Well, It finally happened to me, mostly because I didn't do more homework before I hit the buy button, but I got stuck with a Chinese M98 design action. I've spent so many years walking the other way whenever the words Chinese, and Mauser, were lumped into the same sentence, and this is not one of the contracted Mauser actions, it has the Mauser banner"design", with the gear circle and bow and arrow above it. There really doesn't appear to be anything wrong with it, maybe a little rough around the edges, so I'm wondering if this could be turned into a shooting sporter? After refinishing , some truing up, and most likely reheat treating, could this be a good serviceable action for reasonable modern calibers, or is it better left as a paper weight? Only paid $50 for it.

I don't really get putting a pile of money and time into a surplus action to end up with a typical mediocre sporter. There are piles of them out there already.

Making a high end custom, I can see if the money doesn't matter or if you really think that the Mauser designed virtues are needed.

I really, really don't get even thinking of doing all that on a chinese surplus rifle.

Chinese contract pre-WWII Mauser rifles were those that had failed inspection for selling to the Portuguese military. Madam Chang Kai-Shek negotitated the deal.

What Doug W says makes a lot of sense.

This is only an action I'm talking about, not a full rifle. I asked the question for a little friendly advise, and to educate myself, and those Mauser virtues are what have held my fascination for decades, I just happen to like them more than any other design.

In 35 years of gun-plumbing, I have never actually laid my hands on one. Of course I have heard a lot of bad about them, but now days anything made in China is automatically bad, just like everything made in Japan was automatically bad 45 years ago. If it's reasonably tight I would simply have it Rockwell tested and if it falls into usable hardness I guess it's just another old Mauser ready for a new lease on life. I think a lot of those old Mausers are re-heat treated needlessly.

If you decide to use it as a paperweight, I will give you your $50. I always wanted to find one and barrel it up minimum headspace, and see what kind of loads it would take before developing excess headspace. We always heard how bad the chinese made ones were, I'd like to find out! Lee.

quote:

Originally posted by lee440:
If you decide to use it as a paperweight, I will give you your $50. I always wanted to find one and barrel it up minimum headspace, and see what kind of loads it would take before developing excess headspace. We always heard how bad the chinese made ones were, I'd like to find out! Lee.

You're not near as mean as I am lee440. This is the last Mauser I had free reign with. It got hurt. It got hurt REAL BAD!

https://youtu.be/FrTAOeNjdhc

NOOOOO; it is not safe to shoot. NO. It is not a German made reject; it is a Chinese made Standard Modell, and the characters on the receiver ring say words that mean that. I have had them; strictly collector pieces. They are soft and definitely should not be fired. They were made in the 1930s, maybe late 20s.
Even re-heat treated; I would not use one; get a VZ 24 receiver.

Tom, exactly what I am looking for! With a long string, it could be educational and a lot of fun!
Rod, I have a cracked small ring Mauser, perfect for a cutaway.

Thank you everyone for your responses and input. I will put this action back in the shadows, or sell it. I bought a VZ24 action along with it that's in good shape except for the bolts on both of them. For some reason someone machined 2/3 of the face off all three lugs at about a 30 degree angle, something I've never seen done before. Incidentally, neither of the bolt were matching to the receivers.

The Chiang Kai Shek Mauser (common collector's name for them) should be restored; while they are not exactly rare, they are not that common. They should not be blown up for sport.

quote:

Originally posted by dpcd:
The Chiang Kai Shek Mauser (common collector's name for them) should be restored; while they are not exactly rare, they are not that common. They should not be blown up for sport.

There are two in my LGS, asking price is just north of $200, not worth restoring an action only at that price.

quote:

For some reason someone machined 2/3 of the face off all three lugs at about a 30 degree angle, something I've never seen done before.

If it is the locking faces it is often done here in UK and elsewhere with drill or de-activated weapons to render the gun deliberately unsafe if it is attempted to use it to fire a bulleted round.

So it can still cycle but if fired there isn't enough surface on the lugs to stop the bolt being blown back.

A full on de-activation would also see the bolt face either cut at 45 degree angle or drilled through to make it from the front a hollow cylinder where it would usually support the primer and head area of the case.

That's all I can think of.

quote:

Originally posted by enfieldspares:

quote:

For some reason someone machined 2/3 of the face off all three lugs at about a 30 degree angle, something I've never seen done before.

