jeffturk Posted December 22, 2009 Report Share Posted December 22, 2009 new guy here.....i have a Turkish M1938 8mm mauser. it is somewhat sporterized and i think it needs a new barrel. it was cut down from its original length and shoots horribly. any ideas? new/used barrel? 6.5x55? another 8mm? prefer the 8. I DUNNO WHAT TO DO. HELP! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doble Troble Posted December 23, 2009 Report Share Posted December 23, 2009 new guy here.....i have a Turkish M1938 8mm mauser. it is somewhat sporterized and i think it needs a new barrel. it was cut down from its original length and shoots horribly. any ideas? new/used barrel? 6.5x55? another 8mm? prefer the 8. I DUNNO WHAT TO DO. HELP! If you're shooting milsurp ammo that may be your problem (if you're going to shoot a Mauser accurately you're going to have to reload for it). If the barrel is cut down its not likely that the muzzle is washed-out from the steel cleaning rod. Have you got all the copper out of the bore? This can take several ammonia soaks with these old rifles. I just got a Carcano that's on its fourth night with Wipe Out. There's no telling how many more passes will be required. After you're sure that the cosmo and copper are out of the bore its time to give it a good look. I've had Turks with excellent barrels that have been excellent shooters, and barrels that were obviously bent and couldn't be zeroed. I've had excellent looking bores that haven't shot very well at all, and when cut down to make dies and other parts it was clear that the bore was VERY off center. These Turks can be excellent rifles, but are always a crap shoot. So once the bore is clean and there are no obvious problems, and you still can't get it to shoot with good ammo, it's probably time to think about a new barrel. The cheap surplus Swedish Mauser barrels are only a fond memory now. The good news is that you can get small ring barrels for reasonable prices from several sources. I've had good luck with the Adams and Bennet barrels from Midway. You'll need to farm the barrel work out to a gunsmith if you aren't familiar with using a lathe. If you don't have a local gunsmith (they're getting rarer by the day) there are several that can be recommended for mail order work here. Welcome and good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scott63 Posted December 23, 2009 Report Share Posted December 23, 2009 new guy here.....i have a Turkish M1938 8mm mauser. it is somewhat sporterized and i think it needs a new barrel. it was cut down from its original length and shoots horribly. any ideas? new/used barrel? 6.5x55? another 8mm? prefer the 8. I DUNNO WHAT TO DO. HELP! I have one in 6.5X55 and love it. It is an absolute tack driver and will do anything the 8mm will do with decent bullets. In scandinavian countries they use it to take moose, and I have shot right through mule deer with it......Scott Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tinkerfive Posted December 24, 2009 Report Share Posted December 24, 2009 Welcome!! Since it hasn't been mentioned yet, if you don't know, you have the perfect platform for mating up to any re-threaded non magnum Remington barrel that you can lay your hands on. You can make it anything from 22-250 to 30-06. I only picked those cal's because they are ones that I see frequently. Most agree that trying to put a magnum on a Turk is an iffy and dangerous thing to do because of the small ring threads not giving much wall thickness over the chamber. Any other 'standard' caliber is a 'go'. They can be had off of gunbroker frequently for under $35. Of course you have to get someone to thread it up to mate with the Turk. I found a local machine shop that did it for me for $20. You'd need access to a receiver wrench and barrel vice. Then a reamer and gauges for the chosen caliber. If you are close to someone on the board, most of us are happy to help. As was mentioned, Turk barrels are a crap shoot, but most of us have several sitting around if you want to stay with the 8MM. I didn't see mentioned earlier about the crown. You said that it had been shortened. You need to make sure that the cut was square with the barrel and that the crown was cut even. Have you checked 'head space' on the gun? Excess head space is a definite problem. As was mentioned ammo can defiantly be a problem. I've had surplus that shot great and new ammo that you could barely hit a barn with. I suggest that you try ammo from a few different sources AFTER you check that the head space is between the "Go and No Go". OK my fingers are starting to hurt. Tinker Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffturk Posted December 24, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 24, 2009 thanks so much for all the input.... oh god. head is spinnng. it was cut down like 11 inches. the overall barrel length is around 19 1/4 inches. it was chamford and looks good. but shot remington thru it and can not hit a barn as said. head space?? what the heck?? i had some milatary issue shells but not sure what they were. those shot ok, i guess. is there a difference? i want to make this work and use it deer hunting. i have 2 30-40 Krag which can drive nails at 100, and want this to shoot as well as those do. seriously need help. teach me....yoda. lol i guess i should soak this thing?? and clean it till next week. how do i know a small ring from a large ring? