Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Mausers and Military Rifles Mauser 66 S

I'v been following the Mauser forum for a while now and I don,t see any of the Mauser affectionatos ever mention the Mauser 66 S action, the one with the telescoping Bolt. I'm told that the S means it was a sniper action and that the Telescoping bolt action is a good action. The reason I ask is because the father of a friend that my son hunts with has one he is looking to sell. All I have ever seen talked about is the Mauser 98. I haven't seen it but my son has seen it & talked to the guy. My son says it's been sporterized has a 308 barrel and looks well taken care of. I don't know anything about Mausers other then what I reed here. Is it worth it to take a look?

I have a 66 / 660 in american calibers. 243,270,308,30-06. It's interesting and works. Scope mounting can be tough.
Found a guy on ebay that sells a 1 piece mount. Used to be steel now it's aluminum, no diff to me.



this is with semi custom weaver mounts. front is flat bottom, rear is a front m98 base.

Thanks for getting back Rich. Are those barrels your showing all interchangeable with the same receiver? If so what type of thread does the receiver have or are they Winchester or Ruger or a brand name? How does the rifle shoot is it a 1 or 2 inch MOA? How does the bolt cycle? Your input is much appreciated.

There's two screws, like trigger guard screws, that hold the barrel in a metal bracket in the stock. The bolt locks up in the barrel extension which is just the the front ring of a mauser. Shoots quite well 1 - 1 1/2 inches. The 308 barrel shot 130hp in an inch.

Looking at the Model 66 rifle begs the question here as its offered only as "exemplary" of the lack of attention to a variety of "Mauser" in name actions. The basic answer I believe lies in the fact of the very focus of the many virtues of the Model 98, its achievements and the balancing factor of limited quantities of typically pricey post '98 Actions as a main cause for what amounts as "sticking with basics." A whole spectrum of rifles out there "du jour"... of the day, "as you wish! It's hard to argue with the aura of "Century of success"! The "Mauser 98 is a Genre and Institution!" The fact of a principal name carrying on the tradition, as factually NOT. The "also ran" variations don't automatically "tag along of the "the genuine tradition." Sucp "pretenders" regardless of quality or their genuine merits; come and go! Where military small arms move ahead in the semi & auto crowd, the sporting, collector, nostalgia crowd.
Best!
John

Mauser 66
Mauser 96 -
Blaser 84, 93, R8

Sauer 202


These were answering a question (in Germany) . Not so much in the USA.

Wadhesay?

It looks like English, but it is completely unintelligible.

There was a sniper rifle on the 66 action, the Mauser 66SP. It was essentially the target model Super Match, lightly modified to win military contracts. The sporter came first though, and the 66S is a sporter.

The Mauser 66 is not at all common. I've only handled one, a rather fancy grade of sporter with engraved action and nice timber, with "fishscale" carving instead of checkering on wrist and forend. It was in the hands of a bloke with whom I hunted buffalo in Australia's NT, and he had a 9.3x62 barrel on it, though IIRC he had another barrel or barrels.

The action struck me as providing for a very short overall length, and it operated very smoothly. It did however appear to be overdesigned in rather typical German manner. The owner did drop a number of critters with it though - buff, pigs and a donkey - and it seemed to do the job well and cycle quickly.