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Old April 2, 2011, 06:33 AM   #5
milsurpcollector
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Join Date: September 29, 2010
Posts: 11
old thread but worth reviving. I had an Argentine Mauser 1909 and the quality is very high. The lockup and weight of the action/barrel is heavier than the later K98's. Actually it was a bit too heavy ! I'm into milsurp sporters and this one had a cut stock, and rechambered to 30-06 from 7.65 x 53. So it would require a light chamber ream to make it a true 31-06 and be accurate shooting .312" bullets. Being it needed that work and was heavy too, I pulled the vintage Redfield scope off it, and sold the gun for $285, to someone who was going to rebarrel it. If I had it to do again, I'd have kept it.

Yesterday I just picked up a 1908 Mauser made in Berlin. Same high quality as the Argentine. Actually you could say they are the same gun just stamped differently. Again, very heavy action. Either the steel is more dense, or it is thicker somewhere in the action and bolt. This one was rebarreled to 25-06, and a custom black synthetic stock put on, the bolt handle cut off, rewelded on and turned down, and d/t for scope. Whoever did it, did a very nice job. Also a new trigger and safety Mark II. Getting this gun made me wish I still had the first one back !

the guns must have a very high nickel content in them. This gun had some rust pit issues below the stock line, where you can't see them once the action is in the stock. But I wanted that taken care of. Yesterday I took it apart, taped it off with high quality duct tape, and glass beaded the rusty pit areas, which I will then blue with cold blue and a Q tip, or a blueing stick. Anyway, while grit blasting it, there were sparks flying off the action.

Whenever you see sparks flying that usually means very hard metal with a very high nickel content, I've seen that phenom before on 1950's made in USA engine parts and blocks from GM. The rods, cranks, blocks had so much nickel in them, they'd spark if you were working on them and accidentally nicked the block or part with a drift or hammer.

really amazing metallurgy in those early steels, considering what they had to work with.
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