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karlunity Posted December 24, 2009 Report Share Posted December 24, 2009 Couple of things: Take down clean and oil the firing pin and spring. (Lock time is an important factor in accuracy) Make sure the barrel is free floating, you should be able to slide a bit of note paper between the stock and barrel all the way to the chamber. Make sure the bore is clean, fire a few shots, unload and clean the bore while warm or make an electric bore cleaner. Make sure that all the screws are tight. Check to make sure the sights are tight and centered. If the bore is any good at all, it should hold in the black of a NRA small bore target at 50 meters firing from a sandbag. Karl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sonic1 Posted December 24, 2009 Report Share Posted December 24, 2009 does your turk have k kale on the crest..this should be a small ring barrel thread..what state are you in ? do you have a c and r ffl.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffturk Posted December 24, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 24, 2009 the crest reads. T-C AS FA ANK KARA K. KALE 1944 I LIVE IN PA AND DO NOT HAVE A LICENSE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tinkerfive Posted December 24, 2009 Report Share Posted December 24, 2009 the crest reads. T-C AS FA ANK KARA K. KALE 1944 I LIVE IN PA AND DO NOT HAVE A LICENSE. What part? There are about half a dozen of us within 1.5hrs of Pittsburgh Including yours truly Tinker Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffturk Posted December 25, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 25, 2009 oh duh. sorry. i live in east norrtion. its about 30 mins outside of philly and around the same from quakertown. btw what are these reamers and gauges i am seeing all about. what are they? how do i use them? where do i get them? if i put on a 6.5x55 barrel what kind do i get? a new one? or an old one? i do not mind spending some $$. i want to use this for deer hunting. not scared of the 8mm recoil but want something that looks cool and dependable. if that makes sense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sonic1 Posted December 25, 2009 Report Share Posted December 25, 2009 about the reamers and gauges...this is just a short explain and not meant to be the total answer..the round needs to fit the chamber with out being to tight OR to loose..this is what the gauges are for.. to get there they need to be cut to certain depth..this what the reamers are for...if it to loose you need to cut the threaded end down ..and recut the chamber..you will see barrels sold as being short chambered ...this is sold so all you need is a reamer an gauge to install. http://www.sporterexpress.com/High-Value-Mauser-98-Rifle-Barrel-6.5-x-55-Swedish?manufacturers_id Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sonic1 Posted December 25, 2009 Report Share Posted December 25, 2009 about the reamers and gauges...this is just a short explain and not meant to be the total answer..the round needs to fit the chamber with out being to tight OR to loose..this is what the gauges are for.. to get there they need to be cut to certain depth..this what the reamers are for...if it to loose you need to cut the threaded end down ..and recut the chamber..you will see barrels sold as being short chambered ...this is sold so all you need is a reamer an gauge to install.. this link for gauge info...http://www.surplusrifle.com/shooting/headspace/index.asp yours is a series 2 try this link for barrel http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct/?productNumber=468773 http://www.hoosiergunworks.com/catalog/mauser_reference.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffturk Posted December 26, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 26, 2009 my head is really spinning now. so much info in short time. awesome!!! i am digging this more and more every time i look on here. do you think the fact that the barrel is cut down so short that it has an effect on the accuracy? i am gonna clean the hell out of this in and out. then i will get some gauges and all that stuff. i am liking the swedish barrel but need to do all the gauge and head space things to that too. right? i will try this one first then if all fails go to the 6.5x55. btw what does in the white mean? bare steel? does it need to be blued? can you powder coat it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ken98k Posted December 26, 2009 Report Share Posted December 26, 2009 my head is really spinning now. so much info in short time. awesome!!! i am digging this more and more every time i look on here. I suggest this book for a first timer. Along with the vast amount of info available here, it will help make your first gun building experience a little less overwhelming. http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct/?productNumber=690411 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
