Custom rifle on Mauser 96 (sweet old swede)

OldSavage

OldSavage

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Wondering what my options are. Due to possible bad headspace I may need to rebarrel this rifle and was thinking of possibly changing the caliber as I hope to purchase a CZ 550 in the beautiful swede cartridge.

Any ideas? Cost of barrel and so on?

There are some extremely intelligent and knowledgeable people on this forum and I would love to hear some of your ideas and comments.

Thanks
 
How do you know you have a headspace issue? The Swedes were quite fastidious about rifle condition....
If the barrel is in good shape, you could just reload to the chamber spec's - the reloading gear would then be beneficial for your CZ purchase in the same caliber.
 
Just buy a swede in very good condition for 300 and have the best 6.5x55 you can get. I gone through too many to count and they all shot better or as well as any modern commercial rifle.
 
what ever you build you will need to keep it within the 45000psi pressure rating of the receiver which limits the choices
I was always thinking of building a 257 roberts:)
 
Some of those old swedes had softer steel. I've personally worked on a couple that were very hard and some, especially the older ones were quite soft. Check your action lug faces for setback, if there is any at all, you should be able to feel it with you little finger. As was mentioned above, the problem very likely isn't with your barrel. Unless you can find a very cheap take off barrel, you would be better off buying a new rifle, such as a Tikka T3, very reasonable price, or one of the others.

That being said, I've seen the M38 converted to 308Win and 243Win as well as 257Rob and one in 7x57. The M96 was available in 8x57, 9x57, 9x63 and 30-06 to name a few. For more information and some pretty good prices on already finished rifles, check out the tradeexcanada website. bearhunter
 
I know alot about alot of things, but the mechanics of rifles isn't one of them......yet.

The problem as it stands (getting it checked out) is that there are some gases escaping (hit me in the eye, that sure will wake ya up) and the casings are extremely dirty (from the neck outward). Same deal with hot factory loads (Sellior and Belliot) as with light hand loads. Any explanations boys? Headspace problem?
 
Are the primers being pieced? Sounds like your losing enough gas pressure to prevent the cases from fully expanding - hence the soot.
 
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They are not designed for modern rifle pressures. 46,000 psi (actually cup, back then) was the design working pressure for the 6.5 swede and the 96 action.

It will not handle pressures normally used in modern cartridges. Against my advice I built a .243 for a friend telling him to use hand loads in the low pressure range... and then he kept complaining he had extraction problems when he tried loading a bit hotter...:rolleyes:
 
Wierd how you see some 9.3 x 62 and 30-06's in this action. I like the 6.5 and this rifle so I guess I will try and get to the route of the problem.

The primers are fine, and the cases don't show any signs of distress. Just sooty, and after getting hit in the eye (only time I ever fired with glasses) I got a little worried. Some cases are clean, some are moderately dirty and some are completely covered. The hotter the rifle is, the worse it gets, and after 10 shots it seems to get progressively worse as well.

I have tried to take it to a smith but everyone's busy and I can't get around too well (car accident in the Yukon has converted me to a gimp).

Any ideas, whats wrong, or am I just nuts?
 
OldSavage said:
Wierd how you see some 9.3 x 62 and 30-06's in this action. I like the 6.5 and this rifle so I guess I will try and get to the route of the problem.

The primers are fine, and the cases don't show any signs of distress. Just sooty, and after getting hit in the eye (only time I ever fired with glasses) I got a little worried. Some cases are clean, some are moderately dirty and some are completely covered. The hotter the rifle is, the worse it gets, and after 10 shots it seems to get progressively worse as well.

I have tried to take it to a smith but everyone's busy and I can't get around too well (car accident in the Yukon has converted me to a gimp).

Any ideas, whats wrong, or am I just nuts?
Click to expand...

I didn't think the action was long enough for the -06 case....

I can't diagnose your problem... possibly a brass problem. Light loads don't seal off the brass quick enough, hard brass doesn't expand quick enough and seal off the chamber... you have to remember the brass case is a gasket. It has to be loose enough to chamber, then it has to expand and seal under pressure, then it has to spring back and be extracted.
 
I've worked on and customized quite a few 94s and 96's they all seem to soot up the brass not much you can do about it
Are you sure it was Gas? and not just excess oil built up in the bolt from sitting all summer?
I've had it when you pick up a rifle after it sat in the cabinet all summer and had oil splat back at me upon the firing pin drop
Just a thought

Cam
 
I think the variables are just overwhelming. They say that the Sellior and Belliot loads are hot and the brass is stiff. My loads were weak, even slightly below recommended starting loads. So this could be causing the problem.

Can I confirm it was gas? No, I really can't. I could have very well been oil or anything I guess.

I will throw some Remington/Winchester loads through the old girl and see what she does.
 
Sooty brass is usually indicative of too low a pressure. gas in the face means gas is getting into the bolt channel.

A mild load can do that because the brass does not have enough pressure to make a seal.

But the factory ammo should be hot enough to seal properly. Are you sure the factory ammo is not actually reloads?

Are you sure the rifle has a 6.5 x 55 chamber? Does the brass change shape after firing?
 
GANDERITE said:
Sooty brass is usually indicative of too low a pressure. gas in the face means gas is getting into the bolt channel.

A mild load can do that because the brass does not have enough pressure to make a seal.

But the factory ammo should be hot enough to seal properly. Are you sure the factory ammo is not actually reloads?

Are you sure the rifle has a 6.5 x 55 chamber? Does the brass change shape after firing?
Click to expand...

Only factory loads so far are sellior and belliot, hand load were indeed light. There was no visible damage to the cases, or reshaping, and the primers were sitting as they should.

The bore was cleaned recently, I could eat off of it right now. Copper Solvent, Nitro Solvent, Boiling Water, and oiled. But it has been dirty in the past.
 
I was talking this morning to my smith and he is saying about $400 for a new barrel in 6.5x55 plus labour.

Have you really scrubbed out the chamber well with an oversized phosphor bronze brush? It may also be worth it looking to build your own electrochemical cleaner. Its the absolute best way to remove metal fouling from old mil-surp rifles, particularly those fouled with nickel from cupro-nickel jacketed bullets. Most of the copper solvents are not going to remove nickel very well, if at all.

Are your case mouths cracking?



OldSavage said:
Wondering what my options are. Due to possible bad headspace I may need to rebarrel this rifle and was thinking of possibly changing the caliber as I hope to purchase a CZ 550 in the beautiful swede cartridge.

Any ideas? Cost of barrel and so on?

There are some extremely intelligent and knowledgeable people on this forum and I would love to hear some of your ideas and comments.

Thanks
Click to expand...
 
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