Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Mausers and Military Rifles What did I buy ?

Was in local pawn shop and spied a sporterized Mauser and guy behind the counter told me he'd let me have it for 250.00 out the door. I originally thought it was an FN but I don't think it is. Crest on top says Fabrica de armas, LA Coruna 1958. Serial number matches on action, barrel, and bolt. 2R-8867. Marked cal 7.92. I know it's spanish, but other than that I'm clueless. I know less than zero about Mausers, except I always wanted one just because. Is this a 98 or something entirely different ? Is it safe to shoot ? Would it be rimless 8x57 or rimmed ? Also would this be a suitable action to rebarrel to 270 and run it at 65k psi ? Thanks in advance.

Do a google search. I think its a 7.92 8x57 mauser

I did search but couldn't find anything definitive. All I can figure out is that it's Spanish and also it takes stripper clips. Will I need those to use it or can I just load rounds in the magazine ?

Yes the 7.92 Mauser and the 8x57mm Mauser are the same thing. Have a couple older reloading manuals that list all the commonly encountered names for each cartridge. When a cartridge has as much history and produced in many countries as the 8x57mm Mauser it's almost a guarantee someone will stamp it slightly different.

Thanks. Is there any way to tell what action it is ?

Santa Barbara??

This is the top if that helps

Spanish military M98 Mauser. Not Santa Barbara. La Corunna is, I believe, the arsenal/city where it was made. 8 x 57 rimless cartridge. 1958 vintage may have seen Spanish Civil War or WWII corrosive ammo.

With matching numbers on bolt, barrel and receiver should be safe to shoot but it would be a good idea to have a gunsmith check the headspace first.

I don't know if rebarreling to a cartridge with 65K psi spec would be a good idea but I suspect that there are La Corunna actions out there with .270 barrels installed. Drill and tap for scope mount and bolt handle alteration to clear scope and rebarreling expenses will require an investment which will exceed final product value IMHO.

If the bore is nice and shiny I would shoot it with the iron sights and see how it groups before spending more on it. I would check the muzzle to see if the rifling has been damaged by overenthusiastic cleaning rod action

Thank you very much. It doesn't have any rear sights so I'll have to get something regardless. I happen to have a 270 Bartlein bbl blank 24' magnum sporter contour is why I was asking about that. As long as it's a good quality mauser 98 I'll probably hang on to it and build it into something. If barrel is toast, maybe rebarrel to a 7x57. I take it this would be a large ring ?

Your rifle is a Model of 1943 Spanish military mauser 98, a model made to 1958, which corresponds in date to the A2- serial prefix. Confirming if original, the chambering 'should be, standard German 8x57. The Spanish were not yet NATO members but were converting to the 30 caliber NATO chambering and some few of those last models may have barrels so chambered.

I fully concur that it is simply uneconomical to considering the 'further sporterization of the already conversion you conjure. Far better to begin with the FN Model commercial action of which, the real bargains driving the market are the Husqvarna commercial FN mauser rifles of the early fifties era. The early actions were only tapped for receiver aperture sights. By 1951 they were being tapped atop receiver for scope.
Nowadays, if a mauser is a decent shooter even of doubtable "aesthetics", an acquisition cost of $250 seems a decent cost from a shop!
Just my take and Happy Holidays All!
John

7 x 57 rebarrel would be fine. Brownells offers large ring mauser barrels in 7 x 57. There are some commercial 8 x 57 barrels on eBay right now. Zastava brand that are good quality, reasonably priced and should be a relatively easy/less expensive fit to this action.

Save your Bartlein barrel for a nicer mauser or commercial US made action.

You're facing several options.

Least expensive option: keep the 8x57 chambering (it's very close in performance to a 30-06, and cheap ammo is available) and replace the rear sight. It should be possible to find an original or reproduction rear sight to replace the one that's gone, but since it's already been altered I'd think a better choice to attain a basic hunting rifle or "fun gun" is spending just under $100 for a Mojo sight - a peep sight that takes the place of the original rear sight and is mounted on the barrel, not the receiver: www.mojosights.com

Relatively inexpensive option: I have a very good condition military 7x57 barrel you can have for cheap. You'll still have to pay somewhere in the neighborhood of $150+ for a gunsmith to swap the barrels, plus ??? for adding front and rear sights. You'll also probably want a trigger job and modifying the follower so the action doesn't lock open after the last shot. If you want to scope it, prices go up quickly. Just drilling and tapping the receiver for a scope base can cost $40+ per hole - and then you have to modify the bolt so it won't hit the scope. Now you're talking about spending enough to buy a Ruger American - a rifle that will be much lighter, much more accurate and come with a factory warranty.

If you're willing to spend in the vicinity of $2000+ to build up a rifle from your sporterized Mauser, that's a possible route. You need to realize that about all you will save from what you're starting with is the bare action - and if you're going to spend that kind of dough you need to consider that the action you have may not even be the best action for a custom rifle. There are lots of opinions out there about which actions are the most suitable for a custom build (my gunsmith really likes the 1909 Argentine), and you'll have to spend some time talking to experienced gunsmiths.

