HELP Me before I blow Mauser up!

[shinjin]

I need some advice before I blow this mauser or my face up!
Took 22-250 re-barrel off a mauser 98 and replaced with factory commerical 7x57. Have tighten it with wheeler action wrench. Got all 3 Forster gauges to check headspace. Bolt closes on all three gauges?!?! Now what do I do?
I didn't strip bolt but inserted the rim so it worked like a factory round, under the extractor's rim. Would this make a difference?
How tight do I have to get this commercial barrel? The re-barrel 22-250 did not take much force to get off. My other mausers orignal barrels won't even budget so..., how tight do I need to go?
I went back and took the extractor off the bolt and now I can get nothing to chamber
 
 

[gunnut69]

Headspace is to be checked with a stripped bolt, no extractor either. The extractor collar needs to be managed to allow the bolt to function but should not be removed... If the bolt closes on a field guage (the longest guage) the barrel will have to be set back to allow the chamber to be freshed out to a correct headspace. It doesn't need to be as tight as most factory barrels. Fitting a barrel to a mauser requires the shoulder of the barrel and the end of the extension hit the diaphram at the same time (or very close). If the headspace is long the shouder will have to be moved back abd the extension set to the length measured from the action face to the diaphram minus a bit for metal compression when tightening the barrel.. It's almost inevitable then that the chamber will require lengthening until the go-guage will just allow the bolt to close but the no-go will not allow the bolt to close... A field-guage is used if the no-go allows closure to determine if the headspace has reached dangerous levels.. Is this a new barrel? These are usually short chambered to allow be-barreling without tyhe use of a lathe.. Be certain of the chambering of the barrel and of your use of the guages before going to far.. Be glad to help if you have more questions..

[shinjin]

Hey thanks for helping!
It is a commercial take-off 7x57 barrel. No maker's marks just caliber. A factory loaded 7x57 fits.
Took the extractor off and controlled the collar (once I fogured out what the dickens was jamming me up). It doesn't cose on any of the gauges which are all forster and stamped.engraved 7x57. Soooo....?
Do I need to back off on tightening the barrel? Right now it is just past tight. Anything more and it starts turning in the oak blocks and I got it tight!
 
 

[gunnut69]

If the bolt won't close on a 'go guage' the chamber is too short to allow all ammo to chamber. It will have to be deepened with a 7x57 reamer. The sponser of this thread (4-D Reamer Rentals) can assist with finding one if needed. Be sure to check that the bolt will close with no guage in the chamber but not with any of the guages in place..

[shinjin]

gunnut69 - Now, I am REALLY confused.
I had a rod in barrel to nudge the forster gauges out of the chamber and it was keeping me from closing the bolt. When I removed it the bolt would close. Well DUH, as my Grandson would say.
But now, when I hold the extractor clip in the right position the bolt closes on all three gauges. The Go Gauge has resistence while the other two when you work it smartly the bolt closes almost easily.  What The Heck am I doing wrong?
I checked  to make sure it is a 7x57. A factory round seats in the chamber and the bore is only 7 mm. My 8x57 and 30-06 factory loads will NOT fit the bore from muzzle end. And, even though you can't trust anythign the barrel is stamped 7x57mm.
Do I need to tighten barrel in frame more or...?
 
HELP. I have ALWAYS wanted a 7x57 Mauser and this is driving me NUTS.

[gunnut69]

If the bolt closes on a no go guage the chamber is too long.. It would by definition close on a go guage since the no go is longer than the go guage. Are you certain the three guages are 'go', 'no go' and 'field' guages for the 7x57? If the barrel is tight enough to not loosen with firing its tight enough. If the bolt closes on all three guages the barrel will have to be set back one thread. This is done in a lathe by facing off the barrel extension the length of a single thread. Then the barrels shoulder has to be cut back the same amount. This allows the barrel to enter the receiver further shortening the chamber.. The chamber is then deepened a very little at a time with a chamber reamer until the bolt closes on the go guage but NOT on the no go guage. The field guage is used to determine if the rifle is safe to fire.. Just because the barrel was a take off doesn't mean it will fit any rifle other than the one it was set up on originally. Remember to go lightly when closing the bolt on a guage, a mauser has quite a bit of camming force and can cause damage to the chamber and/or the guage if things are forced..

