6.5 Swede Mauser and loading manuals

The 129 would be fine for deer. Taken a couple deer with that bullet in the Swede. It was avg 2750 ft/sec.

What any load book says should relate to the specifics of the test firearm, case, primer, bullet, and lot of powder used in conjunction with the means of pressure testing.

All of that information will only tell you what testers witnessed, not what you will achieve with a given recipe. For that reason they often recommend a 10% reduction from max. as a starting load (if higher velocity is your goal) along with case inspection for pressure signs.

To the question then of Hornady being conservative; maybe. Could easily have been a different bullet, different powder lot, or any of their specific equipment that produced a lower maximum.

I keep a copy of Load Books alongside the other reload manuals for each caliber I load for and often consult the power manufacturers' websites for more reference data. After that there's my firearms, the chronograph, and anything I spot on the brass as best indicators.

The original ammunition was a 160 grain (probably 10.2 grams) FMJ bullet at 2380 fps in the long rifle (30 inch [roughly] barrel) and 2150 fps in the carbine. Part of the problem at the time (A. D. 1894) was the undeveloped nature of smokeless powder in those days. My conclusion is, nearly all the smokeless powder in those early days of smokeless powder was much faster than is available today.

However, those early loadings did a good job of deactivating enemies of the Kingdom. Not to mention some of the early 6.5mm rifles of similar power level as the 6.5x55mm Swedish Mauser were and are still used to down all manner of medium to large game - moose and some African (most "non-dangerous") veldt animals. Of course, Karamoja Bell killed over three hundred elephants with a 6.5x54 MS rifle.

Therefore, I will ask this: To what end are you striving? Your post mentioned deer hunting. Either 120 or 140 grain bullets have accomplished the feat on prior occasion.

The Lyman # 50 lists loads for the 140 grain bullet up to the middle ranges of 2500 fps (Alliant powders) using the 24" M38 barrel. That would somewhat less in the carbine, but still suitable for up to deer size game.

Do not be fooled by advertising. One can kill deer and other game handily with a rifle producing less than light speed.

e rex said:

I shoot a model 94 Swedish mauser with the 17.5 inch barrel so bullet speeds are slow.
Hornady lists 44 grains IMR 4350 with their 140 grain bullet as Max load. Everyone else lists 45 grains of the same powder and bullet weight as Max. Is Hornady just cautious or is their bullet bearing surface and jacket material different?
Has anyone dropped down to the 129 grain Hornady or 120 Nosler BT for deer? Speeds with the 120 grain at full load probably won't exceed 2600fps by much.

Click to expand...

Your rifle is exactly why American ammunition manufacturer's and Reloading manuals have to keep pressures down on this great cartridge. Your M1894 carbine (which I assume is what you have) was built from 1895 to 1918. As a rule, the older the rifle, the less certain the metallurgy. It is worth looking at the CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY OF CODES AND STANDARDS FOR STANDARDIZATION & TESTING DEPARTMENT https://cstools.asme.org/csconnect/FileUpload.cfm?View=yes&ID=32642 for an idea of how immature metal technology was in the pre vacuum tube era. Defining technological advancement is basically a guess, there is not a list of which industries, which factories incorporated advancing technologies. You can make a general assessment based on “everything”, an assessment which is not going to be very accurate or precise. Basically I consider the “pre vacuum tube era” to be up to the early part of the 1920’s. The closer you get to WW2 the better the manufacturing technology, assuming factories adopted improvements, such as electricity and vacuum tube based process control equipment. And that is not a given. I would say based on the technology of the era and the funding of the age, that rifles made in the 1930’s should have cleaner steels and should be made with more advanced manufacturing technology than previous decades. All of this is theoretical sophistry, someone would have to go out and test individual receivers for materials and grain structure to see if Quality Control had improved as you would expect as technology improved. Advancements in the Government sector are not linear, they are quantum.

I have seen nothing to indicate that the Swedes or anyone else building military Mauser actions built these military actions to a higher pressure standard than their service cartridge. For 8mm Mausers, the average pressure did rise by a couple of thousands from WW1 to WW2, that may have been because the Military was willing to accept a reduced service life, or that they thought improved production processes produced a cleaner steel. We do know from historical records lugs cracked on new service rifles. Rifle & Carbine 98: M98 Firearms of the German Army from 1898 to 1918 Dieter writes that the bolt lugs broke on 1:1000 of GEW98 service rifles used by the Bavarian Army Corp! This was when the cartridge pressure was 43,000 psia.

