96--98??

[JACKNZ]

I own two 96 swedish mausers one sporter and one original.I now would like to buy a 98.Can anybody tell me the diffrence between the two and also which is the best 98 to look for.
THANKS,,Jack.

[Buford]

The best '98 Mauser, in my opinion, is the 1909 Argentine Mauser - for all practical purposes, it is a commercial '98 Mauser action - complete with hinged floorplate and good finish - in military configuration.  They are getting hard to find and the price is starting to creep up.

I don't know the features of a '96, but a '98 has all the improvements - cock on opening, third locking lug, faster lock time, great gas handling ability, ability to handle much higher pressure cartridges.  There is an entire industery built around the '98 Mauser which furnishes all kinds of aftermarket items.

I hope this helps a bit.

[Mikey]

jacknz:  Buford gave you some excellent advice.  The 1909 Argentine is a beautifully made rifle but, it is in a rimmed caliber which means you would have to go with that caliber or another rimmed to avoid having another bolt handfitted to the action.  

Of all the 98s made, I feel the Belgium made 98s are excellent and are near civilian in quality as compared to the military.  As for military actions, the VZ/CZ 24s are very, very nice.  The two I own are very smooth.  Those actions (VZ/CZ) are sought after for sporterizing.  Hope this helps.  Mikey.

[Buford]

Where did you get the idea the 1909 is designed for a rimmed cartridge?

[JACKNZ]

Hey guys,Thanks for the advice.My plan is to build a custom on a 98 action.I Have yet to decide on a caliber,but it will be a deer rifle mainly so I have plenty of options.I already have the wood,Walnut and ebony.The metal work will be done by a local gunsmith.The stock  will be a SAKO copy in shape with ebony fore end and grip cap.That little bit of ebony cost
me that much I,m ashamed to admit it,but then I only plan to do this once.THANKS AGAIN..JACK.

[1911crazy]

Isn't the 1909 7.65x53?? Its very similair to the '06, 7mm shell rimless. I have a 1891 in 7.65x53 and an Peruvian mauser in 30-06 that was rereamed to '06 from 7.65x53.   The 98 action/reciever makes an excellent sporterized gun.  The are different lenght bolts for different lenght calibers  the trigger housing screws are farther apart and their is one company that makes a longer magazine housing.                                                               BigBill

[roberthonike]

You already have just about as good a deer rifle as you can get. I'm not going to stick my neck out with details, but Swede actions rebarreled to 30/06 and .308 are common in Sweden. The 3rd lug? Lots of "modern" sporter actions don't have one. Cock on opening? Big deal.
If you just want another Mauser, thats all the reason you need, but the deer will never know the difference.
I remember some load to failure tests done a long time ago where the old ugly Arisaka outlasted all the other Mausers(it is one too). I wish I still had all the results, but I don't spend a lot of time worrying about my Swedes blowing up.

[1911crazy]

You already have just about as good a deer rifle as you can get. I'm not going to stick my neck out with details, but Swede actions rebarreled to 30/06 and .308 are common in Sweden. The 3rd lug? Lots of "modern" sporter actions don't have one. Cock on opening? Big deal.
If you just want another Mauser, thats all the reason you need, but the deer will never know the difference.
I remember some load to failure tests done a long time ago where the old ugly Arisaka outlasted all the other Mausers(it is one too). I wish I still had all the results, but I don't spend a lot of time worrying about my Swedes blowing up.

Swedish chrome moly steel is like the best there is the highest quality for sure nothing comes close. And when Oberndorf(Germany) made the mausers for sweden the swede's insisted they used swedish steel too. In all my experience with dirtbikes I had over 30 husqvarna's in my collection that were well ridden with chrome moly steel frames that never were broke or cracked but i have welded/repaired many japanese bike and quad frames.                                          BigBill

[Mikey]

Buford:  my apologies.  I thought that one of the 98s was made for a rimmed cartridge and I thought the 7.65 Argentine round was the rimmed one.  

I thought that one specific Mauser was preferred for rebarrelling to rimmed cartridges as it had been chambered in a rimmed caliber and the boltface didn't  require much, any , or as much reworking as those for rimless cartridges.  Mikey.

[Buford]

Mikey, there is one Mauser that is for a rimmed cartridge that I know of and it is frequently used to build a bolt action .45/70.......an old gunsmith in Fairbanks took me under his wing and brainwashed me into thinking the Mausers are about the best thing going.  I miss him.

