32 ? Cal Schmidt & Habermann Take-down Martini - cased

I collect Small Frame Martini rifles, and also collect Schuetzen rifles. ..... so .....

About a month ago, I found this for auction and I tagged it with a opening bid, (half the low estimate) because I wanted to see how high it would go.

Much to my surprise, no one else bid. I will have it in hand in a couple of weeks and I'm anxious to see what caliber it turns out to be. I'm hoping its 8.15x48R because many of my Schuetzen rifles are in this caliber and I have plenty brass and bullets.

As always, your comments are welcome.


http://www.buckstix.com/buckpi...MARTINI-SHUT-000.jpg

Neat little package right there.

I finally got this little rifle in hand today. But first I must comment about the very, very, bad customer service from Morphy Auctions. This was purchased Dec. 11, and paid immediately via credit card. They charged 42% above the hammer, and it took over a month to get it. I bought 4 items at 4 different auctions that weekend, and the other 3 arrived weeks ago.

Now, I'm still trying to identify the caliber. Its not 8.15x46R. Chamber cast is shown. Any suggestions would be welcome. Any info about the proof marks would also be welcome. There were no other markings found.

Overall condition is remarkable. Nearly 100% case colors remain. A 100% mint bore. A very unique and positive take-down system. Original Key for the double lock mahogany case. And 2 extra firing pins. As soon as I figure out the cartridge, I will load and post a range report.

http://www.buckstix.com/buckpics/details.jpg

I am still not sure exactly what the cartridge is, but I made a few rounds from 303 brass. The picture shows - 3 formed brass at the left, a 38 special cartridge in the center, and 2 loaded rounds at the right. This scaled down cartridge is perfect for this scaled down Schuetzen rifle.

http://www.buckstix.com/buckpics/32-cart.jpg

Best guess (from Dixon's works) is either 8x36 "T" Tesching with nominal 11.43mm base or the very similar 8x36 "RP" Tesching with nominal 11.0mm base. Both were introduced pre-1891.

Crown-over-V is the "Vorrat" mark applied to existing guns in Germany at the time of the 1891 first unified German proof law.

"S" in a lozenge is the mark of the Schilling forge in Suhl.

I formed the 5 cases shown above, by shortening 303 brass, and triple annealing the body and neck area to make them dead soft. I then coated them with Corbin bullet swage lube, and gently tapped them into the rifle's chamber to reduce them to a press-fit size of the chamber. Finally I sanded each case by spinning them in the lathe, until they were reduced to the point where they would easily slip in-and-out of the rifle's chamber. I loaded these 5 cartridges with 13g 4227 and a 90g 32 cal. bullet. Expected velocity is 1700 fps. Test target to follow. I just ordered a set of 8x38R Tesching dies from C&H. I hope these will work.

Hello,

I received the 8x38R Tesching dies from C&H today. I used the dies to form another 5 cases. The head of the formed cases was slightly smaller, and there was a more defined shoulder. Even with these slight variations, the loaded cartridges fired perfectly. The 90g Hornady semi-wadcutter bullets punched a nice sharp hole. I will continue to try different loads, but this test load looks like it would make a great target or small game load.

http://www.buckstix.com/buckpics/8X38-TARG-SM.jpg

Well, you have me stumped.

I can't find or think of any rimmed case of 1.3+" length that has around a 0.5" rim. Especially if you consider that it has a .325" bore. What an oddball.

Which Hornady bullet are you shooting?

quote:

Originally posted by Fjold:
Well, you have me stumped.

I can't find or think of any rimmed case of 1.3+" length that has around a 0.5" rim. Especially if you consider that it has a .325" bore. What an oddball.

Which Hornady bullet are you shooting?

Those measurements are from the chamber cast. The cartridge measurements are somewhat smaller. I am using Hornady 32 Caliber 90 Grain LD SWC .314" dia. MFG NO 10008. These Lead Pistol Bullets Are Pre-Lubricated, Extra-Hard And Cold-Swaged. Their knurling System retains Lubricant Over The Entire Bearing Surface To Reduce leading. Although they are undersized in diameter, they seem to shoot fine.

Pretty neat! About the same amount of work as getting set to shoot a Cadet with the original chamber; chamber cast, size and mod cases, dies, and in my case, a bullet mould to fit the barrel.

ClaMar