There is evidence of what happens to old WW1 Mauser made receivers when chambered for inappropriate cartridges as can be seen in the lug set back in this Argentine 1909 action.

Advice for re-heat treating Zastava Mausers.

https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/4142510/1



The actions used in sporters are often 60,000 psia cartridges, and there is absolutely no evidence that these Swedish Mausers were ever built to this standard. Especially a Swedish Mauser pre dating 1918. The experience of our all wise and all knowing in print gunwriters is worth repeating. They had lug set back with their new Mauser M98 military actions chambering in modern cartridges.

Want to build a 6.5x55 swede.

https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/want-to-build-a-6-5x55-swede.740414/

JayPee


I would strongly recommend using a very strong commercial action if you intend to exceed military pressures in your loads. Military M98 Mausers can have their own set of disappointments. First among them is the fact that their original cartridge, the 8mm Mauser cartridge, dissipates pressure faster than any known cartridge, and once manufacturers discovered this they decided to reduce costs by reducing the degree of heat treatment of the action - thus you can get the exact same fatal setback problem in an M98 as you get in the Swede actions. Outdoor Life's shooting editor, Jim Carmichael, once wrote in one of his books that he and a friend had purchased a number of brand new military Mauser M98 actions, and upon barreling them for cartridges such as the .270 Winchester, they all developed a catastrophic degree of excessive headspace because the actions had only been heat treated to withstand 8mm Mauser pressures - all were ruined. Thus, back in the heyday of military conversions, the 50's, 60's, and 70's, the experts always advised that before using a military M98 action as the basis for an expensive sporting rifle, the shooter should first have the action tested for Rockwell hardness. That is still awfully good advice in my book if you insist on using a military M98 action. Hope this helps.

Click to expand...

What we do know from historical records is that the Swedish military ammunition was loaded to 320 MPa (46,412 psi) piezo pressure. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/6.5×55mm Your rifle, particularly being a pre WW1 action is subject to all the uncertainty of something built in a pre vacuum tube era with pre vacuum tube process controls.

The M94 and M96 actions don't have a safety lug. If the lugs crack, through metal fatigue, there is the real risk the bolt will be blown out of the action. Plain carbon steel has a habit of breaking without warning. And there is a record of Swedish lugs breaking and killing people:

Catastrophic Failure - Swedish Mauser m/1896
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?106437-Catastrophic-Failure-Swedish-Mauser-m-1896

I don't remember if I ever posted these photos in this forum but with the other topic of the Spanish 1916 catastrophic failure http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=34549 coming up I thought it might be a good idea to have this as a separate subject.

The difference between the Spanish 1916 failure and this Swedish Mauser is we know exactly what caused the Swede to come apart. It was a double charge of fast pistol powder. The rifle resides in the UK so these photos were obtained for me by another very knowledgeable Swede collector who's USAF duty station is in the UK.

The Mauser m/1896 was taken out of general military service in Sweden some 12-15 years ago due to a bolt lug failure killing a young Swedish soldier. There are some m/94 carbines in use by the Livguard who has duty at the royal palace in Stockholm and their rifles are carried locked and loaded so they are not ceremonial. Swedish Mausers do fail in normal use many times for reasons that are not obvious. I would prefer to urge caution and care when handloading or shooting rifles that are 100+ years old. Metal fatigue is cumulative. If you feel the need to hotrod a Mauser do it with a 98 action.

Click to expand...

Sheared Bolt Lugs - Swedish Mauser


http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?34532-Sheared-Bolt-Lugs-Swedish-Mauser

m/1896 Swedish Mauser in Australia. Details of failure unknown to me.

Those of you with metallurgical experience are most welcome to comment... though I know its hard to make a definitive statement based on such limited information.

As with the 1893 Mauser photos I post these photos to illuminate the reality that seemingly strong and sound rifles suffer catastrophic failures and sometimes people are killed as a result. What exactly caused this incident, had it killed the shooter, would be immaterial to his widow and children. Dead is dead.

Click to expand...

So, are you scared? Maybe enough to be happy to keep your loads service rifle equivalent? My advice is to keep to Swedish service rifle ammunition pressures and not try to magnumtize the cartridge. At least not in your rifle, a pre WW1 artifact. Based on a 1950's American Rifleman article on the 6.5 Swede, it was stated that 43.0 grs of IMR 4350 with a 140 (or 139.5 grain bullet) was the pressure and velocity equivalent of the Swedish Service rifle load. And you, with your antique, should not be trying to exceed that.

