I change the barrels on my Savage 116 and 110 actions and headspacing is a snap. I was looking at one of my M98 actions the other day and as dumb and simple as the question may sound, I have never read/seen exactly how it is done. I was just wondering because I have an action I'm going to get barreled for 7x57 and don't want the smith to fill me full of shit about unnessisary work he had to do. Not that I'm sure he would but it pays to be well armed with knowledge too. Hey, if you don't ask, you don't learn.

Find a copy of Brownells' Gunsmithing Kinks. It walks you through from start to finish in the first volumn.

NBH,

You headspace a 98 the "exact" same way as you would a Savage, only the barrel on the 98 will be fixed.

Malm

let me put it another way. How to you change the headspace amount? the savage uses a nut but the mauser barrel isn't "adjustable for depth is it.

One can "easily" adjust the Savage headspace by turning barrel in and out (chamber cut to within so plus or minus spec) and locking it into place by tightening the barrel nut.
The 98 barrel has to be cut and threaded to bear one of two (or both) places on the action and then the chambering has to be done within spec AFTER the barrel has been machined to bear on the action. Minor changes can be made to "correct" any misestimations and measurements (goofs), but we KNOW THAT MACHINISTS AND GUNSMITHS NEVER MAKE AND ERROR IN THEIR WORK .
Savage method takes some of the tough part out so it should save them money!

Just wild opinion on my part of course!

LouisB

Helo;
To second TCLouis, the 98 Mauser barrels I have seen advertised, come short chambered, so the head spacing can be adjusted after installation.
Griz

To increase headspace you run the chamber reamer in farther.

To decrease headspace you have to machine the barrel so it screws into the action farther.