Gentlemen,

I have several Mauser projects in the works. Two of them (and possibly a third) are using military barrels which are stepped.

Were there civilian sporting rifles built with these or were they particular to military rifles? If so, of what style? German?

And, why would I want or not want to have the steps removed? I don't find them all that attractive and am leaning heavily towards having my gunsmith remove them. However, I would like to hear what you guys think.

Thanks,

Tex

The stepped barrels were a good design for military use as they were quick to machine and as you can see on
the old military Mausers it allowed the quick assembly of a sights to barrel. There is nothing inherently
wrong with the stepped barrels. Most people prefer the tapered barrels in common use today because of
their looks. If you are considering tapering a stepped barrel you must at all times be aware of the
final dimensions of the tapered barrel and ensure that it is not too small for strength particularly
near the breach end. I wouldn't boter with tapering a stepped barrel. If it isn't done right it looks
odd. If it is done quickly it will introduce stresses in your barrel that can affect accuracy. If I tapered
a stepped barrel I would then have it Cyro'd to releive any stresses. I have no objection to a nicely polished
and blued stepped barrel.

HI: I had a custom .300 Weatherby Rifle made up by a really good gunsmith...he used an FN Supreme Mauser action, & high grade barrel...he stepped the barrel in three stages...his idea was it would give better accuracy in this cartridge. Claimed it would increase barrel stiffness..Well, I'm not sure
about the technical aspect of it...but I can tell you, it sure worked! It was a very accurate rifle in the .300 Weatherby. A friend had a factory rifle in the same cartridge...and ended up sending it back to the factory as it
wouldn't group worth a darn. The gunsmith was from Coos Bay, Oregon, knew what he was doing...this was back in 1966...my .300 Weatherby was one of the most accurate rifles I'd ever owned...and it had the stepped barrel.
Since then, I'd never had a stepped barrel except on a military rifle, & tough to judge...
but the commercial grade custom rifle was sure
a sucess with a stepped barrel.
Best Wishes, Tom

Cryo does nor relieve stress, heating does .....I was under the impression that stepped barrels were stepped to hatch one load [military] and did not do well with other loads.

ps...I think "Old Elk Hunter" is right...no need
to try & taper a stepped barrel..you will get into difficulties.
Tom

My 6.5X55 has the original stepped barrel, cut to 24", When I do my part, it will cloverleaf 129gr. at 100 yrds. Worse case, 3 shots will almost fit under a quarter.....Personally, I would not mess with it. Wife says I am a little strange so that explains why I like the step...looks good to me.

I think I remember hearing that the steps were a design feature put there to interrupt the barrel vibration therefore producing better accuracy. Maybe, maybe not, but you sure don't see any benchrest rifles with stepped barrels. Rojelio

jack lott always advised if keeping the original bbl to just leave the steps in as it made it stiffer (really does) altho to most people this will look "cheap", like you took a shortcut. in olsens book of mauser rifles there are pictures of original mauser sporters that had stepped bbls however typically only one step, not 2 as found on GI mausers and was a much smaller than military sight base immediately in front of the step so it wasn't that noticeable. and the FN brownings had stepped bbls altho there was a very nice smooth blend at each step and granted, they did look odd for their era.

if your barrel shoots like you want and you intend to leave it on the gun, just leave them in, maybe radius the sharp corners and get on w/ life. it's your gun and if you're happy w/ it that's all that matters.

DO NOT REMOVE THE STEPS.
DO NOT REMOVE THE STEPS.
DO NOT REMOVE THE STEPS.

They were designed by the Germans to control barrel vibration and therefore make the gun more accurate.
It has nothing to do with ease of machining.
I have seen guns that shoot maybe 2" or so that then have someone else remove the steps and the gun shot about 5 - 6"
While this may be an extreme case, do not expect your accuracy to stay the same if you do have them removed.

I personally sort of like the look of a stepped barrel, especially if it is in a lightweight sporty package.

-Spencer

bench rest and stepped bbls - is because bench rest bbls are horrendously stiff anyway because weight doesn't matter. in a sporting rifle you want weight down but stiffness as high as possible and this is one way to go abt it.

speaking of which, one common myth: fluted barrels are stiffer than unfluted. patently not true. it would be if they finished the sentence. fluted barrels are stiffer than unfluted barrels of THE SAME WEIGHT. if the OD is the same it's mathematically impossible to REMOVE metal and make it stiffer (altho you will predetermine which of 4 or however many flutes directions it will go when it does move). what you CAN do with fluting is increase the outside diameter but then remove metal and achieve a combination that weighs the same as a smaller dia bbl but is stiffer because the distance from the bore centerline (neutral axis) to the greatest distance (outside radius) is much larger, esp when raised to the 4th power.

Hey! Thanks for the support I wrote about the stepped barrel in my custom .300 Weatherby making stiffness! I didn't expect confirmation!
My .300 Weatherby Mag (26" barrel) had 3 steps...
one short thick diameter from the action forward, a second diameter, and the third & last diameter to
the muzzle...I think it really worked as I got excellent accuracy from the .300 Weattherby Mag.
The gunsmith who did the work on the barrel stepping claimed I would get the best accuracy from such a blaster. Tom

One more vote against tapering. Starting from scratch, I'd take a tapered barrel over a stepped one every time. But for the expense of tapering, you could start with a tapered barrel, skip all the risk, and be done with it. And you have some guarantee that it will look decent. Okie John

Commercial stepped barrel sporters: Browning Safari. Pretty neat looking rifle.

I wouldn't mess with the steps.

The step barrels are easier to make, and when they get hot the bands stay in adjustment.
The steps have nothing at all to do with vibrations. For more info read "Rifle Accuracy Facts".
Good Luck!

Everything on a Mauser has a reason..Stepped barrels supposedly control viberation more but more importantly they cool faster and more evenly, and thats always important on a battle rifle...

To turn one to a taper is tricky in that if you do it right, you end up with a very light weight barrel and you may run out of barrel in some cases...

Don't even consider it, they are fine, I think they look good and if a barrel shoots good, it should never be touched..turning a barrel can warp it in a heartbeat or it can stress releave it and thats good, its a gamble however...

Well thanks for all the opinions guys.

I'm in the process of converting an M98 to 8x68s and another to a 7x57 - both using military barrels I had on hand. I'll just leave them as is. At the very least it'll cut down on the machining bill from gunsmith. And allow for more money on goodies and accessories!

Thanks again all,

Tex

Atkinson; Why do stepped barrels "cool beter,
and more evenly"?.
Take Care1