My weakness for molested guns got me again

[randy langford]

Bought a 96 Mauser today the good is it has the best looking walnut stock I have seen it is striped from one end to the other even the handguard. Everything is there even down to the cleaning rod . The bore is great and the barrel hasn't been cut . Now the bad drilled and tapped and it still has the scope and mounts. The bolt has been forged in kind of a zig zag shape and some wood has been removed for the turned down bolt. Now here is the dilemma I am torn between trying to restore and or just going ahead and completing the sporterising of it. I gave $175 out the door so either way I am not hurt. I welcome all advice and opinions. I will try and post pictures tomorrow.http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=162819509 here is one that is close to what I have but mine has a better stock

[Bill]

Since this rifle is readily available, and you could surely find a good original for not much more than you paid for this one, it does not make any sense to me to invest money to "restore" this one.

Make a sporter out of it, and you will be ahead of the game.

[leftyo]

if there's extra holes in the reciever, there is no restoring it. finish the rifle up how oyu like it, and enjoy it!

[jon_norstog]

Randy,

I had a swede like that - long rifle, scope mounts, turned down bolt. Man, that thing would shoot! You wouldn't want to carry it in the woods, but it was great at the range. WHatever you do with it, you won't be boogering a collector piece, anyway. One thing that works is to cut the barrel back flush with the nose cap on the stock. That brings it down to a handier length and you can pretend it is Mannlicher style. I've got a "Swede" like that I had built on a Mexican '98 action, Douglas barrel and a '96Swede stock I got that was figured French walnut. The Mexican mauser is almost a drop-in.

jn

[randy langford]

Thanks for the advice either way I will enjoy it and I can do all the work myself so no money out of pocket just time . As far as the holes I have learned how to fill them in and you cant see them after I am done. I am sorry if I offended anyone with the word ''restore''. I know if I choose to put it back as close to its original state it will be for my own satisfaction. I just enjoy working with my hands and I always learn something in the process.

[pelago]

been there and done that, as you well know the mauser is a real piece of workmanship, tough, durable and the starting point for many a fine looking rifle

i built this one off a GEW 1916 action
shilen 3006 barrel
timney trigger
glass bedded action
bent bolt
Gentry 3 position safety instead of original mauser safety
weaver steel scope bases
weaver scope mounts
weaver scope 3X90 a 40 yr old scope rebuilt by those guys in texas
stock is european walnut, with brazilian heartwood spacer and birdseye maple forend
sling hardware is out of the 03 junk drawer
finish was polish then bead blast with glass beads to a satin finish
forgot what kind of butt plate it has on it, but it DO need one

it is a real shooter with less than a minute at 100 yards
this rifle is planned to give to a grandchild when he or she, does something above and beyond such as national honor society along that line of thought
http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w57/pelago177/GEW1916Mauser.jpg

me, you know where i am headed, hell it is already got drill holes in it, make a 270, or 308, or 3006 tack driver out of it

[Dave in NGA]

Enjoy it for what it is! I have a couple 03's like you describe. I've found they fill the bill when I'm looking for a rifle to use for deer hunting on a rainy day. I sure don't want to sit up in a tree stand all day getting one of my 'nice' rifles all wet and water soaked. A rifle such as you describe won't be hurt by the rain and is just plain fun to shoot. It's also fun to discover the full potential these early bolt action military rifles contain when equipped with a good scope and left in it's military stock and hardware.

[pelago]

Enjoy it for what it is! I have a couple 03's like you describe. I've found they fill the bill when I'm looking for a rifle to use for deer hunting on a rainy day. I sure don't want to sit up in a tree stand all day getting one of my 'nice' rifles all wet and water soaked. A rifle such as you describe won't be hurt by the rain and is just plain fun to shoot. It's also fun to discover the full potential these early bolt action military rifles contain when equipped with a good scope and left in it's military stock and hardware.

what the man says is true, it is amazing how accurate these old military rifles are and how tough they are, my oldest boy hunts with a rifle i built him 25 years ago
and it is on a 03A3 already drilled and taped for lyman sight, so i had no proble drilling another set of holes for redfield base, and damn if it dont shoot sub minute at 100 yards with deer load of 47.5 gr 4064 and a bt soft point 165 grain hornady

http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w57/pelago177/1903A3Sporter003.jpg
this rifle may not win pictures for beuty and stock checkering and incredible blue job, but it is a shooter