Project FN Mauser ersatz sniper has started
Posted: Wed Oct 12, 2016 7:22 pm
I have always said I would never buy a Mauser sniper rifle as the chances of finding an original are very slim and there are a lot of 'Snipers' being pushed out onto the market these days. Equally would never build anything that could be remotely misconstrued as a Mauser sniper rifle however I still had a hankering for one. Then one day I found an FN M1924/30 chambered in 8x57 and in reasonable condition however it has been scrubbed at some point and the receiver crest was long gone meaning I have no real idea what it is.
It sat in a cabinet for ages and then a couple of weeks ago I hauled it out, stripped and cleaned it and took it to the range and thoroughly enjoyed it. There were a couple of niggles though, the trigger is horrendous and the sights and my eyes did not get on particularly well.
Then I remembered a scruffy old 6x45 Pecar I had been given a while ago and it set me thinking, I managed to find a set of second hand PH/Mauser FN bases and rings at a sensible price so I decided to put everything together and build a rifle that never existed so it can never be mistaken for anything other than what it is. An M1930 with a Pecar nailed to it.
Tonight I fitted the rings, unfortunately the bases were designed for a receiver without a clip cut-out which meant the front underside of the base had to be machined, I stuck it in a 4 jaw using a short length of 28,0mm bar as a support and it worked remarkably well, so now the rear scope base fits over the raised rear section of the receiver. OK the receiver now has 4 drilled and tapped holes in it however that is not as bad as it could have been.
Next job is to find a trigger that has a pull of less than 25 lbs and bend the bolt to clear the underside of the 'scope. On the subject of the scope, it clears the rear ladder sight by enough to keep me happy.
I quite like the look of it so far
It sat in a cabinet for ages and then a couple of weeks ago I hauled it out, stripped and cleaned it and took it to the range and thoroughly enjoyed it. There were a couple of niggles though, the trigger is horrendous and the sights and my eyes did not get on particularly well.
Then I remembered a scruffy old 6x45 Pecar I had been given a while ago and it set me thinking, I managed to find a set of second hand PH/Mauser FN bases and rings at a sensible price so I decided to put everything together and build a rifle that never existed so it can never be mistaken for anything other than what it is. An M1930 with a Pecar nailed to it.
Tonight I fitted the rings, unfortunately the bases were designed for a receiver without a clip cut-out which meant the front underside of the base had to be machined, I stuck it in a 4 jaw using a short length of 28,0mm bar as a support and it worked remarkably well, so now the rear scope base fits over the raised rear section of the receiver. OK the receiver now has 4 drilled and tapped holes in it however that is not as bad as it could have been.
Next job is to find a trigger that has a pull of less than 25 lbs and bend the bolt to clear the underside of the 'scope. On the subject of the scope, it clears the rear ladder sight by enough to keep me happy.
I quite like the look of it so far