As a milsurp collector and shooter, with an emphasis on WWI and WWII era rifles, up to now, other than a Swedish Mauser, my acquisitions have been aimed towards major combatants of those wars. Leaving out a major rifle from a neutral nation would have been a huge oversight, especially considering the excellence of the Swiss Schmidt Rubin K31. This past weekend I snagged a 1945 K31 at auction. That led to being offered yet another K31, this one a 1953. Both rifles, in original condition, are now headed to my FFL. I figured a pair of K31 would be a very nice addition. Unexpectedly yesterday it became a trio of K31.
Having some spare time yesterday I took a drive to a local dealer with the excuse of needing some gun stock wax. This shop has a fairly decent selection of milsurps, at least a half dozen rifles that might interest me at any one time. Rifles in original condition seem to go in the $200 to $350 range, and when they have been sporterized they tend to go in the $100 to $125 range. That seems to be the way that it comes down most of the time regardless of rifle. I’ve gotten some really good deals on rifles that I have restored to original configuration. When I had the gun stock wax in hand I went over to the rifle racks.
First I saw a very nice Swedish Mauser at a good price. I already have one. There were also lots of Chinese SKS. Got those also. Then, there it was, a distinctive magazine and trigger guard in a stock that wasn’t right for it. I knew right away what it was, a K31. I picked it up and the stock looked mighty nice. It had a rifle scope that I quickly determined was a bolt-on with no alterations to the rifle. The front and rear sights were removed. I had set a $100 budget for anything that I might (was hoping to) run across, and considering it being a K31 in a very nice stock with a scope mount that I knew to be on the pricey side, there was no way it would be in budget. It wasn’t. It was $119. I walked the rifle up to the counter and only put it down to fill out the 4473. This was the first time that I have purchased a used rifle without looking down the bore with a light. If you know anything about the K31 you will know that my risk was minimal as 99% of them are going to have excellent bores bordering on looking brand new.
Originally, at least for a handful of hours, my intentions were to restore this rifle to original configuration. I will still acquire the parts to do so, but after spending some time with it last night this rifle will remain as is for a good while, if not as long as I have it. The stock turns out to be a Boyds, which I suspected while looking over at it on my ride home as the wood looks an awful lot like the Boyds/CMP stock on one of my Garands. The name on the rubber recoil pad confirmed it. The scope mount is, from what I have researched, a very good one that can easily be removed and moved to one of my other K31 if I so choose. The purchase price of one of these mounts alone is a majority of what I paid for the rifle. The price of the stock and mount alone exceeds what I paid for the whole rifle.
The best part is that the bore didn’t disappoint me. My initial peek down the barrel once I got the rifle home showed a dirty bore but lots of mirror bright goodness below. The previous owner of this rifle had shot it and parted with it dirty. Last night I cleaned the rifle and the bore looks 100%, mirror bright and crisp, with a crown in perfect condition. The Swiss knew how to take care of their rifles. This one is a 1954. The stock is now waxed (I remembered to buy the wax) and this rifle is about as fine as one could ask for, even as a sporter, for $119.
Happy dance.
Having some spare time yesterday I took a drive to a local dealer with the excuse of needing some gun stock wax. This shop has a fairly decent selection of milsurps, at least a half dozen rifles that might interest me at any one time. Rifles in original condition seem to go in the $200 to $350 range, and when they have been sporterized they tend to go in the $100 to $125 range. That seems to be the way that it comes down most of the time regardless of rifle. I’ve gotten some really good deals on rifles that I have restored to original configuration. When I had the gun stock wax in hand I went over to the rifle racks.
First I saw a very nice Swedish Mauser at a good price. I already have one. There were also lots of Chinese SKS. Got those also. Then, there it was, a distinctive magazine and trigger guard in a stock that wasn’t right for it. I knew right away what it was, a K31. I picked it up and the stock looked mighty nice. It had a rifle scope that I quickly determined was a bolt-on with no alterations to the rifle. The front and rear sights were removed. I had set a $100 budget for anything that I might (was hoping to) run across, and considering it being a K31 in a very nice stock with a scope mount that I knew to be on the pricey side, there was no way it would be in budget. It wasn’t. It was $119. I walked the rifle up to the counter and only put it down to fill out the 4473. This was the first time that I have purchased a used rifle without looking down the bore with a light. If you know anything about the K31 you will know that my risk was minimal as 99% of them are going to have excellent bores bordering on looking brand new.
Originally, at least for a handful of hours, my intentions were to restore this rifle to original configuration. I will still acquire the parts to do so, but after spending some time with it last night this rifle will remain as is for a good while, if not as long as I have it. The stock turns out to be a Boyds, which I suspected while looking over at it on my ride home as the wood looks an awful lot like the Boyds/CMP stock on one of my Garands. The name on the rubber recoil pad confirmed it. The scope mount is, from what I have researched, a very good one that can easily be removed and moved to one of my other K31 if I so choose. The purchase price of one of these mounts alone is a majority of what I paid for the rifle. The price of the stock and mount alone exceeds what I paid for the whole rifle.
The best part is that the bore didn’t disappoint me. My initial peek down the barrel once I got the rifle home showed a dirty bore but lots of mirror bright goodness below. The previous owner of this rifle had shot it and parted with it dirty. Last night I cleaned the rifle and the bore looks 100%, mirror bright and crisp, with a crown in perfect condition. The Swiss knew how to take care of their rifles. This one is a 1954. The stock is now waxed (I remembered to buy the wax) and this rifle is about as fine as one could ask for, even as a sporter, for $119.
Happy dance.
