Buying a Mauser - Advice needed.

[SomeKid]

Does anyone know much about them? I have heard of three types, K98, M48, and 24/47. Which one is the best, or at least what are the differences? What reliable place can I buy them from online?

If I get a chance to buy one in person, whats worth looking (out) for?

I hope to add a good one to my collection here soon, so any advice will be very appreciated.

 

[dfaugh]

Well, you can compare shopping for a Mauser to shopping for a car....There's SO many variations, it's hard to keep track, unless you've studied it (and there are entire books written on all the different types.) So i don't even know where to start (and I'm not an expert by any means).

IMHO:

Although I don't own one the Swedish Mausers in 6.5x55 are considered by many to be some of the best. Very well made, very accurate. A little more costly than most others.

VZ-24 (Basically a 98 made in what was then Czechoslovakia.) Some of the smoothest actions, and well made. I have one of these.

Persian-same as above, actually same gun with Persian markings. Not so common anymore. My buddy bought one a while back for under 200 in really nice shape.

Turkish-a little tricky here--there are "large ring" (98) style & "small ring" (1893 versions). Stick with the 98 style as they are stronger (although I have an 1893, converted by the Turks to 8x57, that seems plenty strong).

German made 98s and K98s--premium prices paid as many consider them the only "real" Mausers.

Yugo 24/47--Note that these are an "intermediate length action"--slightly shorter than most others. Some parts won't interchange with other Mausers. But good shooters , and currently good prices.

I could go on, but I'll stop there.

Things to look for: Matching numbers on all parts, check the bore, especially muzzle area for "cleaning rod wear".

 

[cracked butt]

Depends on what you want-
If you want a carbine, the most commonly found examples are German k98s,Czech vz-24s, Swedish M38s, Yugo24/47, 24/52s and m48s, Spanish carbiines are still fairly common as well.There are probably hundreds of other variants, but you won't commonly see them.

Yugo rifles are appealing because they can be had for cheap and in relatively good condition (I've bought a few unissued ones a few years ago), but their quality is pretty low- most will shoot good, but a lot of them are plagued with problems.
I highly reccommend German, Czech, and Swedish rifles, you'll pay a bit of a premium for these, but you get a lot more than you pay for.

If you want a full length rifle, turks, swede M96s, czech vz-22 and 98/29s can be found. All are good, but Turks have usually had a lot more hard use and a lot less maintenance than the rest.


My top two reccomendations are: http://samcoglobal.com/rifles.html#m9829
I have one of these in VG condition, its an outstanding rifle. The only 8mm I have that will outshoot it is a vz-22, but those are getting hard to find.

for acarbine:http://samcoglobal.com/rifles.html#m98kmc I have one of these in special select condition- its a brand new rifle. Its a little rough in the craftsmanship department, and the trigger is somewhat gritty, but its still head and shoulders better than a Yugo.

 

[Dr.Rob]

German marked K98's certainly have a better 'collector' value, and they still shoot fantasticly.

There are a number of importers in the shotgun news offering matching number K98's for reasonable prices.

The Samco 98K w/winter trigger guard is very much like the one I have, (BRNO mfg) and it's a pretty good shooter, definitely worth the price to pay for a 'hand select' model.