Which milsurp would you rechamber? Arisaka or Mauser

[Ivy Mike]

I have two that I'm considering rechambering.
1. A Type 44 Arisaka.
2. A Yugo Mauser M98 built on what I believe to be a K98 action.

The Yugo has been somewhat sporterized. The nice laminated stock has been cut down and apparently never refinished, so it's dirty bare wood. Someone took a file to the bolt handle, apparently thinking it looked better squared off rather than round? Still has German acceptance marks on the bolt though. The barrel is meh and shows some pitting in the throat and the rifling is dark; not much shine left.

The Arisaka is actually in better condition with its original stock. However, someone cut the bayonet mounting tabs off so there is no way to attach the underfolding bayonet. Like many, it has had its mum removed. The dust cover is still there. This one is chambered in 6.5 Jap. Fit and finish is good although the bluing has seen better days.

With both, I was considering a more modern cartridge. The Mauser is easier to find barrels for so I could probably find a 6.5 Creedmoor barrel for it or something similar. .243 Win maybe? I would probably just clean up and refinish the stock. It's actually nice looking if you don't think about someone hacking up the original Yugo laminated stock.

For the Arisaka, I was actually considering simply having the chamber shortened and reamed for 6.5 Grendel. It's already such a short, handy little rifle. A soft shooting cartridge like that would make it really nice. The Chinese were known to have modified war reparation Arisakas to take 7.62x39, so the 6.5 Grendel is a natural conversion from the 6.5 Jap. The twist rate is already compatible. The rifling is good for a military rifle pushing 90 years old and the pressures of the Grendel are fine. Being able to keep the original barrel would be a cost savings and I could keep the stock intact. The difference in OAL of the cartridges is a bit over 1/2 inch. I do have the bayonet if anyone is interested.

 

[Jeremy2171]

The part for T44 bayo lug can be replaced.

I never recommend"bubbling" unmolested milsurps.

Sell the T44 to a collector but don't modify it IMHO.


The mauser is more common and easier to find barrels and parts for etc.


So that's my choice

 

[Ivy Mike]

The part for T44 bayo lug can be replaced.

I never recommend"bubbling" unmolested milsurps.

Sell the T44 to a collector but don't modify it IMHO.


The mauser is more common and easier to find barrels and parts for etc.


So that's my choice

Yeah, the issue is getting the parts to fix the Arisaka. An Arisaka which is missing one of its most important features already. The cost seems to be a couple hundred bucks just to get the bayonet back on, but without it, nobody seems interested in buying the thing.

I was kind of leaning towards the Mauser since it's already had more modification. A replacement stock isn't cheap either and it has had its Yugo crest scrubbed.

 

[BigBore44]

Definitely the Mauser. Parts, stocks, and barrels everywhere. And you can get a Timney trigger for it for like $70. Timney also makes a small safety. Check opticsplanet and their “exclusive members only site” DVOR.

 

[wiscoaster]

6.5 mm Jap ammo availability is pretty spotty, isn't it? Is that a factor for your decision? I've been keeping an eye open for 7.7 mm Jap for about two months with no luck. There was some Norma available from SGAmmo for awhile, but I wasn't willing to pay way over $2 a round. Maybe converting the Arisaka so it shoots a modern caliber will make it possible to use it more?

 

[Ivy Mike]

6.5 mm Jap ammo availability is pretty spotty, isn't it? Is that a factor for your decision? I've been keeping an eye open for 7.7 mm Jap for about two months with no luck. There was some Norma available from SGAmmo for awhile, but I wasn't willing to pay way over $2 a round. Maybe converting the Arisaka so it shoots a modern caliber will make it possible to use it more?

Yes, very difficult to come across. That's part of the issue. It approaches $2/rd and without all the options from something like 6.5 Grendel. Seems like the only people who make it with any regularity is Norma and probably just in batches.
The 8mm Mauser is easier to come across, but the barrel on my Mauser is the worse of the two and the furthest from original. But the larger calibers that would readily fit the Mauser, are almost as expensive as 8mm unless I go with something common like .308 or 30-06.