I have chronographed Swedish ball, and these are the Swedish ball velocities in several Swedish service rifles:


Because I have a couple of modern rifles, I can push the pressures and velocities above that of a Swedish service rifle. I don't really know what I am accomplishing as a 140 grain bullet at Swedish service rifle velocities is accurate all the way out to 300 yards, which is as far as I zero'd these rifles. Based on velocity alone, I would say 43.0 grains IMR 4350, or AA4350, is a ball equivalent load with a 140 grain bullet. What I found surprising, was the consistently slower velocities I received out of this 22 inch M700 barrel with the same ammunition, shot on the same day, as the M70 Winchester. Obviously, something is different between these rifles, and it is something I can't detect with my equipment. Nor, am I going to try.

Code:

M700  22" Barrel      
                                         
143  gr Swedish Ball 1986 headstamp         
                                             
2 Feb 2008 T = 54 °F                       
 
Ave Vel =2470
Std Dev =18
ES =48
High =2491
Low =2443
N =5

140 gr Hornady Spire Point 43.0 grs AA4350  R-P new brass CCI-200 OAL 2.990"

2 Feb 2008 T = 52 °F 

Ave Vel = 2512   
Std Dev = 27   
ES = 72   
High = 2547   
Low = 2475   
N = 5 

140 gr Hornady Spire Point (0.264") 43.0 grs AA4350 new R-P cases  CCI 200 OAL 2.990" loaded 2-5-2000
2 Nov  2017  T=72  °F

Ave Vel =2531         
Std Dev =14
ES =33
High =2540
Low =2507
N=5

140 gr Hornady SP  greased 45.0 grs IMR 4831 wtd lot 2-22-2014 new R-P cases CCI 200 OAL 3.065"

2 Nov 2017  T=72  °F     
  
Ave Vel = 2548       
Std Dev =11       
ES =28         
High =2566       
Low =2538       
N =5       
      

140 gr Hornady SP  greased 45.0 grs H4831 wtd lot 01-06-2014 new R-P cases CCI 200 OAL 3.065"
 
2 Nov 2017  T=72  °F     
      

Ave Vel = 2419       
Std Dev = 31       
ES = 88       
High = 2477       
Low = 2389       
N = 8

Shot an internet bragging sub MOA group with three shots. Too bad three shots proves absolutely nothing in terms of inherent accuracy:

I really think the four shot group is a better indication of the accuracy potential of this load, but, the fifth shot went out of the ten ring. This is proof that if you want to claim sub MOA accuracy, shoot as few shots as possible. This is something in-print gunwriters do all the time. Makes them and their loads look good.


This load is probably a little too hot for a Swedish service rifle, given the velocity is above what I received with a service load. However, IMR 4831 looks to be a real champ in this cartridge. This is at 300 yards, and I think a sub 5 inch ten shot group at 400 yards is pretty darn good for a sporter rifle.

Code:

M70 Featherweight 22" Barrel

143.5 gr FMJBT Swedish 1986 ball. OAL 3.065"  47.4 grs powder average
 13 Oct 2017  T=72  °F   

Ave Vel = 2460      
Std Dev = 21     
ES = 30     
High = 2474     
Low = 2444     
N = 5   

Very good group                                
                                                                       

140 gr Hornady Spire Point 43.0 grs AA4350 R-P new brass CCI-200 OAL 2.990"                              
18 Nov 2007 T =  75 °F                                                                               
 
Ave Vel =2428
Std Dev =29
ES =95
High =2480
Low =2385
N =24

easy bolt life,nice rounded primers                                                               

 
140 gr Hornady Spire Point 43.0 grs AA4350  R-P new brass CCI-200 OAL 2.990"
    
18 Nov 2007 T =  75 °F   
    
Ave Vel = 2428  
Std Dev = 29   
ES = 95   
High = 2480   
Low = 2385   
N = 24   

easy bolt life, nice rounded primers 


140 gr Hornady Spire Point (0.264") 43.0 grs AA4350 new R-P cases  CCI 200 OAL 2.990"
     loaded 2-2000

13 Oct 2017  T=72  °F   
  
Ave Vel = 2387    
Std Dev = 23   
ES = 67   
High = 2424   
Low = 2357   
N = 15   

Best group of all reloads   
   

140 gr Hornady Spire Point Flat Base (0.264") 43.0 grs AA4350 new R-P cases  CCI 200 OAL 2.990"  loaded 2-5-2000

2 Nov  2017  T=72  °F   

Ave Vel = 2413    
Std Dev = 17     
ES = 50     
High = 2441     
Low = 2391     
N = 6     
   

