Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Mausers and Military Rifles Mitchell's Mausers?

What exactly are the Mitchell's rifles? Are they originals, that have been restored, or reproductions?

Back when I saw their ads, I was under the impression that they are overpriced restorations. Been a while.

Recollections... Mitchel Mausers were a firm that bought used mauser rifles in wholesale quantity and performed complete refurbs upon them. They were 'out the door' as new looking rifles with no real concern for preserving nomenclature. The looked "pretty" at a distance. Up close something more mediocre but fully checked of headspace and test fired. They were also 'era', bit pricey, but by nowadays standard a decent product much more accepted & often at not-bad price.
As to their "bad collector wrap" Their answer, as 'taking money to the bank!' The market 'there'. I've never owned one, but as many guns I wouldn't normally seek out, if one cane along at the right price & time, I'd consider owning it.

Comparing Mitchell products to many of the guns out there for sale nowadays, Mitchells look pretty good. To me, if Mitchell was disdained, the "big Barnum sale of "Russian Capture" rifles, as typically bad condition and total mismatches, are the big scam making Mitchells look "rare and collectible"!
Just my take
Best!
John

I saw one on a shop Yesterday for $1,000

I passed on plain jane military dress "Mitchell" 8mm Mauser awhile back that had a $500 tag tied to the trigger guard. I'd probably still pass on it for the same price today.

A $500 Husqvarna m46 on the other hand would get a second look. A BRNO for twice that would get a third look and probably a petition to the finance department.

Like your style Mr. G! A wise man! Husqvarna bolt rifles are the great sleeping values of the age! In 8mm, have a Model 648 sporter, likely of War years and early Model 1600 series of '54 year mfg. Latter, pix below.

And on another subject... Wondering how you folks in Iowa manage "life happening" with the "politicians on parade: distraction? Especially with the mass hazard of politician lips freezing on some hapless Iowa voters' backsides!

Best!
John

iskra, not that they aren't good Mausers but for some reason I thought Mitchell's Mausers were the shorter action, restored 47 & 48 Yugo Mausers. Am I wrong on this?

I can't speak about all "Russian Captures" and being what they are I agree with you that there's a good chance most of them are parts rifles that aren't in great condition. I wouldn't want one sight unseen but I was lucky enough to get what I consider a good one in a trade. It was made in 1937 at the Lubegker plant in Berlin which was later bombed out of existence. Supposedly the rifles from this plant went east. This one was part of a shipment to Century Arms from China. It's in all around VG condition with a good bore, no rust, pits or black paint anywhere on the metal and every part on it works as it should. On the other hand the guard screws on the action screws are gone, it's got a mismatched electro penciled bolt and the original stock was replaced with a later model laminated one with a cupped butt plate that the Russians had shellacked. I got the shellack off the stock and was surprised that I thought it looked pretty good. Headspace on the replacement bolt checked out ok. and the rifle turned out to be a good one to take to the range.

I know they're not considered a collector type Mauser but if someone can get a decent one; where a Russian Capture's probably been and what it's seen both during and after WWII make it worthwhile from a historical perspective, IMO, as well as a shooter.

I remember seeing advertismernts for them. They showed a new looking Model 48 Yugo and claimed it was a German Kar 98. It obviously wasn't.

They sold cheap years ago, but have gone way up in price

They weren't exactly "cheap" when they showed up on the market way back when, but those prices would be awfully cheap today. I've viewed Mitchell Mausers at gun shows and marveled at their gussied-up "prettiness", and then walked away every time. I really don't remember any of them being Yugo Mausers, I remember Steyrs, BRNO's, Oberndorfs, etc. though.

Back then, as now truth be told, I looked at any 98 Mauser with a view toward its potential as the basis for a custom sporter and nothing else. They ain't my heritage/history and worthy of enshrining, they're a foreign country's heritage/history - a country that tried its damnedest to tear the world apart twice in the 20th century. To the victor goes the spoils and all that. Swords into plowshares.

I thought they were Yugo's also but I've never seen one up close. Didn't Kimber actually do Mauser to sporters also?

Yes, they did M96 Swedish Mausers to sporters.

Mitchell’s Mausers was the last gun enterprise of Don Mitchell, a most shady character who had changed his name from some now forgotten Croat name so that it would not sound so ethnic. He had for a time been involved with the High Standard brand name, before he had a very ugly falling out with his business partners, one of whom (a former Texas rodeo bull rider) had to be physically restrained to prevent his punching Don Mitchell in the face. Then, while doing business as Mitchell Arms, he had routinely engaged in the sleazy practice of extensively delaying payment to his importers for guns they had delivered to him, even after he had resold those guns to distributors. This practice ultimately led to his felony conviction for excise tax evasion, for which he enjoyed an all expenses paid stay at Club Fed. As a convicted felon, obviously he could no longer even exercise control over guns, let alone actually possess them. So, he had the Mitchell’s Mausers business federally licensed in the names of his wife and daughter. It was amusing to watch him lurking in the Mitchell’s Mausers booth at SHOT Shows, while being ever so obviously careful not to actually touch any of the rifles.

https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-aug-06-me-63256-story.html

Internet Mauser-related forums are overflowing with bitter posts by angry customers who had been hoodwinked by Mitchell’s Mausers. Don Mitchell should be long dead by now - and good riddance.

If you’re at all curious and care to know how his conviction came about, it was by the federal regulations in place at that time, that the 11% federal excise tax on imported firearms was due from the seller and payable on the value of the first completed sale in the U.S. A sale was deemed by regulation to have been completed upon the transfer of possession. This meant that an importer was stuck with the tax bill, even if it had not yet been paid for the goods, which was understandably aggravating. However, federal regulation also permitted that particular determination to be modified by the terms of a written agreement between the importer and the first buyer, so as to cause the sale to be deemed completed only upon receipt of payment for the imported goods delivered. One importer did just that with Mitchell Arms, such that the excise tax became due from the seller and payable upon Mitchell’s transfer of the imported guns to a distributor at Mitchell’s grossly inflated price, as that had then become the first completed sale in the U.S., so long as Mitchell had not yet paid the importer, which of course he hadn’t. When they called him on it, Don Mitchell gave the feds the finger and ended up in Club Fed for it. The fact that Don Mitchell was under federal investigation for allegedly smuggling guns into the Croatian conflict zone, at the time, may or may not have influenced the outcome. Don Mitchell was a real piece of work, and it was most gratifying to have been in a position to help him become a convicted felon by simply allowing him to continue doing what came to him so naturally - cheating people.

A lot of hate concerning Mitchell's. I'm sure some of it is justified. They did make some cool guns though. I have one of their "tanker" M98's. It's a new Zastavia (sp?) action with a new production stock and a short barrel chambered in .243WIN. I bought it new about 10-12 years ago at the end of production for these.

IMO, it's a neat rifle. I'll post a picture when I get home.

I found the pictures on my phone.

Here it is. 16" barrel. Feels very handy.

Much depends upon exactly what one is expecting to receive in exchange for what was given, based on the representations made.

Exactly. Like I said, some of is justified, some of it isn't.

Always heard not so great things about Mitchells Mausers