Should I Have Bought It?

[smoked turkey]

I was at a pretty small swap meet last Saturday. Not too many guns but lots of interesting things. One such was an old Mauser 16 gauge shotgun. It was marked "Germany", walnut stock, no serial number and no markings on the barrel that I could make out. The seller said he found it in a fallen down old barn in Arkansas. He said his research indicated it was made in 1929, and was a "factory" made 16 gauge shotgun. He had not fired it and the bore was super dirty. I could not tell the condition of the bore due to all the fouling. The bolt could not be removed when the lever on the side was pulled back. I did dry fire it (by mistake), and the two stage trigger was good. The swing over safety worked correctly. He was rock solid at $150, and he turned down $140 he told me when I made him a slightly lower offer. I am wanting a 16 gauge but would like to find an old double barrel with 2.5" chambers. So I passed on this old Mauser but think about it ever so often. What do the experts think of the deal, was it good or just so-so?

[Hamish]

Most emphatically NO. A little research will show why. If he had said $50, I *might* have been tempted for the curiosity factor.

[pietro]

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IIRC, those Mauser rifles, converted into a forager/shotgun are referred to as being a "GEHA" - here's a read on them:

http://readingbreak.com/features/johng/1/geha.htm


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[ascast]

Too much money. I had one in 12 ga, it really kicked. I don't remember if we shot 2 1/2" or what ever we could find laying around. It was brutal to shoot with slugs also. It went down the road. Save your money for something more modern or versatile or well known.

[lefty o]

a good wall hanger for $25, but other than that i wouldnt own one.

[leebuilder]

Wall hanger, not to be trusted. Màny had no lugs in the front.

[Hardcast416taylor]

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IIRC, those Mauser rifles, converted into a forager/shotgun are referred to as being a "GEHA" - here's a read on them:

http://readingbreak.com/features/johng/1/geha.htm


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This is what was done to make use of all the surplus WW 1 Mausers.Robert

[smoked turkey]

Thanks for all the good information on the GEHA 16 ga Mauser shotgun I asked about. Well it looks like I made a wise decision not to buy last Saturday. My heart sort of wanted to say yes but my gut said NO!. Glad I did not listen to my heart on this one. I have scratched my 16 gauge itch with a trade pending for an old Winchester single barrel that I am sure will be more to my liking anyway. I have some brass shells I want to play around with and don't need anything too fancy. Thanks again for the valuable input. I knew I could get information to set my mind at ease on the old Mauser shotgun from the knowledgeable folks here.

[Wayne Smith]

Thanks for all the good information on the GEHA 16 ga Mauser shotgun I asked about. Well it looks like I made a wise decision not to buy last Saturday. My heart sort of wanted to say yes but my gut said NO!. Glad I did not listen to my heart on this one. I have scratched my 16 gauge itch with a trade pending for an old Winchester single barrel that I am sure will be more to my liking anyway. I have some brass shells I want to play around with and don't need anything too fancy. Thanks again for the valuable input. I knew I could get information to set my mind at ease on the old Mauser shotgun from the knowledgeable folks here.

Do you have 14 guage wads? I made the mistake of getting 16 gague wads for my brass shells. Than I found I needed 14 gauge because the brass is so much thinner.

[smoked turkey]

Good comment Wayne. My brass 16 gauge cases are 2.5" and are by Rocky Mountain Cartridge Company. They use regular 209 shotshell primers and regular 16 gauge components. I had the components and that is one reason I purchased the cases that I did. The other is that the cases are exceptional and the ten that I have will last me as long as I will be shooting it appears. I had an old drilling for a while and had to return it to the owner (bummer). I need a 16 gauge shotgun so I can once again get into the load-shoot-load-shoot cycle again!