I'm not a Mauser guy so I don't know the answer to this. I'm thinking of buying a commercial mauser which almost certainly has a tired 7mm R. Mag barrel on it. Assuming it feeds correctly as is, will it handle a .300 Win Mag by just switching barrels (and obviously having correct headspace, etc)? Thanks for any help.

The answer is yes. The heads of the 7mm Mag. and the 300 Win Mag. cartridges are the same. I have made 308 Norma brass from 300 Win. Mag. cases and also from 375 H&H brass, and it worked fine.

quote:

Originally posted by Gatogordo:
I'm not a Mauser guy so I don't know the answer to this.------

Welcome to the fold, sorry it took you so long

The Mag well and ramp could possibly need a little finish work , but in general if it was a commercial 7 mag then the transformation to the 300win should be fairly straightforward.

Well, based on the valuable (and some not so valuable ) input above, I bought it. Now if anyone knows who manufactured the action, I'd appreciate it. Rifle has what was probably the original barrel on it, originally chambered in 7.61 S&H, converted to 7mm RM by C. E. Durham, an older Texas gunsmith. Serial # which is partially visible in below photo is 886E. Also, any info on Mr. Durham would be appreciated.

quote:

Originally posted by Gatogordo:
Now if anyone knows what action it is, I'd appreciate it.

I would say off hand it appears to be a Mauser. It is shaped like one I remember seeing years ago.

Thanks for more valuable input . I have changed my poor writing in the above post to ask for the MANUFACTURER of what is now confirmed (glad that's over with ) to be a Mauser action.

What would really help would be pictures of any stamps and markings on the receiver, top and bottom, front and back. Are there markings under the front scope base?

It appears to be an FN commercial from the early 50's. Used a lot of them in gunsmith school as they were the premier action of the time. Bolt handle root appears to have had a flat ground on it. If I remember correctly the FN's had a stamped mark on the root of the handle. This appears to have been ground off probably to give more scope eyepiece clearance. Bottom of the bolt knob should be flat and finely checkered. Safety, floorplate release and solid left side with no thumbcut are all visible marks of the FN's.

Gato,
Looks like a nice find. Taking the front scope base off will definetly help in ID-ing the manufacturor. Most FN's will have proof marks on the barrel just in fron of the reciever ring if it is an Fn it will have a crown with a circle under it and a B with an LE under it. But remember nothing is written is stone. I have in the shop right now a 1950 FN pretty much a match for yours it is a FireArms International made by FN. The rear base holes on your gun look a little far back so a one piece base will probably not work but most people use 2 piece mounts anyway. Your gun does not have the typical FN bolt shroud but niether does mine. Bottom metal appears correct and you seem to also have a commercial trigger as would be expected. All in all it appears to be a nice gun and 300 Win. should be a piece of cake.
Good luck this weekend with the piggies.

Michael J

FN Deluxe with modified bolt handle

If you decide you would rather stay with 7MM Rem Mag I have a nice one off of a Mark X that I would sell for $105.00. I also have a .300 Win Mag A & B barrel that was fitted to another Mark X (e.g. it came unthreaded and I had it custom fit to the action) that I would sell for $105.00. (only about 5 rounds fired)

Nice Rifle!!!!! In dealing with new scope mounts for it make sure you check the rear spacing. The one I have isn't the same as most mausers.

Thanks for all the help guys. I don't have the rifle in hand yet, so can't help with any more details about the action markings. The pics I posted are what I've got. If you'd like to see the rest of it, here is the gunbroker auction I bought it off of......auction
It was for auction last week with a BIN of $500, I bid $450 which didn't meet reserve (I'm not normally that cheap but I'm trying to swear off buying guns, I've got way too many, am enrolling in 12 step anti-buying program next week if I remember to do it (I'm kind of forgetful about these things), but until then......laissez les bon temps rouler ). Guy in charge of the auction emailed me and said he had put it back up and lowered "buy it now" to $450 (my previous bid).....I waited a couple of days hoping someone would buy it so I wouldn't but NO LUCK and, after posting here, I couldn't stand it anymore. True, I don't love the stock style and the whole gun is kind of doggy, but it is a pretty nice piece of what looks like claro and the price was right.

MichaelJ:

Too bad you can't stop by here and slap a barrel on it while you're on your way to your new job ("That's a joke, Son!" (Foghorn B. Leghorn) I don't want anyone to do what they do for a living for me for free)......Congratulations!!! on that by the way, I think you made a wise choice and will be back in some great hunting country. BTW, I know if you're hauling stuff you don't want to stop and visit, but if you have to make multiple trips or just feel like it, please drop by, we're are not all that far off the straightest route......pigs are all over my place right now, but I can't get any good shots for the high grass. Saw 5 or 6 fleetingly this morning about 7:30, way late, they surprised me crossing a road but were gone before I could shoot.

The pig hunt is next weekend, but Adam and I are looking forward to everything but the heat. I'm already plotting all the famous Q places I can visit on the trip down and back. Luckily Adam can kill 'em while I can lounge in the AC......have you used the KFC joke from jeffe yet? Keep in touch.

BTW, if anyone wants to know something about shotguns, Michaelj has forgotten more than most people ever know. He's a great guy and has overcome the unfortunate location of his birth.....

22WRF:

I dunno why, and I know that it is a fine caliber with many long distance advantages over the 30s, but I've got quite a few 7mms and have never really warmed up to them. I really like 6.5s tho, after that I like .308 holes......

Matter of fact, I'm going to thin the herd starting soon and a bunch of 7s will be on the "to go" list.

Finally, and this is not in any way meant to be personal, I know people who swear by them, jeffe included, but I'm not going to the trouble of switching barrels, which I don't feel confident enough to do myself, and put an A&B on one of my guns. Considering he's more or less in my backyard by Texas standards (less than 200 miles) I'll probably use a Shilen. Of course, I could get extremely lucky and the barrel on it will shoot fine, but I doubt it.

Gato,
Thank you for the kind words and I may just stop by on the way out. And no need to say you were just kidding I of course knew that and I have in fact used Jeff's joke quite a bit.

Michael J