and I'll try to do the same. I have several at home but the one I don't own is, of course, an M-94 Cavalry carbine! Figures!!
"When I cease learning...I'm dead"(Me)
"Power corrupts...Absolute power corrupts absolutely"(Descartes?)
"History is written by winners"(Patton)
"You get a lot farther with a kind word and a gun than you do with a kind word alone!"(Al Capone)
"There is nothing lower than the human race...except the French" (Samuel Clemens)0 -
1KYDSTR; I HAVE A M-94 OF ABOUT THE SAME VINTAGE AND ALSO OWNED ANOTHER ONE SIMILAR MANY YEARS AGO. THEY ALL HAD THE SHARPLY BENT BOLT HANDEL (I'VE NEVER SEEN AN ORIGINAL ROUNDED BOLT HANDEL). 0 -
Thanks Mike...as I said I wasn't too sure on that one; I must be thinking of something else. The M-96's and M-38's I have are all straight bolts. I really love these guns and have a few that are a 'little' different( Metalverken micro sight etc...)but all are as issued. One of these days I hope to run across an M-94 in nice shape for the right price to go with my Carl Gustav's and Oberndorfs. Thanks for the clarification! Another question...Do you think there is any chance that this is an original gun from the Carl Gustavs factory? I looked around through several of my books last night but found only the vaugest references to any civilian guns they may have made. I still kind of doubt it's original in its present form, but again, you never know!?
"When I cease learning...I'm dead"(Me)
"Power corrupts...Absolute power corrupts absolutely"(Descartes?)
"History is written by winners"(Patton)
"You get a lot farther with a kind word and a gun than you do with a kind word alone!"(Al Capone)
"There is nothing lower than the human race...except the French" (Samuel Clemens)0 -
i doubt very much that it's original, i've never seen a cheek piece like that on a european rifle pre ww2. also note, all m-38's should have a bent bolt handle, the 96/38's have straigh ones. i also think these are some of the finest actions ever made and have made many a sporter out of them (when you could buy then for <$50). 0 -
Ah...I see! Of course you are right about the bolt's on the 38's as well...all of the recievers on my "38's" are manufactured in the very early 1900's and are therefore '96/'38's. All three are a little different one to the next but still original to Swedish spec. I have 2 Gustavs '96's and 1 Oberndorf. I have to agree that these are some of the nicest actions ever produced although I choose to leave them in their original configuration; have seen some really nice sporters made from them over the years and find that I like the one I see pictured above as well! To get back to the original question posed...what would you rate the value of this piece at? The unaltered guns are starting to get pretty expensive but this one, regardless of its' nice appearance, I would put at around $200 to $250. Would you agree with that assuming it is in excellent mechanical condition? I would be very interested in your opinion here.
"When I cease learning...I'm dead"(Me)
"Power corrupts...Absolute power corrupts absolutely"(Descartes?)
"History is written by winners"(Patton)
"You get a lot farther with a kind word and a gun than you do with a kind word alone!"(Al Capone)
"There is nothing lower than the human race...except the French" (Samuel Clemens)0 -
i agree, $250+- 0
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