Yugoslav M48 Mauser?

[LittleJeff]

Can a M48 small ring be made into a good target rifle if in the hands of a good gunsmith? Was thinking maybe 308 Win or 6.5x55 swede. Have an action with a milled trigger guard but no floor plate, action will have to be trued of course.
Little Jeff

 

[jonbearman]

The money you would have to put into the reciever outwieghs the benefit.I would buy a stevens 200 long action and put a shilen select match or mcgowen from northland supply in michigan.The barrel is about 340.00 or less depending on the barrel you select and the stevens is about 300 at wally world or another outlet. You can turn it into a switch barrel rig and have both calibers or as many as you want.The reciever wrench is 50.00 and the other barrel nut wrench is 28.00 at northland supply and a go gage is 21.00 from midway.It sounds like a lot at first but your choices are unlimited with the prethreaded barrels for savage's that are on the market.I have built 3 of them for less than one competition gun. There are triggers and stocks and scope mounts that bolt right in at home.No need for a gunsmith with the savage barrel nut configuration.The mauser is good the way it is.There is nothing wrong with the 8 mmm mauser.They are accurate like no other with good handloads or good factory ammo made by winchester,federal,remington,norma and the like.

 

[Larryh128]

Not to hack on you but a M48 is a large ring action. 1.400 diameter on the front ring. Small rings measure 1.300. The biggest issue with a mauser action is the lock time. It is a bunch slower than a Savage or Remington. You can speed it up with a lightweight firing pin and better spring but it will still be slower because of the design. That doesn't mean that you can't shoot great groups. The bulk of my rifles are built on some type of 98 action or variants. I however don't shoot formal benchrest but I've run some great hunting groups at 300 yds that measured around .200 (3 shot). If you're looking for a fun project, jump in or go the savage route which is a whole lot easier.

 

[tunered]

I never understood why lock time is so critical if shooting off rests or bags, offhand i understand. ed

 

[TRECustom]

Little Jeff, one other thing to watch for on the Yugos is that even though they are large rings, they are shorter than the standard large ring. Good stocks are harder to find, but the action screw spacing is the same as small ring Mausers, so with some work those stocks should be able to work.

I also like the Mauser actions, but they do need work and parts.

Good luck, Tom

 

[Larryh128]

The lock time even off of bags require a much better "follow thru" that something with a faster lock time. I shoot a bunch of mausers & have to really be on my game to beat my friend that shoots all 700 actions. Dry fire both off of bags & see what I mean while looking thru the scope at the target. I fired a group from my friends 25-06AI at 400 yds in a 700 action that I called a pulled shot. In my Mausers, that shot would have been 2" left. It was 3/4" left & the other 4 were touching.
Lock time definitely makes you better.