Well my parents just got back from PA a little while ago. They go up their to do shoping at a flea market called the green dragon. On the way back they saw a sign for a gun shop and stopped in to check out the "toys". Well they came home with a new present for me, a lil' Easter gift. A Mauser M98/48! It doesn't have matching numbers but overall is in good/VG condition. In a way i'm happy about the non-matching number as now I have a shooter, the other 3 mausers I have were just for colleting, not shooting.(even though I wanted to shoot them, my father said not to, so I gotta listen to dad.) I already did a little research and found out that the M98/48 are yugo captured K98's. I suspect mine doesn't have matching numbers because of this. Pictures to follow as soon as I get a chance to photograph this rifle.

Cory,

Congrats on the new rifle, you will enjoy shooting it.

All the Yugo German captured 98s I've seen have the K-98 handguard configuration (starting in front of the rear sight), have "Mod 98" and "Preduzece 44" on the left side of the action/receiver ring.

Congrats on the new rifle! I have gotten several of the 48's and they do shoot well but the ones I have I have built into other rifles, like a 308, 6mm Remington, and the latest my 6.5x44 Swede. One thing to remember is that this action is an intermediate action, it has the large ring with the same bolt spacing as the small ring Mausers. Get that headspace checked with the numbers not matching and let us know how she shoots. Later,

Kirk

quote:

Originally posted by Ksmirk:
Congrats on the new rifle! I have gotten several of the 48's and they do shoot well but the ones I have I have built into other rifles, like a 308, 6mm Remington, and the latest my 6.5x44 Swede. One thing to remember is that this action is an intermediate action, it has the large ring with the same bolt spacing as the small ring Mausers. Get that headspace checked with the numbers not matching and let us know how she shoots. Later,

Kirk

How do you like the rebarreled Mausers. I'm planing on changing one of mine, probably the Portagise DWM 1904, I want to get a Lothar Walther barrel in 9.3x62 and put it in the action of the rifle named above.

Cory,

Is your 1904 Portugese original? No umbrage intended but there are much better choices for rebarreling to a 9.3x62 than the 1904, particularly if it's ~original (and ESPECIALLY if it's original 6.5 caliber rather than rebarreled to 8mm).

quote:

Originally posted by C.Wathen:
M98/48 are yugo captured K98's.

Go to this website,it explains all the yugo mauser model differences

http://www.marstar.ca/Yugo-M2.htm

C.Wathen, I'm having good luck with them, the 308 I used a surplus Parker/Hale barrel I got for $52.00 to the door and I'd put it up against about any rifle out there but Iwould say this if you have a all number matching rifle don't tear it down, I'm not a historian but I also like to see history stay intact for all the folks that haven't see it yet. Now I was real lucky finding a gunsmith that loved Mausers and he passed some of that on to me by helping me learn to build my own rifles and he will be missed. I have come to really enjoy these old rifles and one day when I can come up with the funds will find the Mauser I'd love to get the 36 Mexican with the cocking button like the 03 Springfield. You can find rifles that the numbers are mixed and I would work with one of these and if your numbers match just enjoy it. Later,

Kirk

Actually the Yugo 48 was made by the Yugoslavian gov't. After (I believe) WWII, they feared being invaded. They had a very small military, and knew that their defenses would depend on the civilians(think National Guard or Militia). They mass produced the 48 and stockpiled them by the thousands in warehouses. A few years ago, the rifles were released for public sale. That's why they're so cheap. There's lots of them. The action is slightly shorter than the K98, but other than that, it's very similar, and a pretty good rifle/action. Now, you may actually have a captured K98, in which case it should be the same as described by Matt.

PM Bartsche. He has sporterized a couple of yugos, and they look really nice. He gave me a few tips on them. I have one that I am in the process of sporterizing. I'm hoping I get it finished before deer season rolls around.

You can scope a yugo, but you'll have to do it with a pistol/scout scope. Because of this, I'm just going to put a red dot on mine. It doesn't have magnification, but it's still better than irons.(I'm not trying to piss off you guys who like irons... I like them too, on certain rifles. I feel like going back to irons every now and then helps to make a better shooter.)

Before you rebarrel it, see how it shoots. I still haven't taken mine to the range... I just can't bear the thought of firing that 8mm with a metal butt plate. After I get my stock finished, it'll have a limbsaver on it.

If you want to go the synthetic route instead of using the original stock, there is one stock made that will fit the yugo with just a little bit of work. I can't remember the manufacturer, but Midway has carried it in the past.

You might want to have the headspace checked, just for safety.

Here are a few sites with a little info on the yugo.

http://www.courter.org/guns/rifles/m48.html
http://www.surplusrifle.com/yugom48/index.asp
http://dblomq.tripod.com/html/mauser48.htm
http://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Number=388542

You can also check out Mitchells Mausers to get a little more info.

Good Luck, and enjoy.