724wd Posted December 26, 2009 Report Share Posted December 26, 2009 btw what does in the white mean? bare steel? does it need to be blued? can you powder coat it? yeah, in the white means bare steel. i would suggest bluing or gunkote style finishing over powder coat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doble Troble Posted December 27, 2009 Report Share Posted December 27, 2009 Sonic1, that was an excellent introduction to the concept of headspace. Jeffturk, you can make a rifle equal in accuracy to those 30-40s you have. If you stick with the 8 mm it can have more oomph too (but only if you reload, the American commercial stuff is weak). It may take a little work, or a lot of work - there's no telling at this stage. But when you get done making an accurate rifle out of an old war horse, how cool will it be to take a deer with it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffturk Posted December 29, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 29, 2009 Brilliant! you guys are brilliant with this stuff. i have some work ahead of me. does Cabela's sell those tools or do i need to get them from where you told me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brenden Posted December 29, 2009 Report Share Posted December 29, 2009 Reamers, gauges, barrels, and such can be found at my two favorite places. Cabelas carries some stocks and ammo but thats about it. Midwayusa.com Brownells.com Good luck. Brenden Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffturk Posted January 1, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 1, 2010 i just ordered my head space gauges and a reamer. as soon as i get it i will be on here looking for more advice. thanks guys! still trying to figure out if my Turk is a small or large ring. how can you tell? i only ordered the "go" and "no-go" gauges. do i need the field gauge, also? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
724wd Posted January 1, 2010 Report Share Posted January 1, 2010 your turk is a large ring receiver with small ring threads. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffturk Posted January 1, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 1, 2010 that is kinda decieving.... so IF i was to buy a new barrel. i would order a .....?? large ring barrel. ? confused, again. lol if you look back on 2 of the replies i got about a 6.5x55 barrel,aren't they different. no? sorry if i am not understanding. would it not just be called a large ring barrel with "fine threads"? i was linked to these. http://www.sporterex...anufacturers_id http://www.midwayusa...ctNumber=468773 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffturk Posted January 1, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 1, 2010 so If i was to buy a new barrel i would buy a large ring barrel? the words are decieving. i got a reply the other day about barrels, and was linked to these. they sound similar to each other, but are they different? confused, again. LOL http://www.sporterex...anufacturers_id http://www.midwayusa...ctNumber=468773 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
724wd Posted January 1, 2010 Report Share Posted January 1, 2010 when buying a barrel, buy a small ring. when buying scope mounts, trigger guards, safety parts... buy large ring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gun nutty Posted January 1, 2010 Report Share Posted January 1, 2010 If your receiver is marked KKALE, then it should be a small shank barrel. Small and large ring diameter 98 receivers and small and large barrel shanks are mutually exclusive; i.e., you can have a large ring 98 receiver with a small or large shank barrel, and you can have a small ring 98 receiver with either a large or small barrel shank. The only typical large ring receiver with a small shank that I am aware of is the KKALE, but there may be more. The KKALE suitable barrels are 93-96 Mauser take-offs. All of the pre-98 actions were small shank (and small ring). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffturk Posted January 1, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 1, 2010 its kind of starting to make sense now. i broke down the whole gun tonight and it is soaking. after this is all cleaned up. is there any kind of lube or anti-seize that i should put it together with? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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