Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters K31 swiss rifle, worth getting?

I have been thinking about getting one of these just 'cause. I have a line on one for $300 and condition looks good. Anything to look out for? Does a beechwood or walnut stock affect value or collectibility? Thanks

i bought 5 of them when the were 89.00 but 300.00 todays prices are fair.

$300 is pretty fair in good shape. You likely won't regret it. Very smooth shifting affairs those rifles are. Accurate and excellent triggers.

cotis,

What the others said--plus I haven't seen that the kind of wood has any bearing on value. Overall condition is more important.

cotis,

Echo what the others are saying - but I have noticed a movement upwards in price lately (within the last few months) with either beech or walnut going for $500 and up. Not sure why unless others are starting to figure out that these are really nice rifles. I have several and use them for vintage military matches - they are very accurate (excellent two stage triggers and quality barrels that typically have excellent bores), overall high quality and just plain cool (of course that is just my opinion!!). Like Mule Deer said the better the condition the higher the price and I've watched some clean specimens go for over $1000 (matching numbers are important to collectors and will affect the value).

In other words for that price - GET IT!......you will not be sorry. A few places have the ammo (GP-11) by the case for around $250 and I highly recommend getting some of that as well (although it is berdan primed and not easy to reload but the ammo/brass is of excellent quality).

Just my biased two cents,

PennDog

p.s. make sure you check under the buttplate for the "troop tag" (the owner would write his name and troop information on a tag and under the buttplate) another cool feature

I think they've become the darling of Vintage Service Rifle matches (or whatever they're called).




Dave

Just throwing in my two cents based on a sample of one and some research on the breed. They are very accurate and while it has a two stage military trigger, if mine is an average example they break as well if not better than most modern factory triggers. My barrel slugged at .307" so standard .308 bullets work just fine. It's a modern rifle so there should be no problems using modern book loads. That 7.5x55 case is kind of neat and has a good volume for the length. I'm guessing it would have been used for a lot more wildcats except it has a "non-standard" case head diameter (i.e. not .473"), you use the same shellholder as a .30-30 for it.

The straight pull bolt is a bit weird, they out-engineered the Germans with that one, but it works well and is very quick to use for a right hander. Since you have to give a smart pull to get it going, unless you have a deft touch it tends to fling empties up over your head a ways. Most will have roughness around the end of the butt, I understand that is from the Swiss soldiers' shouldered crampons banging against the shouldered rifle, but otherwise should be in pretty good shape.

All in all they are very well made rifles and a bargain at $300 in today's world.

You can find some good info here: http://www.swissrifles.com/

Jim,

I read that the buttstocks got beat up because of placing the butts on ground during drill, next to crampon-equipped boots.

From the good ol' internet one can get a few versions of the story, yours is probably correct but I knew those darn crampons were responsible somehow...

Yep, the possibilities of the Internet are endless!

I bought a Schmidt Rubin K-31 in 7.5 Swiss for $90 + $12 tax from BIG5 sporting goods on 5/4/2002.
I bought a Schmidt Rubin K-31 in 7.5 Swiss for $80 at a gunshow in 2004.
Mine have Beech stocks. The Walnut stocks are more desired.

I got some 284 brass and a Lee 7.5 Swiss die set, some 168 gr Match Kings, IMR4895, and went to the range. I got 4" groups with open sights, which is as good as I can see.
The action is harder to operate with ammo.

Nothing to see here except..... the weird names under the butt plates.

The one I am looking at does not have a name tag under the butt plate. I have spent a fair amount of time in Switzerland, part of the reason I wan to own one of these.

Certifiable, I have stayed in Kloten the past few times I have been to CH, it's the area around the Zurich airport.

I plan on purchasing the rifle whenever the seller and I can meet up.

That's too bad. My eyes are 64 years old, I put a Mojo sight on mine and get 5 shot groups of about 1.5" at 100 or sometimes a shade less, this is with Hornady 150 Spire Points and a charge of IMR4895.

Speaking of prices, in 1965 you could get milsurps from all kinds of countries for $12 or less delivered TYD by the US mail. In 1968 my father bought a NIB genuine shiny blued Colt Gov't Model 1911 for well under $100 at a LGS - he thought he paid too much but after his death I sold it (foolishly) for well over $600. In 1945 he got a 1913 Erfurt Luger and two K98's for free. And the point is...?

I bought at K31, #6401xx, back in 1998 from our departed friend, Mark Benenson. It is a good shooter, I've used it for Swiss Shooting Federation matches.

The last time that I looked at Graf & Son, loaded 7x5x55 ammo from PPU was only slightly more expensive than new, unprimed, brass from PPU and about one-half as expensive as new, unprimed, brass from Norma.

I never worry about ammo. I'm shooting Privi brass from Graf with 168's and IMR 4320. Shoots great.

I had 7 of them I paid $90 each for. When they hit $225 I sold 6 of them. All locally by word of mouth. Didn't even advertise them.

Most of the points have been covered. One that hasn't and is important if you handload is that these rifles have a short throat. There isn't sufficient camming leverage to get the bolt to close on bullets jammed in the lands so keep that in mind if you are going to reload. You will have a hard time beating the performance of GP11 issue ammo on a target. Not familiar with who has good hunting type ammo. You won't find a more accurate milsurp rifle perhaps the exception being some Swedish Mausers with match sights.

I've got two of them and my impression is that most consider the walnut stocks more desirable. Only guys with beech think they are the same. ;-) I also have a set of the original clamp on match sights and get consistent sub-3/4" five shot groups from the bench. I lived in Switzerland in the early nineties and had the opportunity to shoot all the Swiss service rifles from the 1889 up to the current Sig 550 on one of their 300 meter ranges with electronic targets. Pretty cool. Stgw 57 was fun, but the SIG P210 pistols were phenomenally accurate as well.

The excellent trigger report is absolutely true and all barrels I've looked down looked new. They are a fine rifle and mine with a beech stock was gifted to me by a friend.
I have never shot a jacketed bullet through it, only cast. I would tell the size of the groups but, I might be thought a keyboard marksman.

If you ever want to get any work done on a K31, I have heard that Larry Racine in Keene, NH, does good work on them.

www.lprgunsmith.com

I gauged to the ogive on a GP 11 round and did not exceed it.