140 gr Hornady SP  greased 45.0 grs IMR 4831 wtd lot 2-22-2014 new R-P cases CCI 200 OAL 3.065"
  

2 Nov 2017  T=72  °F 
 
Ave Vel = 2419    
Std Dev = 19    
ES = 43     
High = 2439     
Low = 2396     
N = 5   
 

140 gr Sierra Matchking  greased 45.0 grs IMR 4831 wtd lot 2-22-2014 new R-P cases CCI 200 OAL 3.065"

2 Nov 2017  T=72  °F   
   
Ave Vel = 2438    
Std Dev = 12     
ES = 30     
High = 2448     
Low = 2418     
N = 5   

140 gr Hornady SP (0.264") greased 47.0 grs IMR 4831 wtd lot 282 NNY cases Fed 210S OAL 3.050"
13 Oct 2017  T=72  °F   
  
Ave Vel = 2633    
Std Dev = 24   
ES = 81   
High = 2680   
Low = 2599   
N = 10   


140 gr Hornady SP (0.264") greased 48.0 grs IMR 4831 wtd lot 282 NNY cases Fed 210S OAL 3.050"

13 Oct 2017  T=72  °F   

Ave Vel = 2688    
Std Dev = 16   
ES = 44   
High = 2705   
Low = 2661   
N = 10   
 

Overmax load, primer cupping around firing pin, shiny rub marks on case heads

   


140 gr Hornady SP  greased 45.0 grs H4831 wtd lot 01-06-2014 new R-P cases CCI 200 OAL 3.065"
 

2 Nov 2017  T=72  °F   

Ave Vel = 2289    
Std Dev = 9     
ES = 16     
High = 2296     
Low = 2280     
N = 5

200 Yards, five shot group




300 yards, group shot for size. I am reluctant to touch the elevation and windage knobs of a typical hunting scope once I get going for group size. Target scopes are more reliable, the expensive ones usually (remember usually) move a click when you put on a click. One hunting scope, the group may move a click, or two, or not at all, and then jump four clicks later. Still, a ten shot group 6.6" at 300 yards is not bad for a Featherweight. These are not target rifles.



I forgot to take the five shot group, but it was 4.5" at 300 yards. I don't know the velocity in this rifle.

A few years ago the Swedes were exporting used 1896 Swedish Mausers in 270 Winchester.
Remember those in ShotGunNews?
The 270 is registered at 65,000 psi in the USA with proof loads above that, but Sweden is probably on the CIP system.

http://forums.gunboards.com/showthr...ish-Mauser-actions-converted-to-30-06-270-etc

I didn't see any of those .270 Swedes or hear about them, ( was probably too busy working but am now retired). I do recall the mid-1990's when Kimber was importing Mod. 96 Swedes and sporterizing them. In 1995 I picked one up in the standard 6.5x55 and still have it today with a B&C stock and an aftermarket trigger and it's an excellent shooter. Also have a circa 1995 dealer flyer from Nationwide Sports Distributors who were selling the Kimber modified Swedes. They were also rebarreling them in .22-250, .243, and .308 while I've only seen a few of the standard 6.5x55 models like mine I have never seen one in any of those other chamberings and I wonder if any were even produced? Because I've always heard about those chamberings not being good for small ring Mausers and perhaps Kimber decided likewise. If any were produced and had problems I never heard about that either. The steel used in Swedish Mausers is supposedly first rate and this thread is very interesting but I'm still in the dark on Swedes with high pressure chamberings. Here's a few shots of a circa 1995 dealer flyer for Nationwide Sports Distributors advertising rebarreled and non-rebarreled sporterized Swedes at what was then dealer cost. Was that a safe thing to do with small ring Mausers considering the higher pressure chamberings?

I have an all original numbers matching unmolested Carl Gustav 94 / 14 Swedish Mauser in 6.5 Swede. It came with a pile of surplus 6.5 ammo and a bunch of reloadable Surplus brass, however it's not a frequent shooter just an occasional plinker so I'll stick to running factory Privy PPU rds. thru it ...

On another note, since we're talking about the 6.5 Swede I also have an 1897 Steyr krag-jorgensen chambered in 6.5 Swedish to go with it. It's all original numbers matching and unmolested as well and it's probably the most gorgeous rifle in my collection

I got an all matching 1896 for $100 in 2002, I drilled and tapped and forged the bolt over. I went deer hunting with it.
I got a looks unfired 1934 for $135 in 2004
I got a terribly sporterized 1894 for $80 in 2008. That stock has been so cut down, it looks like my first BB gun.

