I bought a Husqvarna M98 (1948 vintage as best I can tell and a "Hi Power" according to the Canadian Government whose fancy firearm system know everything though the rear sight doesn't look like the HI Powers I've seen on the net) in 9.3x62 (Thanks John!) a few years ago because I specifically wanted an iron-sighted bolt action rifle. I also wanted a Mauser with the original flag safety. To me, they're incredibly easy to flip off (from the middle position, of course) as you mount the rifle and the added bonus is that your thumb ends up on the right (meaning left) side of the action where it belongs.
Unlike a lot of people out there (apparently) the fixed magazine doesn't bother me in the slightest. In fact, I don't really like a floorplate that you can pop open with ease. I'm pretty much certain that the military Mauser floorplate will never spring open by accident, another positive for me. I also wanted to be able to load via stripper clip. Mighty convenient in your pocket and doesn't rattle. Sadly, the clips I've found so far don't work (sorry Ted, same with yours).
Now, the bottom metal and trigger guard will never be described as having smooth, flowing lines nor will anyone claim that they are pleasing to the eye as they came from the factory. However after some turning the action over and over in my hands and some judicious marking and remarking of the bottom metal, I contoured the trigger guard's sides and relieved the rather blunt transition from the trigger guard to the bottom metal. I also gently rounded the floorplate and eased the front and back to make them more graceful. Had I gone all the way and rust blued it afterwards (rather than the cold blue that I had to do because of time constraints) it would have been perfect. When it got it's new stock (a semi-inlet from Brownells) and was finally finished I was pretty happy with it. Now, I'll likely get bored some day and strip the rifle and reblue it preperly and might even venture into making a new (and really nice) stock for it, but the point is that not everyone wants a new rifle. I would never have bought a "modern" Mauser for this project as it just wouldn't have suited me, and some one would have ended up picking it up on the Exchange and I'd be back at square one.
