[Clark]

Randy Ketchum of Lynwood Guns and Ammunition cut and TIG welded this action for me. My job is to now clean up the welds and make a short firing pin spring that works.

[dfaugh]

Wow, I don't know what to say...TIG welding is the best/strongest way to weld stuff, but generates alot of heat, and would take ALL hardening/temper out of the action( I have many, many years of experience in all types of welding). After cleanup, it would HAvE to be re-heat treated (by someone who knows what they are doing, and I'd still have serious concerns about the strength on the action...

Personally, I would consider that to be a possible grenade at worst, and only marginally safe to shoot at best.

[mete]

I would never use any old Mauser action without having it reheat treated .The steel were fairly low carbon and they were carburized but often the carburizing was poor and can lead to setback of the lugs .What type of rod did he use ? If he used a high alloy rod that may cause problems. I would have the action recarburized and reheat treated by someone who has expertese in it.

[KIDGLOCK]

Looks like a new CZ action ....... yes no ??

I have just one question WHY ???

[JesseL]

What are you doing to shorten the bolt?

[Jim K]

Done well and with proper attention to keeping the ends cool, that works OK. At one time, a number of gunsmiths made Mauser short and long actions by cutting actions and then welding the two short pieces together to make a short action (.22 Hornet, .222 Rem.) and the two long pieces together to make a long action (.300 Magnum, etc.). They worked OK, since there is next to no strain on the side rails of the Mauser unless the safety lug engages, which it shouldn't.

The bigger problem comes in doing the same to the bolt and the firing pin, then making sure everything works in terms of primary extraction (which depends on the bolt handle), sear/cocking piece engagement, magazine spring, etc. Like many conversion jobs, the devil is in the details, and it sounds like you are stuck with those.

Jim

[owen]

So Clark,

whatcha up to?

[Jim Watson]

Gee, guys, this was a fairly common sport amongst those who had the yen for a short action rifle before the factories caught on, back in the '50s. There are all sorts of book chapters and articles on how to lay it out, cut, jig back up, and weld with heat sinks and absorbents to keep from annealing the locking surfaces.

What caliber is yours going to be, Clark?

[BBBBill]

...Done well .., that works OK. ..there is next to no strain on the side rails of the Mauser unless the safety lug engages, which it shouldn't... Like many conversion jobs, the devil is in the details...
All true. Oddly, I've examined several of the currently marketed (new) 98 Mausers (from KBI?) and found the safety lug was fit as a bearing lug. I was taught that it shouldn't be bearing unless the gun was damaged with pretty bad primary lug setback. Scary, huh!

[rmw]

When I was going to gunsmithing school we did it all the time , but we would cut it out of the back so we could get rid of the thumb cut in the action . And yes then everything was heat treated . By the time you weld the action, bolt , bolt handle, lap the lugs,lap the bolt face , weld up the oversize fp hole and true the action there won't be many hard parts left . Any more unless you are just looking for something to do just buy a short action . Also drill and tap it BEFORE you have it heat treated :evil:

[Clark]

I have only got the receiver, bolt, firing pin, magazine, and spring shortened.
The mag bottom and mag follower are not done yet.

This short one will be a 6mmBR made with a 6mmPPC take off Hart of Shilen stainless barrel.

The peices cut out will be used to make a long one in 338 Lapua.

As Jim says, this show up in the old gunsmithing books.
Kind of labor intensive, but one of the TIG welding guys I work with had great enthusiasm, so I went with it.

[Clark]

It has already been drilled and tapped.

I have another guy working on welding up the thumb cut.
De Haas said that the problem with 98 Mausers is the thumb cut.

[owen]

On the thumb cut, are you talking about the cut where one's thumb goes while stuffing the magazine with a stripper clip?

Why is it a problem?

[rmw]

Yes,and it's not really a problem but we were trying to make a military action look as commercial/sporter . As possible .Allot of guys would also carve up a block to weld in where the stripper clip goes . Did you use the same center to center distance on the guard screws as any other action for the stock ? Or are you going to carve one yourself ?

[Clark]

I think I will get a stock that has no inletting, but has shape.

[Clark]

I got the parts back for the long one.
Draw filing and bluing are my job.