If it is the locking faces it is often done here in UK and elsewhere with drill or de-activated weapons to render the gun deliberately unsafe if it is attempted to use it to fire a bulleted round.

So it can still cycle but if fired there isn't enough surface on the lugs to stop the bolt being blown back.

A full on de-activation would also see the bolt face either cut at 45 degree angle or drilled through to make it from the front a hollow cylinder where it would usually support the primer and head area of the case.

That's all I can think of.

Yeah, sounds unsafe all right. And dangerous. And a really stupid way to deactivate a firearm.

Post some pictures of the lugs. In some cases the left lug of some of those variants were cut to 45 degree and the right and rear were heavily rounded at the front. It may be normal.

I have sold Chiang Kai Shek mousers for a lot more than 200; must be no Mauser collectors there.

quote:

Originally posted by dpcd:
I have sold Chiang Kai Shek mousers for a lot more than 200; must be no Mauser collectors there.

Regional supply/demand, economy, all influence prices. These two were offered at $350 each and have sat for months, prices were reduced.

I notice around here that even Winchester Collectible prices have dropped considerably in the last few years. Seems people are choosing to spend there money differently these days.

I've got six or seven different Chinese m-98 actions . These are Chinese hand forged receivers . Some have small threads and no inner collar some large threads and no inner collar . I would not trust one . Keep it as a curio . Sometimes the bolts don't fit sometimes it only hits on the rear 3 red lug .
They are either too hard and crystallized or too soft .
Some interesting spellings , FN , Mauser , and some with just Chinese symbols.

Forgot to add the one that seems to be cast iron . It drills like a Chevy cyl head !

Well,
I have a Standard Model Banner mauser in 9.3X62. It has a flower stamped on it, no letters or numbers. I was told it was Chinese. It has double square bridges tigged to it and Pac Met recased it after the bridges were finished. It is incredibly accurate and a pleasure to shoot.

quote:

Originally posted by butchlambert:
Well,
I have a Standard Model Banner mauser in 9.3X62. It has a flower stamped on it, no letters or numbers. I was told it was Chinese. It has double square bridges tigged to it and Pac Met recased it after the bridges were finished. It is incredibly accurate and a pleasure to shoot.

Yeah, but yer one of them there, no good Chinese sympathizers Butch. Probably in cahoots with Donald Trump to take over the world and have EVERYTHING made in China so you can undermine the Mercan economy and create doom, despair and more whiners on Facebook and Twitter !
Yeah, so I'm bord. lol

Mauser standard model was made for the Chinese and some copies of that rifle were made in country . Some of the better Chinese made rifles were made at the same factories that made the Siam Mauser , if I remember correctly .
Butch , your rifle should have the serial number start with the letter "B"

Gary, Unless it was restamped underneath, no marks or numbers left.

Well damn, I've tried posting pics of the bolts to show the angled lugs but it seems photobucket URL's do not work without funds. I wish one could simply click and drag pics like in the old days.

quote:

Originally posted by Wes62:
Well damn, I've tried posting pics of the bolts to show the angled lugs but it seems photobucket URL's do not work without funds. I wish one could simply click and drag pics like in the old days.

Use Flickr. It's still free and it's actually easier to work with than Photobucket. Some people have told me that they use Facebook, but I have never tried it personally.

I almost forgot I had a Flickr account, thanks. So I'll see if this works. These are the bolts that came with the chinese and VZ24 actions.



https://flic.kr/p/XYtHWS

Yep, some fool destroyed them.
In the immortal words of Kyle Broflovski: "THOSE BASTARDS!"

quote:

Originally posted by Wes62:
I almost forgot I had a Flickr account, thanks. So I'll see if this works. These are the bolts that came with the chinese and VZ24 actions.



https://flic.kr/p/XYtHWS

When you post from Flickr use the BBCode from share.

20170824_103156 by Wes Whipple, on Flickr

AH! Many thanks! At least everything else on the bolts are in good shape.

Good candidate for trying a savage bolt head on one . I did a 93 awhile ago . Tried all sorts of factory savage bolt retention, I couldn't make the Mauser firing pin small enough and still have strength in the pin . My solution was 2 smaller solid pins offset . After all the work I realized it would have been the same result as brazing it on .
Yes I had a gap on the right bolt raceway where the extractor was .
I don't think I ever shot it . I got it head spaced , extracting , no ejection as I didn't want to slot the left lug and was too lazy to find and install the savage .