8X57 Mauser

Its an excellent cartridge, even moreso if you handload because from my experience factory ammo is underloaded to make it compatible with older rifles.
Handloading within safe limits can bring out the real potential of the 8mm, and there is a very good selection of available bullets..
Perhaps Eagleye will chime in..
 
there's a reason it's called "Europe's 30-06"- I had one for years- the only reason I got rid of it was lack of bullets on this side of the pond= about the only ones available were the 170 sps- however, the ammo loaded by norma was OUTSTANDING- 196 GRAIN -
 
Great round, easy to load for, some decent un-neutured factory Euro ammo like S&B & PRVI if you don't load.
I'm using this 1944 Husqvarna for deer this year, got it for $300 from Tradex scoped and ready to go. I tried 150/170/200gr Speer HC loaded up with Varget, and the 170's will shoot under an inch at 100m, the 200's were pretty tight, 150's need more tweaking as they we're not great....
 
Great round, easy to load for, some decent un-neutured factory Euro ammo like S&B & PRVI if you don't load.
I'm using this 1944 Husqvarna for deer this year, got it for $300 from Tradex scoped and ready to go. I tried 150/170/200gr Speer HC loaded up with Varget, and the 170's will shoot under an inch at 100m, the 200's were pretty tight, 150's need more tweaking as they we're not great....

Hard to argue a purchase as good looking as this.
What are other options for three brown ones........?........... Axis?..........No thanks.
 
I have had a Rem Classic and a Husky in 8X57... and just came very close to rechambering/reboring a Ruger No.1-RSI in 7X57 to 8X57, but decided to go the custom route and do a 7.62X57.

There are plenty of 8mm bullets available and brass is easy to source as well... I just picked up a couple hundred pieces and necked down to 7.62.

8X57 is a very useful round in NA.
 
Other then the Zastava rifles, nothing in new production I'm aware of?
My brother hunts with a Win 70 feather weight in 7x57, and my back up is a 6.5x55.....we got the Mauser's covered lol
 
There are lots of new European rifles chambered in 8x57IS. It is a very versatile, common, popular cartridge in Germany, Austria and the central European nations. Anything the 308, 30-06, etc. can do the 8x57IS can do. It is not popular in North America because of the American SAAMI ammunition specs which limit the cartridge to anemic loads appropriate for old, obsolete rifles with a smaller bore size and weak actions, chambered for the obsolete 8x57I of world war 1 era. Americans call everything with the same case specifications "8MM Mauser". Europeans on the other hand understand the evolution of the cartridge, know the difference between old .318" diameter bores of the 8x57I cartridge vs modern .323 " dia bores in the 8x57IS and have moved on - so manufacturers there load the cartridge to CIP specifications and to full potential.
 
The 8x57 is my all time favorite. When I was 14 I was gifted a 1944 German Mauser sporter and I used it to harvest all types of game in my region. Now I have a gun safe filled with 8mm's. Grouse,rabbit, coyotes, deer, bear, and moose had no problems falling over to this caliber. This caliber will have no problem killing game to 300 yards. With modern bullets like the GMX and accubonds you can now have an extended range to 450-500 yards. If you reload you can get a 220gr bullet at 2400-2500fps, 200gr bullet to 2550-2650 fps, 180 at 2700-2800fps depending on barrel length and rifle.

Factory ammo in America is really mild: 170gr at 2200-2300fps.
Privi ammo which is marked 8mm mauser is also mild.....while privi ammo marked 8x57 is loaded more to its potential.

European ammo like Norma, S&B, Rws will give you a 196-200gr bullet at around 2550-2600fps which is great for factory ammo, Hornday also came out with their 195gr international ammo which is listed at about 2568fps.

This is a great old round capable of taking all game in North American with proper shot placement of course.

Many people don't like it due to it being the enemies cartridge of WW1 and WW2 which killed thousands of Allied troops.....so they choose to dislike it....at least in the states.
 
Last edited:
the 8 seems to do heavier bullets better than the 06, the reverse is also true.with 200 gr accubonds and stiff loads mine is a hammer.
 
Thank you gentlemen for your support of my new acquisition. I'm looking forward to getting out into the bust this season. Here in BC we have until Nov 5 for two tine bulls, and until Nov 20th for Muleys 4 pts. Thanks again for your input!
 
Just to keep things on track here, whatever a 8x57 Mauser can do, a 30-06 can do a little better.
In this thread it has been well pointed out that modern loading and reloading information, has been held down for the 8mm because of some older, weaker actions out there some place.
The same is true, only to a greater degree, with the 30-06.
In the hundred plus years of the 30-06 it has at some time, been made in every country that makes commercial rifles and it has been chambered in every action ever designed for centre fire rifles. Thus, the loading companies have always held pressures down, to what they would normally be with a strong bolt action. The loading information given in modern manuals gives little more than true pussy cat loads for the 30-06.
Any modern bolt action 30-06, like any Mauser 98, Remington, Winchester, etc., made from WW1 and later, will certainly handle the same pressure as given for the 270 Winchester, 308 Winchester and many other similar calibres. With these pressures the 30-06 far outdoes a 8x57 and about equals most commercial loading for the 7mm Remington magnum.
 
Back
Top Bottom