I got unknown mauser action rifle in .416 Rigby. Do you have any ideas what is this? It can be Frankonia but I am not sure.

Remove the stock and take good pics of all the markings both underneath and on the left side of the receiver and barrel. It is a double square bridge magnum Mauser and those markings will tell who made it.

I was afraid you will tell me this Am I correct that I need special tool for cross bolt?

You should not have to remove the cross bolt to get the action out of the stock.

That's all markings I found

I don't know who made it. It has the eagle N Nitro proof like Germany uses. Looks like a post war made. I was going to say Brevex but those are marked under the receiver. The maker usually marks them under the barrel.

Having the word SAFARI stamped underneath is interesting... An odd place for a model or such..

Frankonia in Germany is like Walmart in USA, what?
Maybe sumbuddy who know will see this and tell us.

Seriously,
Waffen Frankonia is as good a guess as I could come up with also. Maybe the .416 Rigby Magnum Mauser 98 was a high end item for WF and they did not put their name on it in order to increase the value.

Next thought would be a "guild gun" by a German gunsmith. But the "SAFARI" on the action flat is puzzling, for its crudeness and for suggesting some sort of product line by a mass producer.

Just by my eyeball, your action does look like a true Magnum Mauser M98, but square bridges can be add-ons or integral.

For comparison to a known "Waffen Frankonia" rifle that was probably sold in a PX of a US post in Germany in the 1950's or 1960's, and likely brought back to the USA by a returning sportsman-soldier,
here is my .30-06 Mauser 98 by Waffen Frankonia.
My guess is that my action is probably a milsurp M98 that was ground and polished smooth of any markings,
then stamped and marked by Waffen Frankonia, and properly heat treated before proof marking,
or it is an unmarked commercial standard M98 Mauser.
The German "Nitro Eagle" proof mark is on the barrel knoxform and front ring of action, left side.
The single-antler-shaped proof mark means the Ulm, Germany proof house, after 1952:







The only markings under the woodline:





This 30-06 had a nice glass bedding job somewhere in Germany or USA. Old fixed 4X Waffen Frankonia brand scope has a 30mm tube and German claw mounts soldered to the tube.
Optics are a little foggy compared to modern, but the rifle was shooting 3 shots into less than an inch and still zeroed 1.5 inches high at 100 yards, when I tried it out at the range,
with 180-grain 30-06 loads.

My guess would be Eastern European.

Yugoslavian maybe, or if post-glasnost (i.e., throwing off the commie yoke in favor of genocide), then I would guess Czech. But I cannot read, and do not recognize, the proof marks.

Plus, I don't know of any Czech or any other then or now former Warsaw Pact maker that built a double square bridge magnum Mauser action.

A puzzle.

I showed this rifle to Blaser (Mauser) representative. He made a guess that this can be a original Mauser receiver made for some private manufacturer. Like they did it for Rigby. Another his guess was that this is made by CZ, BRNO or smth. and trued up by some gunsmith.

I once was sold a .375 H&H that was said to be an Oberndorf Mauser; it actually was a Zastava (Yugo) with welded-on square bridges.

Just by my eyeball of the pictures of this .416 Rigby,
maybe the rear square bridge is integral, and the front is an add-on square bridge.
That suggests a genuine single-square-bridge Mauser Magnum M98.
Did Mauser ever make any of those "for the trade" and stamp "SAFARI" on the bottom? Jon Speed where are you?

Not according to his book they didn't. I did think of a sanitized real Mauser but there should still be Mauser markings where the SAFARI is. Whose country proof mark is that star in the squashed circle? Does anyone see that as a star or?

I'm curious about that mark next to the front action screw hole. Can you get a closer pic? I swear it looks like the letters FZH inside it.

***I took the pic and rotated and I can clearly see FZH inside of it***

Parker Hale sold m98 Mauser rifles named "Safari". Before WWII they used Original Mauser actions.

For me the serial number is way to high to be a Brevex

Brevex use to have different markings on bottom site.

quote:

Originally posted by BaxterB:
I'm curious about that mark next to the front action screw hole. Can you get a closer pic? I swear it looks like the letters FZH inside it.

***I took the pic and rotated and I can clearly see FZH inside of it***

What does it mean? Should I make more pictures?

quote:

Originally posted by thirdbite:
Nonetheless, nice looking rifle.

Absolutely! It's pretty lightweight. And very smooth action.

quote:

Originally posted by AfricanHunter:
For me the serial number is way to high to be a Brevex

I might be misremembering, but I didn't think the Brevex had the extended front ring like the real magnum mausers(and the action in question) have.

quote:

What does it mean? Should I make more pictures?

FZH is an action manufacturer.
here is a link:

http://www.fzh-gmbh.de/cms/web.../index/waffenbau.htm

I've seen a couple in person and in the white and they are very high quality actions. I've also handled a few rifles made with them and they come out very nice.

Action FZH Magnum Double Square Bridge.
German Proof April 1999.
Maker unidentifiable.
Never ever Frankonia , they would have labelled the rifle proudly with their name.

Thanks all for information! As I found out, according to German law there should be name of manufacturer on receiver or barrel. But there is not. My friend will call FZH tomorrow maybe they will tell something about their action.

Second thought:
The rifle was made by Johannsen
http://www.johannsen-jagd.de/d...erklasse.php?navid=3

They made a rifle named the Safari. They are sold under their name but also to other dealers.
Style of the stock is the same.
But they used Prechtl actions.

Good idea! Stock and action are similar. And they could use FZH actions in 1999. I will try to ask them.

Don´t believe any longer in FZH action, because they started their production a few years later than 1999.

quote:

Originally posted by heavenknows:
Don´t believe any longer in FZH action, because they started their production a few years later than 1999.

I've been told that they started their own production in 1999 together with Luxemburg ARC company. And mark looks like FZH.

Just for fun: some pics from our recent shooting of my unknown rifle and my friends Prechtl. Both in .416 Rigby.























50 yards, shooting sticks, open sights, 4 shots

Just guessing but that 986 on the underside of the front ring leads me to think original oberndorf sporter action. Is there also the same number on the back of the magazine box?, just curious. --- John

Both great looking rifles. It looks like yours is treating you well. Thanks for sharing.

Jeremy