You can certainly buy an excellent NEW rifle for that amount of money - plus you get to keep the old Mauser as a fun gun!

P.S. no, you don't need to use stripper clips to load your rifle. And if you keep it in 8mm, you can find surplus fmj corrosive ammo for $10-15 per box (just clean the barrel well after each shooting session), or modern factory PPU soft points for somewhere in the vicinity of $20-$25 per box of 20.

You wanted a M98 and you now got one so have fun. First thing is to strip it down and clean off all the grease, dirt, and grime. Put it back together and have a reputable gunsmith take a look at it and check head space, setback in the bolt lugs if any and the bolt face, etc. If all looks good, get a rear sight and some ammo and go shoot it, and then you decide where you want to go with it.

As to the economics question, if you have the discretionary funds to do what you want with it, then do it. I'm not a collector to make resale/profit so I've never purchased a firearm new or otherwise based on resale value. I define what my personal intrinsic value will be for that particular firearm. Rarely will you ever sell a remodeled M98 milsurp gun for what you put into it dollar wise, but if you build it(or not) the way you want, shoot the hell out of it and use it the way you intended, who cares what you may sell it for later, its in your hands now and that's what matters.

I've got a 1903 MKI Springfield I inherited from my father and built up into a hunting rifle based on the so-called scout concept. Total expenditures was north of $1700 at the time. People have looked at me as though I've destroyed an antique collector gun or made some freak of a firearm. But over the last +- 30 years since that build I've killed dozens of big game animals, shot thousands of rounds during practice on paper, steel and rocks, carried it from the Montana plains to 9k+ ft. ridges freezing my ass off and crawling through alder choked ravines chasing critters and have enjoyed every minute of it carrying that rifle and I wouldn't have it any other way. That to me is more important than any financial gain I might make if I were to resell it.

I know economically it doesn't make sense, but I just want a mauser to say I have one. I see bronells sells short chambered barrels if this one is toast. Other than that drill and tap for a scope and a better trigger is about all I want to do to make it a fun deer and paper gun. I also want a 1917 one day for the same reason. Just to have a part of history. I'm a savage guy and have 3 that I have built/am building so I have modern rifles covered. This is just for fun. Thanks everyone.

Czech PM sent on the 7x57 bbl as that's the caliber I prefer to do.

I'm late to the thread and I don't know if you purchased the rifle or not. I just wanted to say, don't overlook or pooh-pooh the ol' 8x57 cartridge. With the .30-06 being as available as dirt, there's really no need or compelling reason to go out of one's way to acquire a rifle in 8x57. BUT, that doesn't mean that the 8x57 doesn't work if you happen to have one!

If the original barrel is in good shape, then I'd give some serious consideration to keeping the 8x57 and using it.

Here's a few pics from South Africa back in 2005. A nice Impala and a couple of "little piggy" culls taken for the land owner.

Just my two cents... Cheers! Bob F.

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Rifle: Remington Model 700 Classic (2004 edition) chambered in 8x57JS.
It's factory stamped "8mm Mauser" on the barrel.
Handload: Woodleigh Weldcore 220 gr Round Nose (.323") at approx 2400 fps muzzle velocity.
(10 shot, chronographed average.)

How well does such a "slow", heavy, old-fashioned round nose bullet actually work? Well...







"Rubber side up." It ran a little after the shot and this is how it stopped.



The 8x57JS loaded with the Woodleigh Weldcore 220 gr Round Nose.


Remington's 8x57 Classic
By Layne Simpson | September 23, 2010
https://www.rifleshootermag.com/editorial/featured_rifles_classic_062804/84564

Assuming the barrel’s good, you got a good deal on a shooter-grade 98. Enjoy it as-is after replacing the rear sight. The path to a nice sporter is fraught with peril for a novice, and expensive for anyone, not to mention the difficulty you may have finding a really good gunsmith. Better by far to pick up a nice commercial one like an FN, or someone else’s custom, at a fraction of the price of having one done yourself. Nice ones appear here in the classifieds all the time.

I'm with the rest of them! I've salvaged a number of Babbaed Mausers. Replace the site, clean it well, if the barrel is good, and it shoots, replace the trigger with a $100 Timney trigger. Then enjoy the rifle. 8x57 is a very good cartridge and will sing for a hand loader.

Agree with finding a rear sight and enjoying it for what it is.

You could spend a couple grand sporterizing it. Then it may be worth $500 or so. Maybe more, but no where even close to what you’d spend getting it there.

It’s a good action but not one you’d want on a high end custom rifle, value figured accordingly.

My opinion.

DF

Have it checked over as was said and hunt/shoot her. If you want something different have JES rebore it to 35 Whelen or 9.3x 62. Or if you like rechamber to 8mm 06. Usually the chamber cleans right up. Be Well Brother, RZ.