Rex, we met some deer hunters that were 85 years old. Their truck and camper looked like it came out of a time machine.
At 66, I can still see deer. I can still shoot deer, I can still gut deer, but I never could drag them out by myself anyway.

In 2015 I built a 6.5-06 on a Dumoulin Mauser and shot 120 gr Nos Bal Tips chono 3100 fps
In 2017 I build a 6.5-06 on a Rem700 and shot 129 Nos Accubond long range, chrono 3075 fps

When it comes to bullets, there is no accounting for taste. I like Nosler Ballistic tips, Nosler Accubonds, and Hornady SSt bullets for rifles. In handguns I like Speer Gold Dot.

For bullet weight I like:
224 55 gr
6mm 95 gr
257 100 gr or 115 gr
6.5 120 gr or 129 gr
270 130 gr
7mm 140 gr
308 150 gr
8mm 180 gr
338 200 gr
458 350 gr

Rex, my grandson is 1 years old. He helps me take out the garbage. I hope someday he helps me drag a deer.

Rex, if you're not satisfied with whatever results you get from that 120 gr. bullet then a 129 gr Hornady Spire Point might be worth a try driven by some IMR- 4831 or RL-19. I've had great luck with that in both an all original Mod. 96 and my Kimber sporterized Mod. 96. A below book max load of IMR-4831 runs about 2620 -2640 fps out of the 22" barrel on the sporter and shoots so well it's become my standard 6.5x55 go-to load. 129 gr. bullets are the lightest that have performed well and anything lighter I've pretty much given up on in two different Swedes. Planning on hunting a rifle zone tomorrow and the Kimber Swede gets the nod with that go-to load.

Clark said:

A few years ago the Swedes were exporting used 1896 Swedish Mausers in 270 Winchester.
Remember those in ShotGunNews?
The 270 is registered at 65,000 psi in the USA with proof loads above that, but Sweden is probably on the CIP system.

http://forums.gunboards.com/showthr...ish-Mauser-actions-converted-to-30-06-270-etc

Click to expand...

That was an interesting link. Some good information there, especially about the sloppy work Kimber did in chambering their M96 actions in 308 Win. Now, lest anyone forget, that version of Kimber went bankrupt. Companies in financial distress are not to be trusted, they will lie and shovel out dangerous, lethal products. The leaders of companies are notorious for taking their loot, then declaring the company bankrupt and leaving the liability on the customers and suppliers. For example, how is your Enron stock portfolio doing? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enron Enjoying big earnings after Enron blew up? Never would have known the company was in trouble from what the CEO and CFO were claiming.

As for "the Swedes", I tried to find information on M96 conversions by “the Swedes”. Not much out there. I am not sure who or what converted those rifles. Maybe it was one of those limited liability companies that were created to sell a limited lot of defective and dangerous product, and then, go out of business before the lawsuits arrive. I am sure it was not the Swedish Nation. A good question to ask, if one of those rifles sold by “the Swedes” blows up in your face, whom do you sue for product liability? If you sue the Nation of Sweden, or try, they will laugh at you. "The Swedes" will remind you that they have sovereign immunity. That means if you want to collect anything from them you better have a larger Army, Navy, Air Force, and be prepared to use them, before you collect a Krona from "the Swedes". Plus, they are likely to say that anyone who bought a rifle, chambered in a cartridge, which the operating pressures are higher than the proof pressure of the original action, is so stupid that it was only a matter of time till they killed themselves.

If anyone has noticed, we don’t live in a Socialist Workers Paradise.



No one is looking out for you. You get hurt, it is your problem, the costs are going to come out of your pocket. How is everyone’s Obama Care doing?. Lets see, you pay $1500 a month with an $8,000 deductible. So at the end of the year you pay $26,000 before you receive any medical benefits. You blow off a hand, an eye, half your face, top of your head, and require long term medical care, you are going to be paying $8,000 every year of your life before meeting your deductible. Are the savings you get for chambering some $80.00 ancient action worth that risk? You can try to sue the Gunsmith, and you should sue any Gunsmith who chambers an action in an inappropriate caliber, but I doubt you will get much. You will probably get his hound dogs, his plastic wading pool, mobile home, and his worn out milling machine, but that won’t pay for your long term medical care.

I really don’t care what “the Swedes” did. At some point you are responsible for yourself. I am not flying into the mountain, or driving off the cliff, because "the Swedes" flew into the mountain, or because someone else thought it was a good idea to drive off the cliff. I am going to educate myself and stay away from bobby traps. Life is dangerous enough without trying to get hurt.

