wildcat junkie

Make sure to check out the "This Doe Knows" page. Almost every day during season she left her sanctuary around noon to feed near the roads/camps.

Almost 48 MOA error that can't be affected by adjustments sure doesn't sound like mismatched ring mounts to me either!

Wuss!

I had to rent a trailer to move my daughter from Rochester to here last February 28th. All I had was my 2006 Charger Daytona for a tow vehicle. It's rated for 3800# & has trailer brake control, but the U-Haul trailer had no brakes. I got caught in white-out conditions on 104 as I rounded the SE corner of lake Ontario. Some 19 year old yahoo in a Jeep Cherokee rear ended the trailer. The trailer was totaled & there was $2500 damage to the back end of my car. I was still able too proceed & they closed I-81 right behind me just as I got on. I logged about 750,000 miles hauling livestock W/43' "possum belly" trailers in the midwest in the late '70s. That trip last February was the worst I ever had to make.

Either way, the image in my mind is quite amusing.

A little bit of "crossdresser" fantasy working here, or is it for your "significant other"?

Just be glad you don't have to drive to Watertown. 1 1/2-3 FEET is forecast!

Watching "Meat eater" right now.

Vacuume packed stuff lasts a long time in the freezer. It's the cold air in the freezers that ruins meat. I have even eaten 1+ year old venison that was wrapped tightly W/2 layers of saran wrap & a layer of freezer paper.

Do you watch "Into High Country" & the "Dropped" series too? Both of those shows often end W/little or no success as far as kills. More like real life than the "trophy hunt" shows on expensive leased properties where other shows are "staged"..

Yep, I like that one, "Into High Country" & "Dropped". All 3 are real hunting IMO, mostly on public land too.

Yeah, & it's always an odd number. not like they saw 4 points on 1 side & asumed it was an 8-point.

The original barrel should measure about 23 1/2" from the bolt face to the muzzle.

The 98K wasn't all that big & clunky. The "stepped" barrrel contour was the early 20th century version of fluted barrels. It allowed a stiffer barrel than what a straight taper would achieve at a given weight/barrel length. Just replacing the mlitary stock W/a sporter version will get the weight down to the 7#ish range W/the 23 1/2" "K" barrel. Register on MAUSER CENTRAL go to the TECH TALK forum. Check out the various threads for code & other technical data. Best single source I know of for information on Mausers. Right now, I have a total of 2 LR 98K actions, 2 LR VZ500 (commecial intermediate length) 98 actions (1 in a complete rifle) & 1 SR 98 Mexican Mauser action. I have several barrels W/good rifling/throats, 2 are the 29" Persian/29 vintage that will make excellent 8X68S magnum barrels @ 26". I also have a blank E.R. Shaw 6.5mm barrel that I want to use to make a modern +P+ 60K version of the 6.5X55 Swede. It will be a 6.5X55 version of my 8X57IS Oberndorf custom that will be my sons 1st enterfire rifle.. The 6,5 Swede @ 60 should spit out 120gr .264 NBTs @ about 3150fps.

Don't go overboard with the "clean up". You have a piece W/some collector value that will only increase W/time. The action is of good pedigree & can witstand full power loads if everything checks out. I was knocking the primerss loose W/wildcat 8mm-06 A.I. loads in my action of the same vintage. Didn't faze the bolt/receiver in the least. Great metalurgy in that particular manufacture/year. See if you can somehow get some of the Cabela's Sellier & Bellott bulk 8X57 ammo shipped. It's good stuf. powerful, accuratef & reasonalble.

According the the "fxo" BARREL CODE, that barrel would be correct (suhl) for the rifle.

I very seriuosly doubt that rifle has headspace problems.