 

[Ivy Mike]

Definitely the Mauser. Parts, stocks, and barrels everywhere. And you can get a Timney trigger for it for like $70. Timney also makes a small safety. Check opticsplanet and their “exclusive members only site” DVOR.

I was kinda leaning that way. A little shorter barrel. Kind of a scout rifle thing. Lots of optics mounting options.

 

[Ivy Mike]

Are there any 8mm Mauser wildcats using a 6mm bullet? Could be a fun conversion.

 

[troy fairweather]

Are there any 8mm Mauser wildcats using a 6mm bullet? Could be a fun conversion.

6mm Remington.

 

[igotta40]

I have an Arisaka 7.7 rechambered to 30.06 and sporterized. It has a tiny Weaver 2.5 power scope on a custom mount. My uncle brought it back from the South Pacific and gave it to Dad. He had the work done on it in the early fifties. I took it to Collectors Firearms in Houston for an appraisal. They pretty much told me it’s worthless.

 

[Oldschool shooter]

One thing to keep in mind regardless of which rifle you use will be reliable feeding. .243 and 6.5 Creedmore are shorter rounds. I rebarreled a 98 Mauser some years ago to 243 and had feeding issues. Gibbs was making 3 round box magazines that fit the 98 action by simply rsmoving the floorplate and mag follower. The design was specifically made for converting to a cal8ber that was shorter than the 8x57. If you can find these mags, it will make life a bit easier.

 

[caribou]

.243 inch is just about 6.17 mm , so .243 Win is out as an excellent cartridge......
The Chinese re-chambered Type 99 7.7 Arisakas with 7.62x39, and used Type 38 Arisakas 6.5 rifles as is or rebarreled them.....but most Chinese captured 6.5 type 38's went to Korea in the 50s.
Here in the US, 7.7 Type 99's often had the chamber reamed just a bit deeper and rechambered to 30-06, a conversion South Korea did on a massive scale. 7.7x58 into a 7.62x63
Most all 6.5 Japanese rifles and 7.7 Type 99 are barreled with chrome lined bores, and boring or rechambering them is a major pain, with out some industry behind the conversion.
Latye war rifles are often without chrome lining.

The M44 would definilty be a keeper, parts are hard, but not at all impossible to find.
Or, maybe sell it as a Japanese collectors fix e'm up.

If yer getting rid of the bayonett, Im interested

 

[JFrank]

Leave it alone.

 

[wiscoaster]

I took it to Collectors Firearms in Houston for an appraisal. They pretty much told me it’s worthless.

Well, it's worthless to THEM because it's been sporterized. It's NOT worthless to YOU. It looks like a great rifle, and if it shoots well just keep it and have fun shooting it. Don't be bothered it's no longer collectible. It still has value for you. Just the fact it was your uncle's and then your dad's and now yours makes it priceless.

 

[Dave DeLaurant]

The realities of the milsurp and modern rifle markets today are such that the smart move is to sell the milsurp you are thinking of altering and buy a new rifle. The value you'll lose added to the cost of changes (assuming you aren't doing the work yourself) should more than equal the price of a basic modern rifle from Ruger, Savage, TC, etc., plus you'll have a more accurate rifle in the end.

For that matter, you could buy someone else's sporterized Mauser or Arisaka as a starting point -- they sell for a song and have some of the work already done. The Type 44 as you've described it will sell for twice as much as a typical butchered example, no matter how well executed. I know that Yugos are cheap right now, but that will change.

No doubt you've already considered this, so I'll just add that the breech end of an Arisaka barrel will require more machining if you try anything beyond a simple rechamber. If you're paying someone to do the work, that kind of job will be much more costly compared to barrel work for a Mauser 98.

I'll also add that even rough unbutchered Arisaka's are becoming hard to find.

