I decided to see what I could find in the safe, that needed to go deer hunting this fall. When I was a boy this old timer was always the rifle that fascinated me, in Dad's old fashioned glass windowed gun cabinet. I learned at an early age it was a .25-06. It has the longest & heaviest barrel of any of his rifles, I'm guessing the equivalent of a Shilen #4, 26" long. Dad had bought it in the 60's from a coworker who needed money. Possibly it even preceded Remington's standardization of the round in 1969. I am told it was short on the headspace, when Dad got it, and had to be re-reamed to allow factory ammo to chamber.
The barrel is not stamped with the chambering, which always makes me suspect the smith was an amateur. The stock is a Fajen with a faux-Weatherby Monte Carlo comb. No clue what flavor of Mauser it was; all the markings have been removed from the action, except the serial number...which does not match the bolt. A steel Weaver K4 is mounted, and seems to work fine. The barrel is floated, and the action glass bedded. The trigger remains as it left a German factory. I have since learned it is a 1 in 11" twist, so I'm going to try 110 Accubonds first, then 100 Partitions if the AB's don't shoot. Factory 115gr Win loads with Ballistic Silvertips did so-so on accuracy, when I was fireforming loads.
This old sporter will never be anything but a sentimental favorite. And also a reminder of a time when millions of WWII vets splurged a little and built themselves a deer rifle, starting with surplus guns, generic wood stocks, and barrels of unknown origin.
The barrel is not stamped with the chambering, which always makes me suspect the smith was an amateur. The stock is a Fajen with a faux-Weatherby Monte Carlo comb. No clue what flavor of Mauser it was; all the markings have been removed from the action, except the serial number...which does not match the bolt. A steel Weaver K4 is mounted, and seems to work fine. The barrel is floated, and the action glass bedded. The trigger remains as it left a German factory. I have since learned it is a 1 in 11" twist, so I'm going to try 110 Accubonds first, then 100 Partitions if the AB's don't shoot. Factory 115gr Win loads with Ballistic Silvertips did so-so on accuracy, when I was fireforming loads.
This old sporter will never be anything but a sentimental favorite. And also a reminder of a time when millions of WWII vets splurged a little and built themselves a deer rifle, starting with surplus guns, generic wood stocks, and barrels of unknown origin.