7mm mauser??????

[leadhead]

Does anyone have any luck shooting cast in 7mm military mausers?
I can't seem to get a boolet big enough to work. I've even
sized down .300 dia. bullets to .289 and still can't get groups
worth a damn. Any ideas?
Thanks,
Denny

[DIRT Farmer]

I have two, both 93 carbines, Both long on headspace and short on good bores. I am shooting the Lee C 285 130 grn as cast with the gas check pressed on amd lubed by hand. I thought both barrels were toast but I decided to see one day before rebarreling one to see what would clean out. I have not mesured the bore but a 7mm brush has no restance pushing it through the barrel.
The one I now use for a walking around plinker really cleaned up in the barrel when I started just dipping the casting in a 50/50 crisco/bees wax lube I use for muzzleloading. I am fireforming to the chamber, loading 10 grns of Green Dot.

[richhodg66]

I loaded some for my Dad who got a Ruger #1 in it a while back. I don't remember what loads exactly, but several different types around two bullets; a Lyman Loverin design and the basic Lee 7mm (120 grains I think) he reported back that the Lee shot better than the Lyman on all groups.

Some other thoughts, military rifles in 7x57 supposedly have very long throats. That could be your problem. Have you slugged the bore? What type of rifle?

I'm interested because a couple of years ago, I picked up a very nice little sporterized Venezuelan Mauser and it shoots terribly. ALl I've fed it so far is factory ammo, and the project got stalled when I went to Iraq and I haven't picked it up again, but I want to slug the bore (it has the original stepped barrel). The bore looks perfect and it is a pre-WWI Belgian FN Mauser, so I figure the quality control ought to be very good. I'm hoping I don't have to rebarrel this one to get it to shoot well.

[koehn,jim]

I have 2 1908Brazilian and a 93 spanish. So far I have 24 grains of 4895 behind the lee soupcan , I gas check and lube but leave them as cast and it shoots nice out to 200 yards. Nice is about 2-3 inches, the load might do better but I am satisfied, The rifles are stock and collector grade so i do not want to change them and the triggers leave somthing to be desired. They are long throated the original load was a 173 cupro nickle slug and it stcks way out. Hope this helps,

[RayinNH]

Denny, I have a 1908 Brazilian Mauser with a .2885 bore. So far I've only used RCBS 168-SP and Lyman 287641. Both molds had to be "beagled" to cast large enough. I managed to get to about .289 by "beagling". I've tried four loads that worked fairly well, that is getting two inch groups at fifty yards for ten shots. My limitation is my 55 year old eyes don't see those Mauser sights so well, or any others either for that matter. I don't know if tinkering with the loads would help any.

All primers CCI 200.
RCBS 7mm-168-SP 10.3 grains Green Dot(Lee scoop, that's why the odd #
RCBS 7mm-168-SP 19.1 grains SR4759 (Lee scoop)
Lyman 287641 16 grains 2400
Lyman 287641 11.3 grains Red Dot (Lee scoop) I tried 13 grains and the group opened up to about 4 inches.

I just purchased an Ideal 287405 from BCall. It shows promise as it cast .290. I have boolits lubed with Lee Mule Snot. Just this evening I cleaned primer pockets, primed and belled cases for loading. Maybe tomorrow evening I'll get them loaded. I'm going to try the 11.3 grain RD load and 10 grains of Unique for starters ...Ray

[leadhead]

Thanks guys, I have a Brazilian 08/34 short rifle in 7mm with a very rough bore that I
got to shoot pretty well with a sized down .300 dia cast.
I have a spanish 93 that the bore doesn't look that bad, that won't shoot worth a damn.
I just bought a 1912 Chilean mauser with a perfect bore that shows promise. The bore
measures .287 Ray, I'd be very intersted in finding out where you got that Ideal 287405.
What did you have to give for it?
Thanks for all the info guys.
Denny
PS I've been using mostly 2400 powder as I 've never had very good luck with unique
in rifle loads.

[atr]

I have a M93 spanish made in spain and a M95 DWM...both in 7x57
the M93 has a VERY long throat a pitted bore and a short barrel and doesn't shoot cast worth a darn

the M95 is a very good shooter with cast. It was german made rifle and very high quality and the tolerance are very tight/good.

my GUESS is that your 7x57 has a very long throat and the boolit has to jump to reach the rifling. I did find that the heavier and longer boolits did the best

[mooman76]

I bought one years ago that I couldn't get to shoot with cast or jacketed worth a darn. Every once in awhile I get a hair up and take it out and play with it some more. It has a dark bore but strong rifling. I still haven't given up eeven though I sware too every time I try. It's frustrating. Anyway I had all this 7mm stuff I bought so when I seen another, not the same model but similar, I was bound and deturmined to make something work in 7mm. I must be a glutton for punishment.I couldn't hardly get the first one on paper at 25y and the second turned out just about as bad. I tried a filler in the cart. and the first showed no improvement but the second went down to 1" at 25y. Remarkable improvement Oh and by te way the first one leaded so bad that the first time I shot it, it had a ring of lead plastered aroung the muzzle that I could peel off with my fingers. I continue to try though.

[6.5 mike]

I've been using the lee with pp'ed to bore size, at least it hits the target I'm shooting at instead of min of berm. 1940 f/n 0.285x0.290.

[jonk]

Generally both of my 7mms have done well either with the Lee or RCBS molds. But it's just luck, that mine aren't grossly oversized. I had a Spanish 1916 that I couldn't get to shoot ANYTHING well, slugged the bore and found it was .293". And pitted. Nor did I feel like dealing with that so I sold it.

[bkbville]

Hey! I might have bought that rifle...

[roggom]

I have a VZ-24 Brazilian Short I picked up from SOG slugged .287 I use the Lee C285-130-1R dropped at .288 unsized over 11.5gr of Trailboss WLR primer and it hold about 2" at 50Y and under 3" at 75Y. I really like TB for close range plinking.

My VZ12/33 El Salvador on the other hand was a sewer @ .290, I tried PP up to .292 or so, but wasn't having it as the rifling was nearly gone. It is now at the smith having one of those Numrich M22 re-conditioned barrels put on. That one was .284 cant wait to get her back.