Spanish 1916 Mauser 7x57

[Dr.Hess]

Coming back from the PRC (Peoples' Republic of California) last Thanksgiving, we stopped in at JG Sales in Prescott, AZ.  they had been running an ad for "gunsmith specials" Spanish Mausers.  OK, I bit.  On Az's advice, I asked to see 3 and picked the best of the 3.  $130 plus tax.  Same as a case of 9mm on Black Friday sale.

If you can think of everything that can go wrong with a Mauser, this one had it.  It was more of a collection of rusted, busted parts than a rifle.  Whatever.  I needed a boom stick project.

I didn't take any Before pics.  It looked really bad.  The stock looked more like a golf ball than a stock.  Everything else was so filthy that after handling it in the store, both the sales guy and me needed to find some way to get the crap off our hands.  Stock forend broken from an over zealous bayoneting, hand guard cracked in 2 places (no idea how it was still together), sight slider frozen in the unlocked position, stock cracked behind the tang. 

On the plus side, the bolt doesn't match but is actually in pretty good condition.  It was even clean inside.  The receiver, all bottom metal and stock all match.  There is a crest on the bridge.

I took some time off at Christmas, so I spent a lot of it in the shop playing with this.  Here are some finished photos:

 

[Dr.Hess]

The last pic above is my helper in this project, Bubba. He's always like "Just use the pipe wrench.  And give me a cookie."

I started out cleaning every everything.  The metal got cleaned with some generic Hoppes #9 like product.  Not sure the brand, but it came with some cleaning kits I inherited and smells about the same as #9.  Tooth brush, brass brush, my favorite cleaning tool (the pick thing from an AK/SKS cleaning kit), screwdriver, rags, etc.  got all the funk off the metal.  The wood was super saturated with black linseed oil.  Teh Intr4W3bz, y0, said that lacquer thinner was good for removing that.  I tried it.  It worked OK.  I found that a better job was done with Walmart's private label (Supertech) spray on brake cleaner.  Once I had most of that off, then I got after the stock with a wet part of a wash cloth and a clothes iron set on high.  I steamed out the majority of the dents that way.  It looks less like a golf ball now.

To fix the cracks in the hand guard, the forward part was cracked through.  I sort of spread it very slightly and worked some Gorilla Glue into the crack, after putting some water in there.  I "clamped" it with surgical tubing.  That's the latest thing for gun work.  I had some lying around from buying a roll of the wrong size for my slingshot.  The next day, I cleaned up as much of the excess as I could with knives and a metal file.  There was a small amount of yellow showing in the crack.  I dabbed it with a black Sharpie.  Looks pretty OK now.  The back crack got some Devcon Plastic Steel Putty 10110, which is sort of like JB Weld on steroids.  It's the latest thing in gun stock bedding/repairs.  Tech Tip:  The Devcon is grey in color.  Mix in some carbon to color it.  I used the soot from my used oil burning shop heater.  Worked great. 

And speaking of coloring your bedding compound/glue, I was watching a youtoobes gunsmith that actually looked to be a professional demonstrate an extensive stock repair.  He said that if a customer had brought him the stock, he would have told him it wasn't worth the trouble, but as a demonstration for youtoobes, he did it.  He made the point that wood grain is not brown, but black, and he glued everything together with Brownell's bedding compound dyed black. 

Anyway, the Devcon is a putty, not real viscous like regular epoxies.  More of a peanut butter consistency.  Great for putting somewhere and it not running and dripping all over everything.  Just squishes out and says there.

 

 

[Dr.Hess]

The back crack in the hand guard was not all the way through the wood.  Just in the top part, on the right side of the groove you look down, cracked along the grain, with a gap at the top but not all the way through.  Almost like a gouge, but a crack, open maybe 1-2mm at the top.  For that one, I found some penetrating super glue.  Brownell's sells something like it, so I've read, but I couldn't find it on their web site.  I gave up and figured they must buy it private label from someone.  Digging around, I figured it was the Titebond Instant Bond Wood Adhesive, Thin Viscosity.  I tried Lowes, Walmart, and the actual local hardware store.  No good.  So I broke down and bought it on amazon.  I put some of it in the crack, let it dry some (takes like 5 seconds), then the next time I had some Devcon mixed up, I worked it into the crack and let it dry.  When dry, I took some files to it and smoothed it out to match the rest of the wood.  Here's a pic of it finished.

 

 

[Dr.Hess]

The forend was a mess.  I think one of the previous owners of this rifle had to be Ernest Hemingway.  Who else could brake a forend while bayoneting with such passion?  Shoot a barrel until the wood is smoldering?  Yup, had to be Hemmingway's. 

