Have an old 98k that was given to me buy my great grandfather years ago. At some point during his possesion of the rifle, he cut the barrel down about 4", cut the butt off and installed a rubber butt pad, reshaped the grip on the stock, and drilled the reciever for a scope mount. His attempt at drilling the reciever wasn't that great. He drilled all the way through the front of the receiver and then tried to weld the holes shut. I'm wanting to restore this thing back to original military config. and turn it into a repro sniper (since its already been drilled no harm done) I was on numerich's website and saw that they sell brand new reproduction 24" 8mm stepped barrels. All that they are lacking is front and rear sight assy. My question is, will original front and rear sights fit these new barrels?? Also, the front of the reciever was only drilled all the way through in one spot. If I had all the holes professionaly welded, drilled and tapped, would it still be safe to shoot?
replacing barrel on molested 98k??
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Another sad tale here, so perhaps just enjoy it as she is - in the memory of Great Gramps.
From 2 standpoints, the short ans is "No" & here's why:
1) Collectibility. Mods of this type are permanent & frequently get slapped w/ a "Bubba" handle.
2) Integrity/Safety. The native metallurgy has been irrevocably altered to an unsafe (softened) condition by welding. Firing this rig could become a face-altering proposition.
Some folks may jump-in here & claim that it might be re-heat treated after normalizing.
As always, YMMV.
From 2 standpoints, the short ans is "No" & here's why:
1) Collectibility. Mods of this type are permanent & frequently get slapped w/ a "Bubba" handle.
2) Integrity/Safety. The native metallurgy has been irrevocably altered to an unsafe (softened) condition by welding. Firing this rig could become a face-altering proposition.
Some folks may jump-in here & claim that it might be re-heat treated after normalizing.
As always, YMMV.
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I would strongly suggest having a good gunsmith actually eyeball the receiver rather than rely on the answers you might receive. Ok, it might cost you $20.00 to have the smith give it a good look. However, $20.00 is much better than dead.
You simply don't fool with real safety issues. Have the gun inspected.
John
Feelthysanchez
You and i must have posted about the same time, but we are on the same page with this.......you know someone will tell him they did it and it worked. However, as you noted the receiver has been toasted and a smith will simply confirm it.
You simply don't fool with real safety issues. Have the gun inspected.
John
Feelthysanchez
You and i must have posted about the same time, but we are on the same page with this.......you know someone will tell him they did it and it worked. However, as you noted the receiver has been toasted and a smith will simply confirm it.
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Exactly my feelings.....Cut down barrel, cut off butt plate, 'reshaped' grip, drilled and welded receiver....too many things to do to this rifle. Leave it as is since that's the way your great grandfather gave it his 'personal' touch. You can pick up a good RC K98 to change over, or better still a Yugo 24/47 or M48 would make a good rifle to convert. Just My Opinion....
This may sound like a dumb question, but what is the difference between this reciever and a mosin nagant ex sniper that has had the screws and pins ground off and then welded? Would the integrity of the mosin ex sniper not be altered as well? Not trying to be a smart ass, just curious.
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No physical diff - both are seriously compromised.
Now a ?, dear fellow:
"What is one's face worth?"
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Good advice above. It's too far gone to try any real restoration. Btw... I own 2 of those replacement new numrich barrels. They are far from the quality of a Lothar Walther mil spec barrel. That's for sure. I havent had the numrich one installed to a receiver yet, but after my LW barrel, I might sell the 2 and order another walther since I'm sooo impressed with it. On another note, that numrich doesn't make clear on the website that the barrels are a six twist (land) instead of 4 land like original 98ks and the barrel for a real k98k is a bit shorter than 24". It's 23 5/8" I believe which isn't a big deal but I suppose worth mentioning.
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what you did not make 100% clear is :1 what you mean by drilled thru the receiver - did you mean drilled all the way thru the receiver and barrel into the chamber ?? lots of gunsmiths drill thru the top of the receiver and partly into the barrell when installing mounts - its almost normal - so what was really done to yours? 2 what type of welding - gas or electric (mig tig arc) ? imho no sure answer could be given without those details - eg a minor spot of elec (arc) weld just to close off a drill hole should not put sufficient heat into the metal to change it and in any case the exterior of the mauser action is very soft - its the inner lock up area that is critical - on the other hand a gas weld would be a def no no and almost certainly raise major safety concerns due to the amount of temp and time the action is heated - for example late war 98k and VG sights were welded on to the barrels so that indicates how the welding is done is the key to knowing if safety is compromised or not not unless you iknow the facts and are savvy better go see a gunsmithMG85 a bit OT- the LW barrels are button rifled ? do you find they prefer 198-200 gr proj or are ok with 150 gr also?
It was drilled all the way through the top of the receiver just in front of where the barrel threads into the receiver. I'll take it to gunsmith in the morning and see what he says.
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