Rebarreling M96 Swedish Mauser to 308 Win
- Thread starter Riflechair
- Start date
Since when did making sound financial decisions enter into gun hobbies?
I've seen several such conversions. None have Ka-Boomed. The only thing I can suggest, is to keep the chamber tolerances tight. IMHO.
Others suggest a generous chamber and long throats to keep pressures down. I would suspect, you want this rifle to be as accurate as possible but still chamber commercial ammunition. I such a case, I like a Palma Match chamber. It will handle anything from the shelf and all milsurp stuff well. The tolerances on it seem to be a perfect balance between a bench rest match chamber and a commercial or mil spec chamber.
This is all IMHO.
You are absolutely right, when did money have anything to do with it?
Others suggest a generous chamber and long throats to keep pressures down. I would suspect, you want this rifle to be as accurate as possible but still chamber commercial ammunition. I such a case, I like a Palma Match chamber. It will handle anything from the shelf and all milsurp stuff well. The tolerances on it seem to be a perfect balance between a bench rest match chamber and a commercial or mil spec chamber.
This is all IMHO.
You are absolutely right, when did money have anything to do with it?
You'll have to do some work on the bolt face. Not much though. The 6.5's case head is 7 thou bigger. The .308 has a 150 thou shorter case length, so you'll likely need a mag well spacer. .308 max load pressures are higher too. 49,000 and up CUP. 6.5's max load pressures run a bit over 45,000 CUP.
"...Wouldn't it be cheaper..." Yep. It's always cheaper to buy than to build. Isn't the same though.
"...Wouldn't it be cheaper..." Yep. It's always cheaper to buy than to build. Isn't the same though.
My humble appologies.
I guess that's where the Nutzzs part kicks in.
Pictures when done?
I think Sunray makes a very important point about pressure. The 6.5x55 Swede with 140 gr ammunition shows an average pressure of around 50,000 psi (+-2000) while 308's pressures with 140 gr ammo is up around 59,000 psi (+-2000). These number's are inline with SAAMI spec's. Can the action take another 9000 psi or so? Maybe. Was it designed for it? No. Personally I love the 6.5 round over the 308 (I have both). The accuracy out to 300 meters is fantastic, not to mention light recoil.
A swedish Model 96 small ring mauser is a 96 small ring mauser no matter which angle you look at it. There are no such 'magnum' model 96 small ring mauser actions that I am aware of. All of these are military actions adopted for sporting rifles. Having said that I enjoy being proved wrong.
The commercial "96" actions dont have the thumb cut. Whether they are better suited to higher pressures is indeterminate. I dont believe Husqvarna used these actions for 308 pressures, which is telling.
This reminds me of Lee Enfields that were converted (properly) to 308. The actions were regular old 303 actions that were subjected to NDE (x-rays) to determine that there were no flaws in the actions. I wonder what the reject rate was?
This reminds me of Lee Enfields that were converted (properly) to 308. The actions were regular old 303 actions that were subjected to NDE (x-rays) to determine that there were no flaws in the actions. I wonder what the reject rate was?
I will have to re-read my book on it.
I own a M96 '53, commercial HVA. 9.3x62. IIRC, they also built 30-06, ,270, etc on the same action, the upgraded to the 3000/4000 series or something like that.
from what I remember, the issue wasn't strength, but venting.
I could be wrong tho
OH.. yeah... the early Smith and Wesson's were just M96's Rumour has it they were pretty strong.
By 1953 HVA was building all their bolt rifles on the FN98 action, or so I believed. Are you sure your 1953 vintage rifle is a M96?? I suspect it is a M98.
And I am quite certain that all the 30-06, .270 HVA factory rifles were also built ONLY on FN98 and HVA Model 1640 action, not M96.
The early Smith and Wessons were not M96, they were HVA 1640 actions. There is a huge difference, strength-wise.
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jethunter, check out the sporting rifles offered for sale on Tradex. I've owned M96 rifles in 8x57, 9.3x57, 30-06, all factory made and a 7.62x51 rifle that was scary accurate, built by a close friend. When he passed away, I gave it to his son.
I've seen several re barreled to 308Win and 243Win. I have one with double set triggers, in 6mm Rem. Nary a problem with any of them. Mind you, I never have been a max pressure freak. I would rather go to a magnum if I want a significant increase in velocity.
Those actions are strong. They have extra gas venting that their predecessors don't have.
The late Frank DeHaas, stated that the model 91-96 Mausers, "with the possible exception Of the Swede 94/96 Mausers" should not be considered for the 308Win. He then goes on to show a photo of an M94 that was converted to 308Win. The 7.62x51 loadings should easily be in the safe margins of the M96. Swedish ballistic steel was renouned because it had all of the minor ingredients needed in the raw ore. It didn't have to be added in questionable amounts.
That isn't common knowledge for most people.