The crack was somewhat spiral, ending at the front band spring base.  The wood was also rotted at the spring base.  It went through to the channel for the cleaning rod.  I mixed up some Devcon.  This was my first Devcon patch and I didn't add any coloring.  You can see it is lighter than the stuff with my soot added.  It is a battle rifle that has obviously seen much use.  I'm not trying to make it a perfect new looking rifle, just something that goes bang.

To keep the Devcon out of the cleaning rod channel, I used a turned down Bic pen for the front part part behind the spring and a drinking straw for the part in front that goes through the steel end cap.  I coated both with my new favorite release agent, wait for it...  Kiwi Natural Shoe Polish.  Man that stuff is great.  I worked the Devcon into the crack, clamped it back into about the right shape and let it dry.  After it dried, I cleaned up the channel with a long 1/4" drill bit and shaped the outside with a file. To fix the rotted wood around the spring, I made a metal block the same shape as the spring part that goes into the wood.  I didn't want to use the spring, as with all the rust pits, it stood a chance of becoming permanent. Then after cleaning up the wood, filled the holes with Devcon.  The block was coated with shoe polish.  It came right out with a gentle tap.

[ken98k]

Nice little rifle. 

[Dr.Hess]

Thanks, Ken.  It's not there yet, but I think it has potential. 

After steaming out as much of the dings as I could, there were some cuts that you can't steam out and really deep dings. Without going overboard on it, I filled them with Devcon and filed them down to shape.  "I saw on the internet, it must be true" that they never used sand paper "back in the day."  Just rasps, files, etc. 

The rear sight slider I managed to work free with a dousing in my ultimate penetrating oil, 50% ATF and 50% acetone.  It works now, but I suspect the "button" part is bent a little.  I'm not taking it apart or beating on it.  It locks in place.  Adds character.

The ejector wouldn't.  A thorough cleaning fixed that up.

The recoil wood (no cross bolt on these) was a bit iffy.  I'm sure it was loose enough to cause the damage at the tang.  I removed about an 8th inch of wood and anything that looked rotted.  Filled it with Devcon, some modeling clay and plumber's putty (another yootoobe tech tip:  Plumber's putty works great to fill in divots and stop the bedding compound from going where you don't want it to.)  Lots of shoe polish and a quick blast of silicone spray on the metal.  I wrapped the action/stock together with multiple wraps of surgical tubing and let it sit overnight. It is bedded nicely now. 

For the 2 small cracks at the tang, going back from each corner, I dug out all the rotted wood, drilled a hole going along each crack down into the stock, cut a piece of 1/8" welding rod, ground some divots in the side of the welding rod, ground some divots in the wood for "mechanical grip," put the Devcon in the holes, rammed the rods in the holes, filled the back tang area with Devcon and after shoe polish, modeling clay,  plumber's putty, and a bit of silicone spray, fit the action back in, tightened the screws and wrapped with tubing.  When taking it out, I first cut/ground/chipped away at any Devcon that squished up and would prevent the tang from coming straight up and free.  Then I got it out of there and cleaned it all up with files, mostly.  I also worked some Devcon into the cracks.  There was almost a tongue of wood loose from the two cracks.  It's together and stable now. 

A previous owner put this cross in the stock.  The circles perfectly fit the size of a fired 7mm casing.  You can also see the faint Spanish stock cartouche.

 

[Dr.Hess]

Here's the recoil lug area:

 

[AzRednek]

Doc you certainly have patience. The last few Turks I did soaked entire rifle overnight in gasoline. Took a few days before I could drag it in the house without the gas stench but they came out clean of grease. Never thought about plumbers putty. I alaways used modeling clay except a few I did way-way back in the 70's with flour and water paste to keep the bedding compound or epoxy out of where I didn't want it to go. The flour paste dries hard but scrapes out and crumbles with little effort. I've had good luck using Kiwi wood hardener in soft recoil lug area. Soaks into cracks and loose wood, dries to a super hard varnish like finish. 

I've seen that cross before. Can't remember for sure which rifle it was as it was years ago. I do remember sanding it out before figuring out the religious meaning. Should have left it alone. Adds some historical perspective, like a message left from a soldier saying his prayers after combat. Almost reminiscent of WW 1 so called trench art. I'm down to one Spanish military rifle now, had several over the years. I currently have a virginal 50's Oviedo M98 in 8MM. Barrel is dark but it's good for minute of Deer at 100 yards with Turk ammo. 