[shinjin]

Well Drat!
 
That's beyond my Butchering Skills. I will need a Gunsmith.
 
Was hoping to use it this season but that's out. Oh Well. Hmmmm, I might just try the 8x57 barrel and see if she fits....?

[shinjin]

Would the 7x57 gauges work for the 8x57?
 
 
I mean, they are the same chamber size just a different bullet diameter....?!?
 

[WSM264]

You will only have to turn one full thread off if you are trying to index sights or the barrel stamping.  If you don't mind your 7x57 stamp being on the top or upside down on the other side of the barrel you could just turn off a few thousandths.  This may save you from renting a reamer, but it will still require a lathe.   
Basically you have a "deep" chambered barrel. 
 In order to know how much to take off you will need 4  measurements.  Measure from the front of the receiver to the front of the bolt (w/o the barrel installed and bolt installed and closed).  You will also need to drop the go gauge in the barrel and measure the amount that is sticking out.  Measure the barrel from the breech end to the shoulder.  Measure from the front of the receiver to the inner shoulder of the receiver.  The barrel shank will need to be about .001- .003" longer than the measurement of the front of the receiver to inner shoulder.   Subtract the inner shoulder measurement from the bolt face measurement.  This number should  be close to the go gauge sticking out measurement.  Remove metal from the breech of the barrel to make these #'s match.
Check your work with the gauges.

[shinjin]

Guys thanks for all the help and suggestions. But, this is BEYOND my skill set. Will send to a gunsmith after hunting season. Get him to install and headspace barrel, maybe reblue and get her ready for 2013 Season.
 
Again, thanks. You guys are always a wealth of information.

[8uck5nort]

Hey Shinjin what was the final disposition on this mauser? I just finished a re-barrel in 7x57 on a Brazilian 1908. I have done a couple of rebarrels on mausers and you had asked "how tight" should you put them back on. I was told by a reputable gunsmith who has helped me out from time to time that a muaser barrel should be crush fit to the inner ring, or as he would say just a tad past grunt with a cheater bar on your barrel wrench. Then do you headspace check with the go no-go and finish ream as needed. I used a new Adams and Bennet barrel so it was short chambered to begin with. New short chambered barrels can be had for under a 100.00 bucks.
I know this maybe a little late, but you could put the 22-250 barrel back on and send it out for a rebore to 6.5x55, 7x57 or 8x57 but that is a little pricey. No bolt work should be required since bolt heads are almost identical and the rebore and rechamber by the smith should take care of the headspacing detail.
Let me know. I am gathering materials to build another mauser. I would like to do another M98 in 6.5x55 swede sometime this upcoming winter or next spring.

[ulav8r]

When checking headspace, you should NOT operate the bolt smartly.  The firing pin, spring, extractor, etc. are removed to allow a light touch so you can get a good feel for the fit of each gage.  You do not want to cam the bolt closed on a gage that is .001 or .002 oversize.  this may be late for the OP, but it appies to anyone checking headspace on any gun.

[WSM264]

I have done a couple of rebarrels on mausers and you had asked "how tight" should you put them back on. I was told by a reputable gunsmith who has helped me out from time to time that a muaser barrel should be crush fit to the inner ring, or as he would say just a tad past grunt with a cheater bar on your barrel wrench.

This seems to be the norm when I take them apart. However, I only put mine on using the weight of the action wrench.  I let the action wrench "fall" from 2 o'clock to 5 or 6 o'clock. Sometimes I give an extra push but I don't use a cheater bar.  Not saying that using a cheater bar is bad, but I have twisted a SR Mauser action before by getting carried away with tightening trying to get headspace a tad shorter.

[gcrank1]

Im glad you mentioned that Uvla8r! !
Go/No Go gauges are just that, 'feeler gauges', their proper use is the fine feel and too many use way too much force, especially considering the camming action of a bolt action. In fact, the gauges can easily be ruined by forcing the close.