[John Traveler]

The two most common Mauser-type actions for rimmed cartridges are/were:

1.  Thai Mauser 8mm rifles built in a Tokyo arsenal.

2.  P1914 "Enfield" which is actually a mauser-based action originally in .303 Britsh.

There were a few (rare) true German Mauser actions built for odd European rimmed cartridges too, but they are not common.

[JACKNZ]

Robertthonike,I fully agree with what you say about the swede 96.
I became interested in the 98 because so many custom rifles use the action.I was told the 98 was a better action and I suppose to some they are, but I could just never see it since I have used the 96 for so long with never a problem.I will still build a 98 custom but as you say the deer will never know the diffrence.
Thanks for your input...JACK.

[1911crazy]

Buford:  my apologies.  I thought that one of the 98s was made for a rimmed cartridge and I thought the 7.65 Argentine round was the rimmed one.  

I thought that one specific Mauser was preferred for rebarrelling to rimmed cartridges as it had been chambered in a rimmed caliber and the boltface didn't  require much, any , or as much reworking as those for rimless cartridges.  Mikey.

Hey Mikey you raised a RIMMED CARTRIDGE awareness there are some of these european rifles for hunting that are 7x57R and 8x57R the "R" means rimmed.  Funny you should mention this I was looking at Husqvarna hunting/sporting rifles and "R" caught my eye the only other place i seen the "R" is in the Sellier & Bellot Ammo selection they had 8x57 and 8x57R same as the 7x57 and 7x57R too.  So one must becareful when looking at certain calibers too so many weird/different ones.                                                           BigBill

I didn't buy the Husqvarna yet....... But they sure are nice guns topps in quality.

[jdt48653]

i have an 8.15x46r, (rimmed) mauser. i use 30/30 and 32 win spcl brass
for reloading! bolt action 98.

[gunnut69]

Hi guys!  The 98 does quite well with rimmed ammo, at least as well as most bolt guns..  The M70 (and it's predessor the M54) worked just fine with rimmed rounds and did most bolt rifles.  The problems come not from the action but from the magazine.  The mauser is somewhat specific to a cartridge length..  not a particular round but a length.  It is quite possible to alter a M98 to handle rimmed rounds.  To build single shots is very easy to alter a magazine isn't all that difficult..  In Europe the rimmed rounds you mentioned are for the most part used in carious break action singles and drilling(combo guns).  The rim makes for much more positive extraction/ejection in those actions.  As for a deer shooter how about a drilling with buckshot and slug up top and a 7x57R slung under...?? They sound unweildy but those I've handled were pretty well balanced and aer usually quite well made..  The 98's only real advantage over the 96's is in gas handling.  If a 96 leaks gas from a pierced primer or worse it WILL come down the left rail and into the shooter's eye.  There's just nothing there to stop it.  There are mods I've toying with to help prevent this but with an unaltered m96 high pressure gas release is a disaster.  The swedes are quite strong enough and IMHO are fully the equal of the 98's in strength.  They lack some of the Large ring mausers extra mass but I believe that to only come into play where large diameter rounds are used.  The third lug on a M98 is to stop the ejection of the bolt if the lugs should fail catastrophically, something I've never seen in a 98.  I have seen a low number springfield fail badly enough that the safety lug sheared off the rear receiver ring!!!  I bought the weapon for parts and possible repair and conversion the 1922m2..  I will let you know back how my M96 to M98 gas handling conversion goes...No I won't blow one up as a test but I'll try to get some pictures to post..  Just remember that a poor M98 is probably a lot smoother of function than all but the best of it's copies.. and yes that really covers a lot of ground....

[Paul McC]

G’day ,

             John Traveller is correct in mentioning that the Siamese Mauser and the P14 Enfield are the most common of the Mauser type actions mass-produced for rimmed type rounds.

   The P14 Enfield was never originally designed for a rimmed round. This action was initially developed and accepted as the Pattern 1913 for use with the .276 Enfield round (British for 7mm), a rimless round with a base diameter of .528”, and case length of 2.35” (Cartridges of the World 9th Ed.), firing a bullet of about 165 grains at approximately 2750-2800 fps.

   The First World War forced the British to dump their small arms modernization program and modify their newly designed rifle to accommodate the .303 round (“The U.S. Enfield”, Skennerton, 1985 ed.). It was considered easier to produce than the Lee Enfield No.1 Mk3; and after much stuffing around and failed attempts to get them mass-produced in Britain during WW1 the whole lot was shipped to the U.S.A. and the rest is history.

P.S. Don’t believe what the Encyclopaedia Britannica (1997 Ed. and prior) has to say about the Lee Enfield. I am not sure exactly how long they had been publishing this mistake, but they were not particularly gracious when the error was brought to their attention.