[Dr.Hess]

Back in the day, I bought a couple SKS'.  One I degreased in an automotive parts cleaner at the Harley shop.  Whatever the big brand name that comes around and loans you a cleaner and sells solvent.  It worked great.  Broke it down and just ran over the whole thing with the liquid flowing through the brush, wood and all.  Didn't smell bad when done either.  The other one I did in #2 Diesel.  It worked surprisingly well and didn't stink too long.  Don't think I'd go gasoline.  That's a tad dangerous and stinky. 

Az, I remember you mentioning  that every 7mm Spanish mauser you ran across had a shot out barrel, and it was likely the chamber throat.  I knew going into this that there was a 99% chance the barrel was toast.  There is rifling in it.  Well, kinda, I guess.  Looks like rifling.  I dug out some 7mm cast with gas checks I had laying around and tried them.  Not good.  I loaded up some 7mm cast, powder coated and unsized.  Diameter was approaching .290, so plenty big for a shot out bore.  Loaded them long.  One was a 162-ish grain, the other a 130 grain.  Best I could get is 12" groups at 30 feet with keyholes.  Which, incidentally is significantly better than my last Spanish Mauser which did 24" groups at 20 feet with keyholes.

[Dr.Hess]

Some internet shopping turned up a 7x57 small ring barrel at GPC.  I ordered it.  It was the only small ring 7x57 military barrel I could find.  Even called my last resort, SARCO.  Anyway, what arrived was a Spanish 1916 first pattern barrel with no sights.  This rifle is a second pattern, and takes a different rear sight.  That's a problem.  The new barrel actually looks pretty good.  Not rusted to crap like the old one.  Rifling looks OK.  Dunno about the chamber. 

So, another internet search for a rear sight for the new barrel.  Found some, but they were $40 shipped.  Looked back at GPC and, well, now they listed a Spanish 1916 2nd pattern barrel with sights for $41 plus shipping.  Oh well.  Bought that one and it's on the way.  Guess I have a spare barrel with no sights.

I took the old barrel off the action.  It was on pretty tight.  I hit it first with PB  Blaster, then the acetone/ATF mix, and I had to use the 1/2" impact gun on the hold down nuts on my barrel vice to keep the barrel from turning when I twisted the action with my action wrench and cheater bar.  But it broke loose.  The threads in the receiver look good, too.

I have a 7mm finish reamer and go gauge.  I ordered no-go and field gauges.  I am going to put the 2nd pattern new barrel on the action and if it doesn't close on the field gauge, give it a try.  If it does, I'll put the 1st pattern on and try it.  And if that one does, then it's Plan C.

[Dr.Hess]

So here's Plan C.  The Spanish, having shot out the barrels on these things, redid them as a 308/7.62x51.  Now, the internet is full of "you'll be killed" predictions on using regular ammo in them, but very lack on "see this barrel that blew up..."  I won't get into that.  No one really knows, but what they seem to have done is take the 7mm barrels off, drill them out to .300, then rifle them.  On the chamber side, 308 and 7x57 don't mix.  7x57 is longer and 308 is fatter, so you can't, for example, convert a 7x57 to 7mm08 by just chambering it.  a 7mm08 being a 308 necked down to 7mm. If you look close at one of these converted rifles, they have the shoulder turned back on them.  This would be necessary to rechamber for the fatter, shorter 308 round.  It looks to me like they took off one complete turn of the threads.  The threads are 12TPI, so that's .083".  So I was looking at the junk barrel I took off, looking at my lathe, a 6" Atlas Clausing, and I thought "I wonder if this thing will actually fit on the lathe."  So I gave it a try.  It BARELY fit, with the live center in the tail stock and half the tail stock hanging off the bed.  I turned the shoulder back 83 thou's, and got as close to the live center as I could while taking 83 thou's off the face.  I took it out of the lathe and finished cutting it with a file.  Plan C is to put it back on and rechamber it.  Here's some pics:

 

[Dr.Hess]

