Loose action issue

[BOHROK]

CGN,
I have an old Belgian 89/16. It's a nice example but when you tighten the rear action screw the action can still be wiggled up and down.
When you remove the trigger guard the steel shim appears to be too long, I'm guessing this is the problem combined with 100+ year old wood.
Should I shorten the shim?
If I shorten it will the action screw become too long and hit the bolt?
Or build up the stock?
Thank you.

 

[guntech]

Do you shoot it for accuracy?

You can glass bed it... or have it done... or hang it on the wall...

 

[OkayShooter]

CGN,
I have an old Belgian 89/16. It's a nice example but when you tighten the rear action screw the action can still be wiggled up and down.
When you remove the trigger guard the steel shim appears to be too long, I'm guessing this is the problem combined with 100+ year old wood.
Should I shorten the shim?
If I shorten it will the action screw become too long and hit the bolt?
Or build up the stock?
Thank you.

I had issues like this with a K98, I figured the wood was dried out. I just put washers on the screw, so it wouldn't bottom out on the bolt.

 

[bearhunter]

gt, from the sounds of things it's a shooter grade collectible, if there is such a thing.

OP the problem you mention is not uncommon.

When I was in South America back in the seventies, a few of the nations I visited were still issueing M89/91 type rifles to their police. Many of them were gorgeous carbine versions chambered for the 7.65x53 cartridge, which was so popular in Europe at the time of manufacture.

Most of the rifles I saw were in Peru and Argentina and most were in surprisingly good condition. Bolivia would be a runner up for the amount still in service.

The condition you describe is not unusual for these old rifles which were often stored in hot, dry locations and not properly serviced for years.

One of the main reasons a lot of those rifles were in such great condition was a lack of ammunition and of course the police officers wanting to use the more modern firearms in their racks. Sadly this situation led to lack of stock serviceing, such as a coat or two of Linseed oil every year and as this sort of upkeep was left up to the local police detachments, it was often neglected.

What I did notice, in Argentina was a police armorer that had a bit of a love affair with the M89 and M91 variant rifles that was actually trying to save the few he had control of from deteriorating.

He added thin wooden strips under the trigger guard by shaping them by hand and glueing them into bottom of the inlet around the trigger/tang and king screw area.

He then cleaned and added Linseed oil to the receiver and barrel inletting about once a week for a few months, then wiped off the excess and reassembled the rifles with their matching components if possible.

The key to the Linseed Oil wipe downs was to let it DRY properly between coats. He mixed the Linseed Oil with acetone or alcohol so that it would penetrate deeper and dry faster.

These old rifles need to be properly maintained, especially if they're going to be shot. It's far to expensive to take it to a smith, if you can find one that knows how to do it properly or is willing to take on such a job that takes up a lot of time for very little if any return.

This means you have to do some due diligence and do the job yourself or take guntech's good advice and make it a safe queen.

 

[Canuck65]

Bedding it would certainly affect it's value. Couldn't you just shorten the screw by a few threads? Just a thought.

 

[guntech]

If it is collectible and you are not shooting it, why do anything?

 

[BOHROK]

I plan to shoot it, I like to shoot everything!
I'm leaning towards shimming it until it snugs up nice.
Should I use hard wood shims or would pine work as it's just a shim and not taking any recoil?

 

[bearhunter]

I plan to shoot it, I like to shoot everything!
I'm leaning towards shimming it until it snugs up nice.
Should I use hard wood shims or would pine work as it's just a shim and not taking any recoil?

If the shims are not going to be glued in place, just go with brass shim stock, which won't compress but will form to the contours of the wood, if the shim stock is thin enough.

From the sounds of things, you don't elaborate well on condition, this rifle may be nice but it isn't a jewel.

The ''shim" you referred to is actually a cylindrical pillar. DO NOT SHORTEN IT. It was purposely manufactured to that length and for some reason the wood on your rifle has managed to become compressed. Did you or a previous owner take out the pillar at one time and tighten things up without it in place???

This isn't an unusual practice. I see it often on No1/No4/No5 sporters where the front pillar for the King Screw has been removed and lost or tossed, which just results in more bedding damage.

It's not uncommon for uninformed owners of different Mauser models to remove the rear pillar in hopes of tightening everything up.

Adding ''wood strips'' is a good way to fix the issue but they need to be properly glued in place or they will crack and no longer be a fix.