Nearly all German late 30s/early40s made 98Ks had the Eagle/Swastika stamp. The Russian captured specemines had the marks struck over. While the E/S mark does increases the value over the Russian mutilated ones, it's not particularly rare. An early Oberndorf, Brno, J.P. Sauer & Sohn, Mauser Werke, etc barreled action with milled bottom metal that is unmolested W/matching #s in good condition is worth @ least $500. The values can go up from there. One in the original stock is worth even more. I'm not sure if the stocks were amrked to match the actions. I had a battlefield P/U 1943 J.P, Saure & Sohn that was a "duffle cut". It was given to me by a neighbor's widow when i was in my mid teens. I assume "Mike" had picked it up & did the "duffle cut" to ship it home. I only recently learned about "duffle cuts". Duffle cuts have the last several inches of the stock neatly sawn off where the last barrel band will conceal the cut. That allowed the dismantled barelled action/stock to fit within a duffle bag for shipment home as a war prize. I threw the stock away in the late '50s & replaced it W/a Fajen sporter stock. In 2000 I hacked up the barreled action for a custom project. A few years back I discovered the "ce" code was for J.P. Sauer & Sohn. I had butched a completely orighinal rifle that was worth quite a lot of $$. It was in excellent condition & fit/finish on the action was superb for a wartime prodution rifle. It did have the sheet metal triggergaurd, but the floorplate was milled. Some of the stuff W/stamped floorplates are rough as a cob. My brother gave me a "42" code (Oberndorf '38-'40) #s matched barrelled action in a cut down Bubba'd" stock. Unfortunately it had been re-blued & the makings were "smeared" severly diminishing the value as a collecter. I decided to file down the rear bridge to D&T the receiver for another custom rifle project.

On the top center of the front receiver ring there should be a stamping. Either a number, a 3-letter code, or both. This will identify the manufacturer & the year of production. Here is a LINK that will list the various codes.

I get similar results with RL17.

The fear of litigation has American ammo makers loading the 8X57 waaaay down in pressure. There are 1888 Commisiion rifles chambered in 8X57I that utilized a different bore/land geometry than the later 8X57IS (infantry Spitzer) cartridge which has an 8.2mm bore/8mm land configuration' The former uses 8.07mm (.318") bullets while the latter uses the 8.2mm (.323) bullet. The Europeans assume that people using weapons are somewhat more resposible than what our American corporate mentality believes. They load the 8X57IS to "adult" power levels. There are 2 pressure spec's. SAAMI (American) & CIP (European) A good sound M98 action has been the basis of countless high pressure magnum cartridges & the 8X57 cartridge is the grand daddy of all .473" head cartridges that includes almost all of the medium bore non-magnum cartridges. I load my 8X57 to 60,000psi Mv ranges. It is a mild recoiling sledge hammer, easily spitting out 200gr bullets @ just over 2700fps/3300ft# of energy. The Military barrels love 200gr bullets in that Mv range. If the throat is good, military 8X57 barrels can be used to make sporter weight tack drivers.

If the #s match, I seriously doubt that is has headspace problems. Find a competant gunsmith to check out the headspace & throat. The barreled action alone might be worth a bit of $$$ is it hasn't been re-blued or otherwise "Bubba'd" What sort of marking is on the front receiever ring? Does it have a milled or stamped, fabricated sheet metal triggergaurd? Does it have milled or stamped floorplate? If it has all milled bottom metal & is an early Oberndorf or J. P. Sauer & Sohn barreled action, it is a quality piece. Stamped triggergaurd W/milled bottom metal is next W/some pretty good stuff still produced. The specemines W/stamped triggergaurd & stamped floorplate being the bottom of the barrel produced when the 3rd REICH was going down the tubes.. BTW: If it does check out, ditch the enemic U S ammo & get some Sellier & Bellott stuff. 196gr bullets @ 2600fps. The Rem/Win stuff is 170gr RN @ 2400fps. Basically 32 Special ballistics.

Checking for an erroded throat would require a chamber cast W/"Cerrosafe". Not a monumental task, but a bit more involved that closing the bolt on a gauge.

By "out of shape", what do you mean? If it was bulged or belled, it could indicate severe throat errosion. That isn't a headspace issue or particularly dangeraous but it would result in dismal accuracy. Remington or Winchester 8X57 ammo is pretty bad stuff as far as power & spec anyway. Hard to make an accurate accessment.

Wouldn't most of the 1 1/2 yr old bucks allowed to survive their 1st season show up as 2 1/2 yr olds the next? Aside from some natural loss & road kill there would be nearly as many "legal" bucks after the initial opening year of ARs. A bit bigger & maybe a little bit smarter?