What are Yugoslav Mauser 98 actions like overall as a platform for building up a sporter?

I am thinking in terms of metal quality, overall finish etc.
Are they one of the better military mauser sor best left in favour of another M98 of different origin?

They're an intermediate 98, not full length, slightly shorter than the full length. As long as you stay with "x57mm" cartridge family they can be made into a nice sporter. If you can find a relatively clean VZ24, it would probably be a better starting point.