Need Help Identifying My FN Mauser

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malakeyegod

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Hello, I just inherited what I think is a commercial or commercialized FN Mauser. My great-grandfather passed and I was given this. The pitting is bad, from storage, if I had to guess, so I'll not be rebuilding it and will use it for target shooting.

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Info:

  • Caliber- Was told it's 8mm Mauser, but it hasn't been shot in a while. Checked the barrel, which looks clean with no obvious rust damage.
  • 1933 stamped on the receviver.
  • I.D number on the right side of the receiver. 313--
  • Appears to have 8448 stamped on the safety.
  • Lion over J.V stamped on the bolt. FAB. NAT D'ARMES de QUERRE HERSAL BELGIQUE stamped on the left side of the receiver.
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Weird thing is that the front sling mount is cut into a C shape. Mauser also appears to be smaller than the ones I have seen in the past.

Not that knowledgeable about the Mauser action so this is my first time actually handling one.
Thanks for the help in advance
 

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Guess you would need more detailed pics of the action fit to receiver and such.
Cannot tell from the photo angles if it is a small ring action.

From the photos; not familiar with a straight grip stock with the grasping grooves.
The band looks to me to be the rear half (cut in two) of a Gew 98 front barrel band
that has been slid on backwards to act as an impromptu barrel band.
The 'sling mount' is the parade hook.

JT
 
Guess you would need more detailed pics of the action fit to receiver and such.
Cannot tell from the photo angles if it is a small ring action.

From the photos; not familiar with a straight grip stock with the grasping grooves.
The band looks to me to be the rear half (cut in two) of a Gew 98 front barrel band
that has been slid on backwards to act as an impromptu barrel band.
The 'sling mount' is the parade hook.

JT
I can put up more pics of the action. I assume it's a commerical FN, but once again, not that experienced.
 
Additional info. There's no slot for a cleaning rod, which helps support the idea of a commercial model. Also, what does a parade hook do? Sorry for being ignorant on this topic.
 
Lord only knows where that thing has travelled over the last 80 years!

Yep, the lower band is made from a cut-up upper band- backwards-and it's got a 1903 Springfield sight pressed on the front of the barrel, but beyond that, who knows?

FN was making actions for numerous South American and European armies in the '30s chambered for all sorts of cartridges. Some of those contracts were on the down low and any records which did exist were lost when the Nazis took over the factory. Without a receiver crest or acceptance stamps, you may never really know that guns full story.

Recommend you make a chamber cast before attempting to shoot it. I would take the action out of the stock and inspect the underside of the barrel and receiver extension for dangerous pitting as well......
 
I suspect it is a parts rifle that has been assembled from a variety of parts. FWIW, most of the commercial FN Mausers proudly have the FN banner on them. The stock also has a thumb cutout for stripper clips and the receiver itself is cut for stripper clips. Most commercial actions did not have these but as FN was willing to sell almost anything, who knows if they used some overruns in receivers to make a cheap commercial rifle. The stock also appears that it was a cut military stock rather than a sporter design. It most resembles a GEW 98 or 98/22 stock with the elongated finger grooves but without the recoil lug. Might simply be one stuck on by someone at sometime to replace a bad stock. The condition of the receiver does not appear to match the stock so I would guess a stock replacement at some point or a very heavy sanding job.

This is what the FN crest looks like.

6340949_01_fn_marked_mauser_98_640.jpg

The receiver could be a m98 intermediate action that was exported to China during the 1930's which do not have the FN mark but only the year of the model stamped on the receiver. One of those years is 1933 https://forums.gunboards.com/showthread.php?66853-FN-Logo-d-Mauser

Also read John Wall's response in the following thread. He was a recognized collector extraordinaire of Mausers. https://forums.gunboards.com/showthread.php?127550-Chinese-FN-mauser-questions-What-do-I-have

If your action is an intermediate action, then it might be one of these Chinese FN contract mausers if the distance between the action (trigger guard) screws is 7.62 inches o/c.

"4) Intermediate Large Ring M-98 ,(Large ring, Short action)
1.410 diameter. receiver ring, 8.50 in length, with screw spacing of 7.620
Intermediate Large ring have a threaded shank diameter of 1.10 in. With 12 threads per inch.
Mexicans by FN and Belgium, the M24, M47, M48 by FN and Yugoslavia. A large number of M48 Yugoslavian large-ring M98 Mauser have recently been dropped on the market. This M-98 short is considered an intermediate action, and WILL NOT fit a Standard 98 Mauser stocks and standard bolts will not interchange.. Receiver stripped weight 15.0 oz." http://www.hoosiergunworks.com/catalog/mauser_reference.html

Given that these firearms reached the U.S. through a circuitous route and had a wild history in China--e.g Chinese Civil War, Manchuria, invasion by Japan, renewed Civil War, possible use in other conflicts in the region, etc., that would explain why parts might be from a variety of sources or strangely altered simply to make up a working rifle.
 
Thanks for the help. It looks like I got myself a frankin gun. No wonder I couldn't find anything on it from online sources.

I'll do a full strip before I fire it.
 
Does the lower band being manufactured in such a way indicate it being dangerious?

No, but it might be affecting accuracy and could very well be dislodged on firing the rifle by recoil as it appears that only friction is holding it. On a GEW 98 type, the hole in the band matches up with the rifle's band springs that have a circular stud that locks the band in place during firing but allows removal for cleaning and demounting the rifle. That band would be at the end of a GEW 98 Mauser stock instead of the middle.

Where you have the band on your rifle is where the band that retains a wooden handguard goes. Usually it has a sling attachment as well.

Information about whether barrel bands or band screws are used, the stock, the handguard, buttplate, etc. can help determine the identity of the rifle, especially with the number of variants of Mausers floating around out there. For example, your buttplate picture kinda looks like a Swedish Mauser type and your stock resembles a Swede as well as well but the Swedes are mostly small ring actions and never made by FN. However, FN did make receivers for commercial Swede rifle production post WWII. There is a book, Ars Technica, I believe that Numrich has on closeout that details the rich history of FN in making firearms. It is possible you could find some of the info you seek from that.
 
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