i came over this little sweetheart in the used section on gunshop website.



and they're practically giving it away.
so i looked up 9x57 in the cartridges of the world, and they say the cartridge use a .356" bullet?

that was a major setback, sounds very impractical
does anybody shoot one, and what kind of bullets do you use?

Friend of mine foound a similar treasure and for $300USD had it rebored to 9.3x62. The 'smith said it was such an nice old rifle he'd do it cheap if he wasn't in a hurry.

they ask 1000 nok for it, for comparison a new rem 870 costs 4000.

if i could run .358" 250gr Hornady RN at 2150fs it would make a pretty good rifle for driven hunts.
not that i foresee a driven hunt in any near future...but it would be nice to have.

maybe cutting the barrel down to 20" and fitting better open sights.

A good platform for rebore to 9,5x57

Steffen:

This ought to be right up your alley! In the early 1970's my best friend was working at Azusa Gun shop, in California. He took in a very fine Simpson Mauser, in 9X57. Spoon handle bolt, silver inlays, claw mounts etc. Much like the rifle you are looking at. I couldn't wait to call my Old Uncle Hans and tell him about this rifle, as he had all that German pride, and loved Simpson's, Merkel's and so on. He took the rifle, and had it chambered for the 30-06. His reasoning was if he kept the loads "down", he would have a very beautiful 35 Whelen. He tested the new "thing" with loads below the minimum 35 Whelen Loads, and worked up. He never had a pressure problem, and eventually got all the way up to 2600fps, with a 250 grain bullet. I tell you this story because it is interesting, and might help you, Just err on the side of caution. For me though, I wouldn't hesitate to do exactly as Uncle Hans did, worked great for him.

Jerry

Another way to handle it would be to run the .358 bullets through a die and reduce the diameter to the .356 bore diameter.
I've been doing this for many years with a 9x56 M/S--reducing .358 to .354 (slugged bore diameter).
Got both the reloading dies and bullet reducing die from CH.

Good idea dian1. Back in the 70's we tried to "swage" some 358' bullets with no success, thats why we tried the 358's. Your method is very interesting, and I appreciate the info.

Jerry

quote:

Originally posted by dian1:
Another way to handle it would be to run the .358 bullets through a die and reduce the diameter to the .356 bore diameter.
I've been doing this for many years with a 9x56 M/S--reducing .358 to .354 (slugged bore diameter).
Got both the reloading dies and bullet reducing die from CH.

In mine the grooves measure .356" and the chamber neck is large enough that it will accomodate .358" diameter bullets.

A chamber cast will tell all.

z1r is spot on.

Folks have been shooting .323 bullets in .318 bores for the last 100 years. The important part is the chamber throat, as that is where the pressure can spike. If your throat can handle .358, you should be fine. If not, consider reaming it out.

quote:

Originally posted by KurtC:
z1r is spot on.

Folks have been shooting .323 bullets in .318 bores for the last 100 years. The important part is the chamber throat, as that is where the pressure can spike. If your throat can handle .358, you should be fine. If not, consider reaming it out.

X 2 roger

I would've thought that 9mm bullets and ammo would be available in Europe for this cartridge. It's not that uncommon. As others have said, .358 diameter bullets are an option if the proper steps are taken. I've been pushing .308 diameter bullets down my tight bore .298x.307 (nominal is .300x.308) Palma barrel for years with no ill effects or pressure signs.

Hawk makes rifle bullets in 9mm, I think you can order any size from .354-.356. I'd go with a 250g and keep the velocity reasonable, they are fairly soft bullets.

A caveot to my initial story: the reason Ol' Uncle Hans rechambered his rifle, was because he felt the 9X57 was quite anemic, and he wanted a little more pop!

Jerry