Help please from Mauser owners.

[KevininPa]

I recently became the owner of a German 98. I believe its manufacture is in Obendorf (sp?) between '36-'38. Was going to scout mount it until I talked to my gunsmith. He brought up the same reservation I had about scout-mounting: limited field of view and loss of iron sights. He told me about cantilevering the scope to the side. I liked this idea because it would be like my Saiga 7.62x39 with a POSP scope. It's set up for my scope at 100 yards and my irons are set up for close.

So my question is: Does anyone have this set-up and what mounts are you using? He suggested Williams. Said they were solid and affordable. Anyone got this set-up?

 

[boikman]

Scout mounts

There is a gentleman that manufactures scout mounts that don't alter the rifle and are solid as a rock. I think you will find his link on the Parallax Curio and Relic Forums. Darrells Scout Mounts is the name....he makes them for most milsurps.

 

[CZguy]

Just a thought..............why not leave it with iron sights. You might be surprised at what you can do with them.

You can always buy a modern rifle to scope later.

 

[desidog]

^ +1

 

[gun addict]

+1, learn to shoot ironsight!

 

[Mr_Pale_Horse]

These scout mounts work very well, are much better than irons, and allow you to load with stripper clips. Plus, you do not have to permanently alter the gun, like your gunsmith is suggesting.

www.scopemounts.com

 

[SaxonPig]

I don't care at all for any mount off to the side or jacked way up.

Hunting? What type? Close in dense brush? Then no scope needed. Longer range in the open? Then any decent scope will have plenty of field of view.

An original K98 is likely too valuable to cut up at this point. Buy a Remington.

 

[Ignition Override]

Kevin:
If it has a good bore/rifling and overall nice metal, plenty of guys will buy it from you at a typical price, even in a recession.

At a fairly small show two weeks, ago, all good-looking Mausers in the original military configuration received a good bit of attention and one sold by 1100 on Saturday.

They would want to acquire it in order to not only shoot, but to preserve the rifle.

 

[briansmithwins]

If it's a good prewar K98k it's worth a lot more as that instead of a modified anything.

If it were me, I'd sell the K98k, and buy a postwar M48 Yugo. Use the cash left over to buy the mount you want and a scope.

BSW

 

[Cmdr. Gravez0r]

I concur with the above--if the Mauser is otherwise unaltered PLEASE leave it be as it is much more valuable and historical that way. There are also other, non-permanent iron sights options available if the originals are tough on your eyes.

 

[Smokey Joe]

I'm of 2 minds about your Mauser...

Kevin in PA--I guess I agree with the above posters who say, "Leave your k98K in as-issued condition!" It IS a collectible, it does have history, etc, etc. Now, as to using it as a shooter, I'm not so sure--the sights on the 98, as on most Mausers, are rather tiny and close to the bore, which translates to "difficult to aim with, especially in poor light, and it gets worse as you get older."

I solved this for myself by getting a Yugo M48 Mauser--has that great Mauser design, but NO history. Got a B-square "scout mount" which screwed onto the rear sight base, got a Leupold "Scout 'Scope" and put it on the mount.

(Also did some other modifications to the M-48, but we're talking here just about "Scout 'Scopes" and mounts for same.)

With regard to your concerns about a Scout 'scope, i.e.

limited field of view and loss of iron sights.

(1) the Scout 'Scope works just fine as a 'scope. Just how much field of view do you need? At 100 yd, the FOV is several feet wide at least. And you can look past the 'scope and see stuff easily, with your other eye, anyhow. That's part of the whole "Scout Rifle Concept." (2) You have a 'scope. What do you want with iron sights? If you want irons, why are you considering a 'scope. You can't have both on the same rifle and have them equally usable.

Anyhow, my M-48 scout, with its 2.5x Leupold, will put 200 grain Accubonds into 1.5 MOA all day long. There are milsurp Mausers with nicer workmanship, but I'm quite happy with mine. Not target-rifle accuracy, to be sure, but OTOH, Bambi isn't going to be complaining.

ETA: Here's the write-up of my semi-Bubba job on the M-48, including the Leupold Scout 'Scope. It includes "results" targets. www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=433568&highlight=progress+report:

 

[FenderTK421]

If this is a stock K98k PLEASE leave it stock. There are lots of great M48's out there to sporterize... but the real thing is getting rare; it's a piece of history. I own a 39' K98k and no longer take it to the range - it's about 11-16" left @ 100 yards. My buddy brings his M48 all the time and we have a blast trying to shoot 6" groups at 100 yards iron sights. The rifle is very capable of it. I will be picking up an M48 for range fun soon. So, please, if you want a shooter - sell the K98k to a collector and pick up an M48 and have the extra cash left over to sporterize it.