Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Custom Rifles & Wildcats Mauser

sorry for all the questions yall...I do feel like a dumb ass here but this stuff is all new to me and afterall that is what forums are for right...so I hope yall don't mind me asking alot cause yall sure are helping me out!
<br> here goes: so do yall think the mauser is a good action? are there parts avaliable for this action? I have a old mauser that I could use is the reason for asking...and where do i get the parts yall are talking about at? what about the sendaro rifles by remington? what is yalls opions on these?

The classic 98 Mauser has probably been made/still is made in more numbers, variations and inspired more actions than any other in history.
<br> It is truly a great action. But...there are better ones for customizing. Unless you have a commerical action, of which there are many, which require no significant modification for sporter use.
<br> To back up, there are earlier versions of the 98, the 93's and the 95's come to mind, that aren't as good, or suitable.
<br> Basically, the military versions require too much work on their safetys, triggers, and bolts to make them economical for sporter use. Unless you can do the work yourself.
<br> All true 98's are heavy actions, around 3 lbs. A Remington, or a Ruger will go 2.5 lbs. or less.
<br> Again, I suggest you buy a copy of DeHaas's book, "Bolt Action Rifles". A wealth of information there. E

aight...thanks for the info...I will look for that book...and tell me one more thing...which action do you mainly choose?

I'm a Mauser guy. No reason, I just like their looks. Get DeHaas's book; it has 90% of what you need to know about all Mausers, including guidance on which ones are wall-hangers.
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<br>Converting military Mausers was smart when guns were expensive and scarce after WWII. Mausers were cheap and the military had discharged lots of armorers, many of whom thought they knew how to convert Springfields and Mausers. But those days are gone. It can now cost far more to convert a Mauser than to buy a sporter. Commercial Mausers cost 2-3x the price of a military model because they are better for building custom rifles. The best reason to buy with a military Mauser today is the cheap surplus ammo or because you like them.
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<br>On the other hand, military Mausers are rugged and dependable IF YOU LEAVE THEM ALONE. Everything about a Mauser is built to last forever. Think about it: an armed man is the most dangerous thing going, and the military 98 was developed to deal with him. As such, the stock 98 makes a darned respectable rifle for hogs and bears. The stock sights are rugged, but you'll need a higher front sight to match modern ammo. If you have some cash, you can swap the issue rear sight for a well-made peep sight like the Ashley and you've got a great rifle for general-purpose use in foul weather, taking into bear country or any time you don't feel like messing with a scoped rifle. It will be heavier than a sporter, but it won't kick as hard and it will balance very well. You also probably won't feel too bad if you bash it on a rock.
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<br>One potential problem: if you switch to a cartridge with a different body taper you should alter the feed rails to match. For instance, I have a beautiful sporter that was converted from 8x57 to 308. The bolt sometimes fails to pick up the first cartridge from a full magazine, and it always feeds roughly. I will eventually have the feed rails fixed, but very few people still know how to do it and the work starts around $50 per hour.
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<br>In any case, have a good gunsmith check your rifle before you shoot it or spend a penny on it.
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<br>Hope this helps, Okie John.

Dear Kowboy 80;
<br>Dont be afraid to ask questions, there's some pretty
<br>knowledgeable people on this site that are willing to
<br>help you out. I am not a Mauser expert but I really like
<br>the look and feel of a good Mauser, sporter or military
<br>issue. Alot of people think of military surplus junk when
<br>you say Mauser, true there alot of clunkers and ruined
<br>guns out there but I really like Yugo M48s, Persian M29s,
<br>Argentine M1909s, these three are fairly easy to find
<br>and range anywhere from 175-600 in price. I handled
<br>a Persian M29 a few months ago and it looked brand
<br>new, matching numbers, etc. Turkish Mausers do not
<br>impress me, but I see more and more of them being
<br>sporterized. FN Belgian Mauser Sporters really catch my
<br>eye but they also are getting very scarce. I currently own two of them. Two books I own that really help me
<br>out are Ludwig Olsons MAUSER BOLT RIFLES, and a
<br>shop manual by Jerry Kuhnhausen THE MAUSER BOLT
<br>ACTIONS.

Many of the commercial Mausers have some poor features--like not having the full inner receiver ring (many of the FNs are this was as are the Interarms Mk X). If you want to build on M-98, get something like the CZ action. It's made of modern steel and has the full inner receiver ring. It also comes in sizes large enough for 416 Rigby sized cases.
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<br>Blaine

Kowboy, I am a Mauser fan. I think every bolt action since the 98 is just a poor copy. Now, having said that, the military mausers are probably not the ones to consider for a custom rifle. (Plenty of reasons given above) Now, if you want to try to do the work yourself, buy the books above, a cheap Turk rifle, a Remington takeoff barrel, and go at it. You'll probably screw up at least half a dozen times, but you won't have a huge sum of money invested, and you can learn a lot... (Especially why gunsmiths charge what they do... )