Archie said:

The original ammunition was a 160 grain (probably 10.2 grams) FMJ bullet at 2380 fps in the long rifle (30 inch [roughly] barrel) and 2150 fps in the carbine. Part of the problem at the time (A. D. 1894) was the undeveloped nature of smokeless powder in those days. My conclusion is, nearly all the smokeless powder in those early days of smokeless powder was much faster than is available today.

However, those early loadings did a good job of deactivating enemies of the Kingdom.

Click to expand...

Sweden fought it's last war in 1814, and relatively few Mausers of any model were available in those days.

Vern Humphrey said:

Sweden fought it's last war in 1814, and relatively few Mausers of any model were available in those days.

Click to expand...

I think that is technically true, but Sweden did supply a volunteer corps to help the Finns in the Winter War, plus a lot of weaponry. The M96 earned a very favorable reputation in that fight.

A chemist came up with a blue-green substitute for rifle powder, used by guerrilla fighters. It may well have been a mixture of guanadine nitrate and basic copper nitrate, which is today used to inflate air bags in cars.

As to the original question, if I had a Mauser that old, and still in good condition, I would treat it very tenderly. Just my opinion, but something in the 45-48 KPSI range seems about right. I run my M96 at about 52 KPSI.

Hodgdon maxima are around 45000-46000 CUP, same as Slamfire cites for Swedish ball.
They show nothing slower burning than the 4895s. I bet powders of the Mauve Decade through the Roaring Twenties were generally faster.
The slower, more progressive powders in Hodgdon give higher velocity at the same pressure.
That is about the only way I would care to soup up the Swede.

My grandfather immigrated from Sweden in ~1907. He never said anything about the army.
But my cousin immigrated 20 years ago from Sweden. He, like other Swedish boys, had to do a year in the army. He is a physically lazy fellow, and stayed in the warm radio shack while the others crawled in the mud.
My cousin later worked for Norma and can do internal ballistics calculations [unlike ignoramus me, I just use Quickload].
While I gave up engineering to do my own thing, my cousin from Sweden continues to be an engineer inventing valuable patents for his employer in the measurement instrument biz.
My cousin reloads and owns Swedish Mausers.

gsbuickman

A bit off topic but I had to say WOW, to your 1897 Steyr Krag-Jorgensen in 6.5 Swede! Would go great with my Model 1898 Springfield.

What any load book says only relates to the specifics on the day of the test. Every one of 'em will be slightly different
You'll also note that nearly all manuals used a 24" barrel. You'll never get anywhere near book velocities. As long as you're religiously following a manual you'll be fine. Accuracy is more important than velocity.
"...my cousin from Sweden..." Remind him that engineers dig holes.

If it were mine I think I would stick to 2 or 3 grains under max and let it live a long and happy life. Its for these reasons I don't use a chronograph anymore to develop rifle load data. I'd just as rather not know.

Vern Humphrey said:

Sweden fought it's last war in 1814, and relatively few Mausers of any model were available in those days.

Click to expand...

Vern. The Norwegians used the same cartridge (and the same rifle at times) in WWII. It most certainly worked on a one-on-one basis.

E-Rex,
Slamfire has it pretty well covered on the Swede 94 and 96 actions-he has been investigating and documenting failures in old milsurps for years now (you can find out a bit more about the Swedish Mausers' history from a guy called the Dutchman who blogs at this spot http://dutchman.rebooty.com/ who also advises against hotrodding these rifles.

Instead of ramping up the powder loads on the old receiver, try using premium bullets that expand at the velocities you get. One thing to remember is that the original carbine barrels were designed to shoot 156 grain bullets resulting in a long throat so shorter bullets will have more freebore (and less pressure ceterus paribus). Here is an old THR comment thread on the Swede military rounds, reloads, and freebore in the barrel. https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/6-5x55-freebore.596514/

BTW, I have a Swede receiver that was reputedly from the Kimber Sporter project--they ground off the receiver stripper clip brow on the receiver and apparently used some less than optimal condition receivers. Have read scattered complaints about these rifles here and there on online forums fwiw. My receiver was ultimately rejected because of the pitting on the bottom receiver lug which is no problem for me as I plan someday to make it a single shot .22 LR just for kicks--have the Swede .22 bolt made for their version of it which is the difficult part but will have to come up with an extractor and firing pin someday. Good use for sub optimal parts left over.