M98 Turk actions?

[kombi1976]

A friend has a M98 Turk action taking up space in his house and is happy to pass it on to me for a very nice price.
It is in decent condition and apart from the magazine follower is complete.
What are people's opinions of this particular action?
Are they generally well made?
I know that while it's a large ring action it has a small ring thread.
Does this mean I can screw a 6.5x55 bbl from a M96 into it?

[ringo]

Yes, you can but, it has to be indexed (sights on top) and headspaced.  The Turk action, K Kale version does not have the fit and finish of the German, Czech, or Belgian actions.  In most cases the bolt doesn't match the receiver.  They have no particular historic value and lend themselves to "sporterizing".  I have a "Twede", it is a 1940 K Kale action, I threw away the poorly maintained original 8mm barrel and installed a Swedish 6.5x55.  I machined off the receiver lip to make the action dimensionally similar to any other '98, bent the bolt, installed a Timney trigger, drilled and tapped the receiver for a scope, put on an after market stock, and pillar bedded and glass bedded the stock.  The result is a fine shooting hunting rifle which can withstand slightly hotter handloads than the anemic offerings intended for older (small ring) actions.  Good luck, have fun.

[kombi1976]

So are the Turks still a smooth action?
Incidentally do they feed the 6.5x55 ok as it actually has a slightly larger case head than the 8x57?
And what do you mean by the receiver lip?
BTW, do they use the same scope mounts as a standard K98 or FN?

[ringo]

My Turk is relatively smooth, strangely enough it came with a German stamped bolt.  The 6.5 ammo has a slightly larger case head than the 8mm, there is enough tolerance in my bolt that it is not a factor.  Quite a lot of the US manufactured brass for 6.5 comes in .473" rather than .480". 
The '98 k kale mauser receiver is 3/16" longer in length than a regular K98.  The receiver lip I refer to is the 3/16" lip on the very front of the receiver that retains the handguard.  It is usually turned down "removed" on a lathe to square and true the action to the barrel. 
The scope mounts to use are those for a standard K98, the rear one should be relieved for the charger hump.  FN mounts will work if you mill, grind, or file the hump down.  Because Turk's aren't as precisely manufactured as their European counterparts, I would use a one piece base designed for a military (K98), and be prepared to shim the rear slightly.
Here's a link to a picture of mine.  http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y151/ringo338/mauser%20builds/Twede.jpg

[kombi1976]

That's a lovely T'wede, Ringo.
So you'd definitely endorse picking it up then?
One more thing.....how hot are you loading your 6.5x55?
Are you keeping it to around 45k psi as in a M96 or do you feel safe to push it to 50k in the Turk?
As you'd know, this makes a considerable difference to the performance of the cartridge.

[ringo]

Definitely pick it up, and yes you can push to the 50k psi. to find your best groups, remember Turks used pretty hot ammo and the '98's will definitely stand up.   In all honesty mine gets good accuracy with sub 45k loads and I really haven't pushed it to its full potential.

[kombi1976]

Thanks for the tips, mate.
I'm already making arrangements to acquire it.
I've been looking for a reason to get a 6.5x55 but wanted one capable of higher loads and this is a good way of going about it so long as I don't have issues with the rim size.
Even if I do I guess I could chamber it to 6.5x57 as the case is identical to 8x57 bar the calibre and Privi Partizan ammo and brass is fairly easily availble for the 6.5x57.
It also means I can push the pressure up.
I've heard about the Turk 8mm military ammo.
Allegedly quite nasty stuff in terms of pressure.
But then even the German stuff was pretty punchy.
The German powder technology in WW1 was capable of sending a 150gn spitzer at almost 3000fps.
Not too shabby by any means.
I'll post some pics when I pick it up.

[S.S.]

I wish someone still made that powder the Germans used in their WWI era ammunition.
It would move a 198 grain ball to almost 2800 fps.

[kombi1976]

I wish someone still made that powder the Germans used in their WWI era ammunition.
It would move a 198 grain ball to almost 2800 fps.

I could be wrong but wasn't it a type of flake powder by Rottweil?