 

[Wildbillz]

I would think that for the money you would have to spend on the conversions you could buy a new rifle in the caliber you want. Barrel, chamber cutting & headspace, mounting it to the receiver and refinishing the new barrel. The bolt face might need to be worked also. I would look at selling the milsups and just buying what you want.

But that's just me
WB

 

[Mosin77]

Sell the Japanese. Modify the yugo mauser (if you really want to.) But for the price of the parts and work you could probably sell it, too, and buy something with the combined proceeds that would be newer and lightly used and pretty sweet.

 

[Ivy Mike]

6mm Remington.

Interesting. Although pulling the barrel off and replacing it, I guess it doesn't make much sense to pick an oddball cartridge. Looks like there is a lot more choice in .243 Win than 6mm Remington.
6.5 Creedmoor might be a better choice with the US military switching to that for its snipers over 7.62 Nato. Might end up with cheaper ammo. It's already cheaper than some of the others.

 

[Rex in OTZ]

Sell them and buy a savage axis

 

[JCooperfan1911]

Sad to see this is still a thing.

Please don’t ruin a historic military collectible. There are other ways.

 

[WestKentucky]

I bought an arisaka action and a few other bits and pieces to build it into something fun. I can’t say I would recommend chasing the arisaka. It’s turning out to be a much bigger project than I ever thought it would be.

That said, mauser customs are plentiful and everybody has one. I would dump both on Gunbroker and buy something else.

 

[Ivy Mike]

Sad to see this is still a thing.

Please don’t ruin a historic military collectible. There are other ways.

What is historic about a Yugo Mauser that has already been sporterized and a Type 44 Arisaka that is no longer original?

Always curious why this argument comes up.

 

[caribou]

What is historic about a Yugo Mauser that has already been sporterized and a Type 44 Arisaka that is no longer original?

Always curious why this argument comes up.

Japanese Rifle collectors have a view on history. A collector would buy the T44, fit it out with parts and still be able to sell it, honestly, and buy 5 or 6 M48 Yugos in mint condition. Thats the collectors market, today.

The Yugo is not nearly as rare a piece as the T44. The M48's not only more common and are still being sold, today, from surplus stocks, while the T-44 isnt irreversible butchered, and hasnt been imported since the Chinese flood of milsurp guns in the 80's..
Ground Mums ( the Chrysanthemum crest on the receiver ring) and mismatched bolts are VERY common on Japanese WW2 bring-backs and surpluse, it is still worth 3-4 times more than the Yugo with all matching parts, bright bore, still original from the factory......to collectors.

Quite the opposite to the shooters.

If a collector said it was worthless, he was looking for a deal, and talking you into that deal.He would have either rebuilt the T44 OR parted it out and made bank on gun auctions with the parts.

Monetarily, the T44 is a winner, .......for re-barreling/rebuilding, the M48 is the easier and more parts available to customize, the M48 would be the best candidate.

Keep 'em both!! Refit the T44, and display/sell, and rebuild the M48 and shoot, or just shoot the T44, it was made for shooting

 

[1948CJ2A]

I have a M48 Yugo Mauser that I converted to a 250-3000 Savage around 20 years ago. I had ER Shaw do the barrel, chambering, bolt turn, and drill & tap. The Mauser 98 actions whether military or commercial are great for many applications. The Yugos are an intermediate length receiver so the chambering issues some mention with short-action cartridges may not be as common here. I have never had an issue chambering 250 Savage cartridges in this rifle. You can also take advantage of the longer magazine length and seat the heavier bullets further out.

I never much cared for the looks of the Japanese Arisaka rifles, but hey different strokes for different folks!

 

[someguy2800]

The arisaka sounds like it is mostly intact and easily restored so in my opinion it should be left the way it is. The M48 is post war and already sporterized so do whatever you like to it. No different than a commercial mauser receiver to me. Plus for a shooter I would much rather have the mauser safety over the arisaka's push and turn arrangement.