how much does a dovetail cut weaken a Mauser action? Can that front ring be filled, contoured and be hardened? would you do that to save a kurz action from oblivion?

Dovetailed front rings, in other than square bridge Mausers, never gave me the warm fuzzies.

As much as I'd like a real Kurz, I would not try to salvage one. I'm sure some feel otherwise.

I've seen a few that had the dovetail filled with a dovetailed plug. Most were hidden with some stippling. If I were to try and salvage one, that would be the approach I would take or, better yet, replace it with a base for claw mounts if it doesn't already have one. I would not try to weld one up. I'm sure others will. That's between them and their insurance companies.

If all your trying to do is "save it from oblivion", does it still have the original dovetail in it? Use that for some very expensive claw mounts and barrel it for a .250 Savage. It ought to hold together quite well.

Hmmm - some of the Mauser Model B rifles were factory dovetailed into the 1930's, well after the issues with the Kar small ring large shank issues would have started to arise I think.

There are quite a few pictures of these on the 'net and I was a little skeptical that they would have been "factory" till I lucked onto a kurz in 250 that still has the original base numbered to the action.

For all that there are an equal number of pictures of factory Mauser rifles with a front saddle added to take the dovetail !! For myself I don't think I would use a dovetailed receiver ring action for a large base high intensity cartridge.

Finally not all dovetail cuts are created equally and some have been reported right through the receiver ring into the locking lug/barrel shank area, I'd not be cambering one of these in anything !!

Cheers - Foster