Plan C it is.  I have 2 "new" used GPC barrels here.  The one with the early style site, which doesn't have a mark or pit on the outside, and the one with the later style site that is almost as pitted up as the original.  I took the later style one and put it on the receiver.  I bought a NoGo and a Field headspace gauge, because, well, I seem to have fixed on 7x57.  The pitted one closed on the NoGo, but not on the Field.  I took it off, removed the site parts that came off, heated up the site base with my torch and twisted it to where it would be in the right position when on the barrel, having made note of it when it was on the receiver.  Then I put it back on, put it in the stock, loaded up some 130GR powder coated on top of 35.1GR Varget and put 10 rounds through it, no sights, at 25 ft.  I started getting keyholes.  Off that one came.  Next came the barrel that looked great externally.  Internally, well, they all seem to have SOME rifling.  I put it on the action and stuck the Field gauge in.  It closed like the chamber was empty.  OK, that one ain't gonna work.  I called it a day and weekend.  So it's Plan C.  First I'll put some DyeChem on the bolt locking lugs and see how much engagement I have.  Then I'll improve that with some fine valve grinding compound per the method I read in SGN (now FN), which is to press back on the bolt face with your thumb as you work the handle up and down.  Stop, clean everything, check engagement with DyeChem, repeat until it has good engagement.  After that I'll put the original barrel back on and get after it with my finish reamer.

[ken98k]

As I understand it, the 308 cetme was loaded to much lower pressure than the modern 308. The danger is the in the event of a ruptured case and the mauser 93's lack of gas handling capabilities.

All things considered, if the rifle is in good condition and properly headspaced I don't see a problem shoot 308's.

[Dr.Hess]

There's lots of folklore on the CETME round.  Bottom line is that the 7mm Mauser pressures are give or take, about the same as a 308/7.62x51.  The Spanish small ring Mausers have almost all been modified or originally made with a gas vent hole in the left of the receiver and the left side of the bolt to manage a case/primer rupture.  This one has it.  You can see it in the first pic as a dimple on the front ring.  The 1903 did not have any gas management stuff, being based on the small ring Mauser.  No one ever says you be killed if you shoot one of those.  Even if some of them do tend to blow up in your face.

I thought about getting a small ring 308 barrel and using that, but I actually don't have a 308 anything.  30-06 is as close as I get.

[ken98k]

308 winchester,  62,000 psi

7x57 Mauser,  51,000 psi

7.62x51 cetme, The original cetme round was a reduced power load that fired a light 113grn plastic-cored bullet. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7.62×51mm_CETME

[Dr.Hess]

Yeah, but 51K to 62K is not that much different.  When they proofed the barrels originally, they went way over 51K.  I think they proofed them at 100K.  The receivers can certainly handle it.  And that 113gr CETME wasn't used very long.  The Spanish converted small ring and large ring Mausers from 7 and 8 to 7.62x51.  The Turks converted small ring 7.65x53 to 8x57 and ran super hot machine gun ammo.  Anyway, lots of people shoot full power ammo in small ring Spanish Mausers.  I'm not worried about it, even though I'm sticking with 7x57. 

Wikipedia is about as accurate, reliable and truthful as CNN.  Personally, I never use it for anything more than a starting point.

[Dr.Hess]

I think I read that they were proofed at 100K CUP, not PSI. 

[ken98k]

Okay, don't come crying to me when this thing blows up!  

Just kidding, I don't see anything wrong with what your doing.

[Dr.Hess]

Screwed the receiver onto my shortened barrel.  Of course, of the 3 barrels I have now, well, 4 if I could find the other one from a few years ago, this one is a biatch to screw in.  Like:  turn it 1/3rd turn, loosen barrel vice, twist barrel 1/3rd turn, tighten vice, turn 1/3rd turn, etc.  I only have about a third turn to work with.  Anyway, takes time.  Got it on, put the bolt in, wouldn't close.  Crap.  Must have made the sticky-outy part too long.  Off it comes, 1/3rd turn at a time.  Yup, about 5 thousandths too long, compared to my original measurements of this barrel and measuring the other 2.  Should be 0.630 from the shoulder to the face at the chamber.  Back to the lathe and that was a wrap for the day.

I broke down and bought the Mauser rifle shop manual.  Should be here in a couple days.  Who knew they had something like that?  I have a factory shop manual on my bikes and all my cars.  Speaking of which, Ken, you do have a factory shop manual for your bike, right?

[ken98k]

13 hours ago, Dr.Hess said:

Speaking of which, Ken, you do have a factory shop manual for your bike, right?

Yup!

[Dr.Hess]

Good.  That's important for any vehicle and especially a Harley.  There are a lot of things that aren't real intuitive if you just look at them.  Not complicated or hard, just things you need to know when you dig into them.

 

So, tonight, I turned .005" off the face of the barrel and reinstalled it on the receiver.  Bolt dropped right in.  That was an hour, so I knocked off for the night.  Next up is doing the chamber.  I figger I have about .075" to go.  I turned off .083" and it was shot.  I took it off and turned it before I had my no-go and field gauges, but given the propensity to split necks with relatively low powered loads, I'm going with "it was a tad long."