The big thing here, is if you are looking for extreme performance from a 308Win, even the 98 actions, aren't good enough for this. They are fine for factory pressures but anything beyond that is questionable. Remember, the 98 actions were built for a steady diet of 47,000psi or less. The 96 actions were built for a steady diet of 45,000 psi or less. Only a 5% difference.
The key here is common sense. If you want a strong, Mauser style action, look at a BSA, Rem798, or Husquvarna, to name a few. Personally, IMHO the new FN actions are among the nicest and most closely resemble the original 98 actions.
Definitely your call and do what you think is best. One more caveat, other than the 308 I gave away on a 96 action, I would never sell, trade or give away one of these rifles that have been converted to high pressure rounds. It's my face and my call. When it's time for me to get rid of them, they will have the barrels removed and either a 6.5x55 barrel installed or the actions made unserviceable. Ignorance knows no boundaries.
I've seen several re barreled to 308Win and 243Win. I have one with double set triggers, in 6mm Rem. Nary a problem with any of them. Mind you, I never have been a max pressure freak. I would rather go to a magnum if I want a significant increase in velocity.
Those actions are strong. They have extra gas venting that their predecessors don't have.
The late Frank DeHaas, stated that the model 91-96 Mausers, "with the possible exception Of the Swede 94/96 Mausers" should not be considered for the 308Win. He then goes on to show a photo of an M94 that was converted to 308Win. The 7.62x51 loadings should easily be in the safe margins of the M96. Swedish ballistic steel was renouned because it had all of the minor ingredients needed in the raw ore. It didn't have to be added in questionable amounts.
That isn't common knowledge for most people.
The big thing here, is if you are looking for extreme performance from a 308Win, even the 98 actions, aren't good enough for this. They are fine for factory pressures but anything beyond that is questionable. Remember, the 98 actions were built for a steady diet of 47,000psi or less. The 96 actions were built for a steady diet of 45,000 psi or less. Only a 5% difference.
The key here is common sense. If you want a strong, Mauser style action, look at a BSA, Rem798, or Husquvarna, to name a few. Personally, IMHO the new FN actions are among the nicest and most closely resemble the original 98 actions.
Definitely your call and do what you think is best. One more caveat, other than the 308 I gave away on a 96 action, I would never sell, trade or give away one of these rifles that have been converted to high pressure rounds. It's my face and my call. When it's time for me to get rid of them, they will have the barrels removed and either a 6.5x55 barrel installed or the actions made unserviceable. Ignorance knows no boundaries.
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I have a "Mexican" Mauser or something (96??) in 308. It's definitely not a 98 action. It was my grandfather's, I don't totally trust it for full power 308 loads just because of discussions like this. However, before I knew any better I fired quite a bit of factory ammo in it. Nothing blew up.
The main concern about pre-98 is escaping gas handling. As Sunray pointed, the pressures in those days weren't that high and the action could cope with it. When used under higher pressures, you have to at least make vent holes on the side of the action. Then, there is another very important point; ALL pre-98 were made of very mild low carbon steel (such as equivalent to SAE 1024, (the 98 being approx SAE 1034 equivalent), the soft core being one of P. Mauser's patent safety feature. Set back is not a rare thing whit these actions when they're abused. The surface hardening is very shallow, usually not exceeding 0.008 inches deep (depth is usually between 0.004 to 0.008).
BTW, Trade Ex used to have new HVA M/38 barrels, you still can try to contact them about it. The call is yours.
BTW, Trade Ex used to have new HVA M/38 barrels, you still can try to contact them about it. The call is yours.
Baribal, the Swede 96 has those gas escape ports you are worried about, both in the receiver and on the bolt.
Tradex has some Steyr built 1912 rifles (98 Mauser) and some model 95 Mausers built by Lowe in Berlin company for sale and converted to 7.62x51.
Chilean 1895 Mauser
SKU: 0006Chilean 1895 Mauser
Chilean 1895 (German made Lowe Berlin)Military Mauser Rifles in .308. Overall good + condition. $395.00 each
If Chile felt that these actions, considered inferior to the Swede 96 actions, were of ample strength for the 7.62x51, that speaks volumes.
I have one of these rifles. It shoots very well. As my eyes age, I tend to have a prefference for the 29 inch barreld rifles. At least I can see both sights.
Tradex has some Steyr built 1912 rifles (98 Mauser) and some model 95 Mausers built by Lowe in Berlin company for sale and converted to 7.62x51.
Chilean 1895 Mauser
SKU: 0006Chilean 1895 Mauser
Chilean 1895 (German made Lowe Berlin)Military Mauser Rifles in .308. Overall good + condition. $395.00 each
If Chile felt that these actions, considered inferior to the Swede 96 actions, were of ample strength for the 7.62x51, that speaks volumes.
I have one of these rifles. It shoots very well. As my eyes age, I tend to have a prefference for the 29 inch barreld rifles. At least I can see both sights.
