Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Custom Rifles & Wildcats Need Help, First Time Custom Build

BUILD UP STORY

I guess I will give a small explanation to start.

Last year before I took my father on his first ever hunting excursion out of our home state I bought him a new rifle. Forever, as long as I can remember, he had hunted with an Interarms Mark X in .30-06. He loved the rifle and it had never failed him during any season that I can recall.

At some point the nice, shiny, commercial mauser stock that this rifle came with had developed a terrible crack at the tang. My father had it re-stocked by a friend who in my opinion did not do my father any favors. The new stock looked like hell, fit like hell, and all together seemed like a rushed amateur job. Any how, the rifle still did not fail my father during any season that I can recall after the botched re-stock job.

Then it happened. We were sighting in our rifles with our chosen big game loads for our Colorado elk hunt. It took about 6 shots to make me feel overly confident that my .300 win mag was dead on accurate with my chosen load. My fathers trusty old Mark X was another story. It wouldn't shoot, plain and simple it was like it quit. Whether we put the old deer loads that always shot great in it or the new carefully made elk loads it simply would not shoot any kind of group.

After this I spent countless hours checking over the rifle itself. It got a thorough cleaning, didn't help, new scope, didn't help, new scope mounts, didn't help, etc. On and on I went trying to get my dear old Dad's rifle to shoot as it once did.

By chance shortly after the not grouping debacle I came across a gorgeous Interarms Mark X in .30-06 that looked just as my fathers had way back before he had it re-stocked. Nice glossy wood, grippy checkering, dark gloss blue metal. It was selling at a great price so I picked it up, took it home, put the new mounts and scope on, then sighted it in. It shot wonderfully with both of the loads that we had put together.

To make a long story long I gave it to my father as a present and he loved it. He took it to Colorado on our hunt and killed a very nice bull elk. Now he is happy and has his go to Interarms Mark X in .30-06 again.


OUTCOME

So now in the end I have my Dad's old Interarms Mark X Mauser in .30-06 that won't shoot worth a damn and wears and ill fitted ugly stock.

I really can't bring my self to sell it to someone knowing that it won't shoot. On top of that it was my Dad's for so long and he had so many successful hunts with it that I just want to keep it around. Now, I have been thinking and I am not against using it to build my first custom rifle. Then it will become useful, accurate, good looking, and I will still have Dad's deer slayer.

Now that you have the background story and you know that I am a complete custom rifle novice, I need your help. I am not savvy on the old Interarms Mark X guns either so any info about them that will help with customization would be great.


RESOLUTION

If I were to picture the rifle finished it would be re-barreled with either a gloss blued barrel or a SS barrel chambered in 6.5-06 since I am a confirmed 6.5 nut and the rifle is already a .30-06.

If it went gloss blue I would like to find a beautiful walnut stock to set it in but if I went SS then something synthetic in an olive green black splatter pattern with some type of factory aluminum bedding block.

I would like an aftermarket trigger of some type, I am not knowledgeable on this matter.

Any and all suggestions on where to send the rifle to have the bolt locking lugs lapped, the bolt face and receiver trued, barrel installed and headspaced. These are suggestions that I have got from fellas at the gun club but I do not know if it is necessary.

Also, if anyone knows of a competent gunsmith in my area of southeast Pennsylvania that I could go to in person please speak up. I always prefer to deal with people directly instead of through the mail.

Thanks in advance for all of your help.

You could simply send it to Hart, Shilen, or PacNor for a rebarrel. Timney makes a good after market trigger for the interarms. 98Mauser and Interarms , same thing for aftermarket parts. As for a pretty wood stock, figger your budget, and go from there, $200-$5000+.

I'd say put a new barrel on the action, add NECG banded rear and front sights, a barrel band, rust blue it and put it in an express styled stock.

Yep, and there are some other awesome calibers to consider.

As a 6.5 nut, that action will easily house a 264 WinMag, the only 6.5 that I consider interesting and one of the all time great deer hunting rounds.

If you do not have a medium bore or dangerous game rifle, consider a 9.3x62. A lot like a 35 Whelen on steroids but legal and capable on any game up to and including Cape Buffalo and Elephant. Maybe you have no plans to hunt such game, but IMO it is always fun to have a rifle at the ready that is capable for such and it might spark, or re ignite, a dream in you like my 416 Rigby did in me decades ago. Even if no buff hunting etc. it would make a whale of a nice Elk and black bear rifle and have a very high cool factor.

GOOD ON YA for hooking up your dad with a really nice rifle, TWICE! And for taking hum hunting.

I'd get the second Mark X glass bedded to keep it from moving in the stock. There's a good chance that poor bedding caused the crack in the first rifle. This is common in 98 style actions.

I can't really say anything to help you out, but I enjoyed your post and kudos for taking care of your dad!

I would never go the custom way Again!> Why you ask , To me the modern day rifle fOR most will give you everything that you want!> YES THATS IT!dO i HAVE CUSTOMS??> YES i DO BUT THAT WAS BEFORE WHAT THEY HAD TO OFFER. CUSTOM TO ME IS DOA!> THE PRICE IS WAY OUT OF hAND!Todays Rifles will shoot just as good as Customs> Yes They are that Good! But Gun smith do have a job to refine the gold into pure GOLD!

I'll go along with Glen. Hart, Shilen, PacNor, even an ER Shaw in the caliber you like. 1-5 or 2-7 Leupy, maybe even a fixed 6x. I think the 9.3x62 or 35 Whelen, or 375 Ruger would be even more cool. Put it in a McSwirley with red pad. Add barrel band swivel and you have one really neat safari, bear or elk rifle.

( OK, that is the plans, sort of, for my VZ-24, but you get the idea )

+1 on the gift to your Dad, way to go.

Bob Green in York, PA does WONDERFUL work in a timely manner. He'd be on my short Pennsylvania list for at least the metalwork. If he can't help you, I'm sure he could point you in the right direction. Nice guy, too. I believe IT & D in Ohio does nice Mauser action work, too. I hear the same compliments on them.

http://www.itdcustomgun.com/

http://greensrifles.com/

Just looked at my post. Meant to write McWoody!

That right there for both rifles. Easy do-it-yourself job to get that barreled action good and tight in the stock. $10 says it cures the ills you describe in 1st rifle & avoids recurrence of crack in 2nd. with the first at the very least it'll allow you to sell that barrel here in good conscience and offset some cost of the custom.

Er Shaw offers a good product, does good work, and all at a fair price. The cautionary comment I'd offer there, however, is that their tapers are unusually heavy compared to other companies so keep that in mind when choosing.

Timney's Featherweight for the 98 is awesome, a Hi-tech (aka Bansner) stock, and 3-position "Model 70-style" safety on the back of the shroud will REALLY make it a custom!

Consider also going all CM and having the rifle plated by Ron Mahovsky which looks like this:



Good luck w/ the project! I look forward to hearing progress reports!

If you are in need of a stock to fit the Interarms take a look at this site. They have 99% inlet and almost everything else you might need.
http://www.rifle-stocks.com/sporter_hunting_styles.htm

Those are NOT 99% inlet, but if you know what you're doing it can be a deal.

Boyd's are better if you're looking for something as close as feasible to drop in fit.

This stock through Numrich is designed for the Mark X and has quite an attractive & distinctive style IMHO.

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I'd strip it down to the action & bottom metal, then have one of the above mentioned barrel guys install a barrel in 6.5x55 Swede; install a Timney trigger & glas-bed it into a stock from Boyd's, Wenig, or one of the other gunstock companies out there.


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