New Mauser Rifles

[ColColt]

I had a 30-06 on a Czech vz24 BRNO action way back decades ago and a fine action it was. Are these folks on the up and up about their rifles or advertising hype?

http://www.mauser.org/german-k98-mauser-rifle/

[Outpost75]

I don't own any, but have examined several which friends have gotten and they were nicely turned out and as described.

[Kraschenbirn]

...Are these folks on the up and up about their rifles or advertising hype?

http://www.mauser.org/german-k98-mauser-rifle/

In a word...NO!! Every Mitchell I've seen in the last few years has been a 'parts gun', using reworked Russian 'captures' with component (bolt, barrel, floor plate, etc.) serial #s polished out and remarked to match the receiver. Overpriced with absolutely no collector value.

Bill

[ColColt]

They sure play it up in their ad..."built during WWII by the German war machine." They look like near new.

[TNsailorman]

They reblue them and rework the stocks or put new after market stocks on them. Other than that, they are used military rifle from WW II. I have only seen a couple of them but I was un impressed with them, especially for the price. They would not be called "collectable" by the collector friends I have. They would do alright if all you wanted was a "shooter" with a background history. my $.02 anyway. There are still some model 48's and 24/47's out there for sale and you can still find them in very good to excellent condition for less money.

[ColColt]

So bottom line-is this particular rifle a piece meal rifle or indeed a true 98 Mauser with matching parts and numbers made by the "German war machine"?

[Blammer]

odds are it's a piecemeal

[Blammer]

OK, I'm stupid, (post edited)

I've been looking at Turkish mausers so long I got bleary eyed.

yea the K98 pictured has the correct 'hole' in the stock.


my bad.... :(

didn't mean to give out bad info

[ColColt]

Hmmm...well, glad I asked what I did. Time to look elsewhere. They're probably pretty decent if you just want an old looking 8mm Mauser to shoot.

[Kraschenbirn]

At $499 to $699 (+shipping and FFL transfer), even in today's market Mitchell's are definitely overpriced. Less than a year ago, I picked up a matching # Yugo M48...all milled parts...that looked like it had never been issued for $275 OTD and there's still some pretty decent VZ24s and Corunas around in the in the $250-$300 range.

Bill

[Scharfschuetze]

Blammer,

Do you mean the metal plug with the hole in the middle of the but stock?

If so, that is a bolt take down device and is de rigeuer for German Mausers. Late in the war, they just drilled a hole there without the bushing and that worked just as well for bolt disassembly.

The sling slot forward the bolt take down bushing is correct for a German Mauser, at least in the picture provided in the link.

COL Colt,

I've never had a "Mitchel" Mauser, but the basic Model 98 or the now more available Yugo Mausers are about as good as it gets for a military surplus bolt action rifle.

[Multigunner]

The M63 carbine looks interesting, available in .30-06, .308/762X51, and .243 Winchester.
Not a milsurp, since these were never used by any military, but a tough little woods rifle and SHTF rifle.
Apparently all new manufactured parts.

[gew98]

Hmmm...well, glad I asked what I did. Time to look elsewhere. They're probably pretty decent if you just want an old looking 8mm Mauser to shoot.

In mauser collecting circles...Mitchell's is a joke. Rebuilt , refinished , renumbered and overpriced. You will never recoupe your "investment" with a humped mitchell mauser.

[aspangler]

Widner's at WWW.widners.com has some Yugos and I think some German k98's. not bad prices either.

[GabbyM]

If you are looking for a sporting rifle and not a collectable.
Zastava makes brand new Mausers. They have a side slide safety. Unfortunately. $400 gets you a 30-06 with no sights. Another $50 gets iron sights. Add $300 to that and you can get a Win M70 Sporter.

A Yugoslav M48 is only $300. You can get lucky and get a like new rifle. Or unlucky and get a beater. Beaters end up on the LGS racks from what I see. Those Yugo M48’s were made in the Kragujevac Arsenal (Zastava Arms) factory.

[GabbyM]

Widner's at WWW.widners.com has some Yugos and I think some German k98's. not bad prices either.

You may want to fix that link. http://www.wideners.com/
is what it should be. You've got a shill up there. With an E missing in the name.

[ColColt]

I've seen those Mitchell's Mausers advertised in the American Rifleman for a long time. Maybe it's time they reject their ads. I saw a Czech VZ.24 BRNO in 8x57mm with the occupation logo, Zbrojovka, on the receiver on guns America that looked real good...Stock was real nice. More important for me was the description of "head space is fine...bore is excellent". $450

[GabbyM]

$300 here and other places. http://www.impactguns.com/mauser-m2447-yugo-8mm-vg-m2447.aspx
Not so long ago they were $250.

[Powder Burn]

Dennis has an excellent business called Empire Arms http://www.empirearms.com/
One of my best K98s came from him. Russian capture 1940 660 MFG. $325 back in 2007. Had a MM K98 and sold it within 6 months. Not only was it Bubba'd beyond belief, but I couldn't hit anything out passed 75 yds consistently. I recall the bolt was exceptionally hard to extract and operate.

[Blammer]

Blammer,

Do you mean the metal plug with the hole in the middle of the but stock?

If so, that is a bolt take down device and is de rigeuer for German Mausers. Late in the war, they just drilled a hole there without the bushing and that worked just as well for bolt disassembly.

The sling slot forward the bolt take down bushing is correct for a German Mauser, at least in the picture provided in the link.

COL Colt,

I've never had a "Mitchel" Mauser, but the basic Model 98 or the now more available Yugo Mausers are about as good as it gets for a military surplus bolt action rifle.

DOH! boy do I feel stupid, yes you are correct, been eyeballin Turkish mausers for so long I'm seeing double.

Getting a bunch ready to sell at the gunshow... I edited my post earlier.

but I still stand that the Mitchell mausers are a suckers dream.

[Scharfschuetze]

I just saw several Yugos at a recent gun show here in Washington. Seems like they were all in the neighborhood of $400.

I've heard nothing but complaints about the Mitchell Mausers and I guess I'm fortunate in not having ever purchased from them. I'm fortunate that I bought my Imperial German and later Nazi Mausers back in the 80s when good ones were affordable. Mitchell Mausers aside, the basic Mauser action and rifle is a work of the gunmaker's art, whether made in Germany, Austria, Czechoslovakia or wherever. If the barrel is in good shape and it's mechanically sound, it should be good for a couple of lifetimes of cast boolits.

And yes, with all the Mauser variations, it sure is easy to get a bit mixed up!

[aspangler]

You may want to fix that link. http://www.wideners.com/
is what it should be. You've got a shill up there. With an E missing in the name.
YOu are right. Old fingers and eyes. Sorry.

[Multigunner]

Well if nothing else they'd make good motion picture props, and maybe free up some of the originals from prop warehouses.
The CMP got hundreds of Krag rifles and carbines from motion picture prop gun warehouses some years back. Most were corroded from firing blanks but some were in very good condition.

[Hardcast416taylor]

Even Craig Boddington of Guns & Ammo fame has said that these rifles are refinished and new serial numbers stamped to seem as if they are not made up of parts. I bought 1 about 20 years back as a gift to myself for making it thru a heart attack and 6-way bypass surgery. I examined it closely after de-greasing it and began noticing little things that suggested this was a parts gun refinished.Robert

[ColColt]

I suppose if one looks hard enough you can find a for real Mauser...maybe a K98k, for instance. Love to find one of those in decent shootable condition.