8mm or .308

N Wolf

N Wolf

New member
I have an old 8mm mauser that I need to rebarrel. I need a deer rifle and am trying to decide if I should keep it an 8 or make it a .308 win. I know all the plusses to the .308 but I just like the idea of keeping it as it was meant to be.

I already have a good long range rifle, just need something for the woods. The barrel thats on it is good enough to hunt with but I dont like the idea of having a 4moa rifle. Any good thoughts on the 8mm?
 
When you say old, how old? Is it a model 98? Commission 88 (Gewehr)? Sporterized or military? .318 bore or .323? Turkish, German, Yugoslavian?

The reason I ask, is some of these rifles are not worth the time/costs to rebarrel them. You can often buy a whole other rifle that shoots acceptably for close to the same price. Just depends on what it is.

If I did do it, even though I've never been a big fan of anything based on the X57 case, I would still probably go with 7x57 or maybe even 6.5x55 Swede just because.......
 
i loved shooting mine. i just pulled the barrel off to send the action out. i think that if i wanted an open sight rifle for woods carry it would be a 30-30. the mauser ammo to hunt with is kinda pricey and you dont need a 200 gr bullet for white tail or what ever youll be shooting. im doing mine in 308 for a target shooter mainly. id say get a good leveraction and use that mauser action for a build. my .02
 
dont know how old it is. I know its not german but thats about all I can tell you. It had a straight bolt and one of the previous owners cut it off, replaced the bolt handle, and put it in one of those cheap scout stocks with the built in rail.

Why would it not be worth rebarreling? I dont intend on spending big bucks on this thing, just make it shoot exceptably well. And I have no intention of getting rid of it.
 
you can go to ershaw and get a plane barrel shipped to you for 160. i got mine fluted in SS so it cost a bit more. spend the extra 45 to have them true the reciever face and the 110 for them to do the install unless you have or know some one that has a reamer and guages. Lots of available cartriges to rebarrel to with that .432 bolt face
 
Assuming you've shot it with a scope of known soundness and solid rings/bases (I think I know the stocks you're talking about - Core-something?), I'd try to make sure that A. it doesn't shoot better than that with a good bedding job and/or better stock. B. you try a few good handloads to see if it is an ammo issue.

The ole 8mm is approximately the power of a 30-06, is relatively available, and reloaded, can be downloaded or uploaded, usually with better accuracy, and sufficient power for about anything in the US.

As stated above, decent rebarreled Mausers can usually be bought for much less than the cost of doing it yourself. There's been lots of them done since we brought all those Mausers over here!

JMHO.
 
I know its cheaper to by someone else's gun but I would still be left with this one, and still have to make it right. So it would be cheaper to fix this one. As for the stock, its junk. It has some plastic rail on top that makes it imposible to have a sturdy scope. The action has not been drilled for scope mounts yet.
 
I would venture to say that the 4 MOA has more to do with the scope mounts and crappy stock and bedding than the barrel itself. Before I would make any further recommendations, I would like to see some good photos of what your working with. How long is the barrel, is it pitted inside, etc. Sometimes it's hard to make something out of nothing. Most military Mausers have truly horrible triggers. You don't want to turn it into a money pit that may still may not meet your needs.

If you check out the visible markings on it, Its likely someone can identify it and you'll have some idea of what you have and what it may cost to get it where your happy with it.

The 8mm Mauser with a 150 grain bullet makes a great woods rifle that can be very accurate if done properly. The one I did recently shoots just under 1/2 MOA at 100 meters. If you don't reload, your ammo choices will be greatly less with the 8mm.
Mauser98003.jpg
Mauser98006.jpg
MauserSporter3.jpg
 
my k98 is the same. i never mounted a scope to it just shot open sights. im having shaw drill and tape the reciever and true it up for 45.00. you cannt buy a jig for that. ill take some pics tonite of the action and ill add them into the whole scheme of things when im done. im looking at about 600 total for work and barrel installed, but i got the rifle for 100 from a pawn shop.
 
I dont have any pictures of it. Its marked as 1944 it has a moon with a star at one tip of the moon and a hammer at the other. It still has the millitary barrel on it with a hole drilled about 1/4" deep in the top of it about 6" in front of the receiver. The barrel may have some accuracy in it still but it will look pretty bad on a rifle stock.
 
It sounds like you have a Turkish Mauser Model 1938 that was converted from 7X57 to 8X57 in 1944 in Turkey. The action was originally made in Germany and converted. It is generally a crapshoot when your dealing with this model Turkish Mauser. It would take some serious work to make it into a good sporter and when you got it all done you would be lucky to get your money back if you sold it. Sporterizing a Mauser correctly can cost you more than a factory-new rifle if you don't have all the equipment and do the work yourself.
 
Lets be honest. Ive seen the toys most people here get to play with. How many are really more concerned with price? I have a 12ga, I could hunt anything with that. All the rest of my guns are because I wanted them. Could've saved a bunch of money stickin with just that one.
 
Originally Posted By: 2muchgunWhen you say old, how old? Is it a model 98? Commission 88 (Gewehr)? Sporterized or military? .318 bore or .323? Turkish, German, Yugoslavian?

The reason I ask, is some of these rifles are not worth the time/costs to rebarrel them. You can often buy a whole other rifle that shoots acceptably for close to the same price. Just depends on what it is.

If I did do it, even though I've never been a big fan of anything based on the X57 case, I would still probably go with 7x57 or maybe even 6.5x55 Swede just because.......

Now that is some of the best advise you will ever read!
 
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