I have an Argentine Mauser action gathering dust out in the barn. Just the action complete with bottom metal. Have been thinking about doing something with it and was wondering if the action could be used as a base for a rifle chambered in 30-06 since I have never owned a 30-06 and I need to rectify that. Base diameter for 7.65x53 is .473 and the base diameter for the 30-06 is .471. Would the .002 of an inch difference make any serious issues. 30-06 is also slightly longer so not sure if that will be an issue either? In addition to the action I also have a nicely figured slab of French walnut that had aged for over 25 years out in the same barn that would provide the stock.
Is this a project worth pursuing or am I asking for more trouble than it is worth?
Not sure if you have made your decision yet or not, but I'll give you my thoughts. I'm building a 'custom' Mauser for my son right now, I have a thread in the Custom Rifle area if you want to see it. So far I'm into his rifle for about $1000, that includes the action cost, Richards stock (twice on the stock actually I started over), new Walther Barrel, swivel mounts, recoil pad and a few other smaller parts. The cost also includes some of the supplies I've had to buy, stock finish, bedding, solder, replacement springs and some tools. The cost does not include the cost of tools I already had such as a drilling and tapping fixture, various sanders, grinders, drills and screw drivers. That cost also doesn't include labor. I'm doing this as a labor of love, I enjoy it and its a gift for my son. Also the tooling and most of the supplies I could amortize the cost since I'll be building another for another son after this. Yes I am a glutton for punishment.
What I'm trying to say is even if it is a labor of love, and you are doing all the work yourself, you can still have a nice rifle ready to shoot cheaper or at least as cheap.
But if you want to do the work or you just want it exactly the way you want it and would enjoy saying you built of had this built then go for it. Just know it takes time and the cost almost never is seen in the monetary value.
