Hypothetical rebarreling question
I have a WW2 german Mauser in my collection. It is one of the first milsurp guns I got (in fact THE first if I remember) and wasn't smart enough to look for things then. It has a real sewer pipe bore and I have never been able to hit squat with it. Cast bullets do a bit better but still nothing great, perhaps 12" group at 50 yards.
Now I have seen a large number of these barrels at gun shows lately in nice shape. Large ring take offs from K98s, VZ24s, etc. that woudl drop right into the stock.
Now these guns have all had their chambers cut. Correct me if I'm wrong but this is what I see needs to be done. After removing the old barrel, screw in the new one until it is properly timed, ie at top dead center. Assuming there is no gap between the reciever and barrel (not turned in all the way), if the gun passes the go/no go test it is ready to shoot. Otherwise it might need a bit of chamber reaming or if it doesn't turn in all the way it needs a few more threads cut.
Now for those of you who have remodeled Mausers, how likely is it that the barrels will interchange without reaming, cutting, etc.? I would consider investing in the go/no go gauges, could build a proper vice myself, and perhaps an action wrench. But I have no lathe or chamber cutters and if it is unlikely the barrels will interchange, I won't bother.
"...hit your enemy in the belly, and kick him when he is down, and boil his prisoners in oil- if you take any- and torture his women and children. Then people will keep clear of you..." -Admiral of the Fleet Lord Fisher, speaking at the Hague Peace Conf
Now I have seen a large number of these barrels at gun shows lately in nice shape. Large ring take offs from K98s, VZ24s, etc. that woudl drop right into the stock.
Now these guns have all had their chambers cut. Correct me if I'm wrong but this is what I see needs to be done. After removing the old barrel, screw in the new one until it is properly timed, ie at top dead center. Assuming there is no gap between the reciever and barrel (not turned in all the way), if the gun passes the go/no go test it is ready to shoot. Otherwise it might need a bit of chamber reaming or if it doesn't turn in all the way it needs a few more threads cut.
Now for those of you who have remodeled Mausers, how likely is it that the barrels will interchange without reaming, cutting, etc.? I would consider investing in the go/no go gauges, could build a proper vice myself, and perhaps an action wrench. But I have no lathe or chamber cutters and if it is unlikely the barrels will interchange, I won't bother.
"...hit your enemy in the belly, and kick him when he is down, and boil his prisoners in oil- if you take any- and torture his women and children. Then people will keep clear of you..." -Admiral of the Fleet Lord Fisher, speaking at the Hague Peace Conf
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jonk,From what I've seen,you have an very good chance of coming out fine on the chamber,however the sites will need to be indexed up to TDC.Later,Roger 0 -
Slight correction to your plan, screw in the new barrel and tighten it to "snug". Than check the sight timing (at this point it should be slightly off to the right IE: just needs to be finish "wrench" tightened). Determine the amount of metal that needs to be removed from the thread shoulder and breech face (here's where your HS geometry class comes in) to bring the sights into alignment while maintaining (correcting if needed) the fit into "C" ring and shoulder (barrel should bottem into both surfaces at the same time). Lathe off the exact amount needed from both surfaces to correct the timing. Now you can move on into the chambering portion of the job.
Another way would be to try a number of barrels on your receiver, looking for one that does line up correctly when "wrench" tight.
Reamers can be rented from places like www.reamerrental.com which avoids having to purchase them for a one time job.
Some guys like a mag full of lead, I still prefer one round to the head.0 -
no offense, but this is what they make gunsmiths for. 0 -
I think you're just a whistling Dixie expecting replacement barrels to both index without facing the barrel shoulder or sinking the chamber deeper. Brownells sells barrels that will install with just hand finish reaming of the chamber. Barrels are very tight and you have to buy some tools to remove and install a barrel as well as headspace gages. Hand reaming a chamber especially using a straight fluted reamer will likely result in a notchy out of round chamber. You wont like the dimensions of fired brass coming out of it.
The cheapest & best way out is to have a gunsmith do it.0 -
That's what I figured. I think I'll just let a gunsmith do it; though I will remove the old barrel and hardware myself to save on labor costs of possible. I know one local shop that specializes in very complex gunsmithing; a freind recently had a gun that was out of headspace fixed (needed some metal removed from the face) for which they charged $53. These people get orders in from around the country so this should be no trouble. I will see if I can pick up a used barrel in nice shape rather than fork out the big moolah for a new one. That way too I'll be able to just drop it into the original military stock, sights, etc. no concerns.
"...hit your enemy in the belly, and kick him when he is down, and boil his prisoners in oil- if you take any- and torture his women and children. Then people will keep clear of you..." -Admiral of the Fleet Lord Fisher, speaking at the Hague Peace Conf0 -
I'd let the gunsmith dismantle the rifle. You sure won't save any money doing it yourself.
He has the vise and action wrench and can do it while you're writing down your name and phone number.
Don't take a chance on screwing up the action.
A rifle with a junk action is just----junk.
IS0 -
Ok, I'll leave it in the safe until I scrape up the dough to have a smith do it. I see brownells has new mil step barrels for $91 though I think ffl holders get them cheaper which is still a bit steep, so as I say, I'll watch for a nice used large ring barrel with original contours, though caliber is unimportant.
"...hit your enemy in the belly, and kick him when he is down, and boil his prisoners in oil- if you take any- and torture his women and children. Then people will keep clear of you..." -Admiral of the Fleet Lord Fisher, speaking at the Hague Peace Conf0 -
There are tons of take-off barrels out there. Your gunsmith may have some laying around also. I've seen them on auctions, trying to get 15 or $20 for them. Gotta be one with a good bore left. Many have been used for tent stakes too.
I'm guessing you want an 8mm.
Why don't you ask the gunsmith what it would cost to chamber it to 8mm-06, since he'll probably be freshening up the chamber anyway?
Read up on this conversion if you haven't already. It's about the simplest up-grade and reasonably done too. Even though you can load the old 8 a little heavier than the military, the 8mm-06 is a much better performer. You'll like it,- an exciting round!0
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