.35 Whelen conversion/rebore/rechamber

[WebleyGreene455]

Hi y'all. Just a quick question. I'm looking at a Mauser rifle that used to be 8mm and got converted to .35 Whelen and I'm wondering if there's a way to re-convert it to 9.3x62. I don't think so, 'cause the Whelen is a bit longer overall and the bullet diameter is only .2mm larger on the 9.3 (so the only solution I can think of is a chamber/bore sleeve inserted into the entire barrel), but just thought I'd ask.

And for those wondering why not just keep it in .35, it's 'cause while I do want a .35 Whelen I'd rather it be built on a Springfield or M1917 action to keep it American and have a Mauser in a German calibre. Just personal liking, and finding a 9.3 Mauser that fits my criteria is proving quite difficult. It's looking like I may need to either convert an existing rifle or go back to my original plan of building from the ground up to get what I'm after (and both of those have their own problems, especially the latter).

~~W.G.455

 

[mdwest]

Rebarreling a 98 mauser isn’t difficult or expensive to do.

If you’re on a budget companies like ER Shaw produce good quality barrels and will mount them for you relatively inexpensively...

Or if you’re trying to build something really nice, you’ve got options like Shilen, Douglas, Hart, etc that will all happily make you a 9.3 barrel, chamber it, and mount it for you...

If you want to get adventurous, rebarreling as a DIY isn’t hard.. you just need a vise, a set of barrel blocks, and an action wrench (I can loan you an action wrench and barrel blocks).. you buy a short chambered barrel... wrench off the old barrel.. wrench on the new one... rent the proper finishing reamer for you chamber.. finish ream.. and you’re done...

 

[WebleyGreene455]

Rebarreling a 98 mauser isn’t difficult or expensive to do.

If you’re on a budget companies like ER Shaw produce good quality barrels and will mount them for you relatively inexpensively...

Or if you’re trying to build something really nice, you’ve got options like Shilen, Douglas, Hart, etc that will all happily make you a 9.3 barrel, chamber it, and mount it for you...

If you want to get adventurous, rebarreling as a DIY isn’t hard.. you just need a vise, a set of barrel blocks, and an action wrench (I can loan you an action wrench and barrel blocks).. you buy a short chambered barrel... wrench off the old barrel.. wrench on the new one... rent the proper finishing reamer for you chamber.. finish ream.. and you’re done...

Rebarreling isn't particularly difficult, no, but in most cases I'd want to keep the original barrel simply because it's, well, original. I know that doesn't necessarily mean much with a rechamber but I'd want to keep the German manufacturer's markings and such so the rifle looks the same as when it was first made. That's why I'd prefer to just rebore it if I had to. Either way I'd be decreasing value but I'd retain the aesthetic I enjoy. I know that converting an 8mm barrel to 9.3x62 is doable without much difficulty and that's an option if I must, but if I couldn't find a rifle with a scope mount I'd be hesitant to add one too. Part of me believes doing that to a vintage rifle is utter heresy.

If I did build, I'd go with a Lothar-Walther barrel since they make an octagonal one that would be excellent unless I decided to go looking for a good half-octagonal one, but I've not found any that have the octagonal-to-round-with-full-length-rib profile of the classic Mausers. The other issue with building, as I've described elsewhere on here, is getting ahold of a proper old-fashioned paneled stock (at least from a reputable maker; I've found some folks in California who do them as standard but can't seem to learn much about them).

But I guess my question still stands. If I want to keep the original barrel, is there a way to rechamber/rebore it? Or am I better off looking for something else?

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

Rebarreling isn't particularly difficult, no, but in most cases I'd want to keep the original barrel simply because it's, well, original. I know that doesn't necessarily mean much with a rechamber but I'd want to keep the German manufacturer's markings and such so the rifle looks the same as when it was first made. That's why I'd prefer to just rebore it if I had to. Either way I'd be decreasing value but I'd retain the aesthetic I enjoy. I know that converting an 8mm barrel to 9.3x62 is doable without much difficulty and that's an option if I must, but if I couldn't find a rifle with a scope mount I'd be hesitant to add one too. Part of me believes doing that to a vintage rifle is utter heresy.

If I did build, I'd go with a Lothar-Walther barrel since they make an octagonal one that would be excellent unless I decided to go looking for a good half-octagonal one, but I've not found any that have the octagonal-to-round-with-full-length-rib profile of the classic Mausers. The other issue with building, as I've described elsewhere on here, is getting ahold of a proper old-fashioned paneled stock (at least from a reputable maker; I've found some folks in California who do them as standard but can't seem to learn much about them).

But I guess my question still stands. If I want to keep the original barrel, is there a way to rechamber/rebore it? Or am I better off looking for something else?

Webley Greene
Look for something else.

 

[WebleyGreene455]

Webley Greene
Look for something else.

Yeah I figured as much. Thanks Bob.

Out of curiosity, is making a modification to a vintage rifle like reboring it to give it some new life when its bore's worn down or professionally adding a period-correct scope mount considered heretical/blasphemous by most? Or is it a "If you're gonna do it right and love the end product then don't worry about it" kinda sentiment, or does it just depend on the rifle? I've always been a little on the fence and curious about that sorta thing. For example, I have a Russian-refurbed Kar98k in my collection I want to turn into a lookalike sniper rifle for reenacting, so I wouldn't have to use a valuable original, but I wouldn't want to take a markings-intact Kar98k and do the same thing to it because the refurbed one doesn't have that same historic value.

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

Yeah I figured as much. Thanks Bob.

Out of curiosity, is making a modification to a vintage rifle like reboring it to give it some new life when its bore's worn down or professionally adding a period-correct scope mount considered heretical/blasphemous by most? Or is it a "If you're gonna do it right and love the end product then don't worry about it" kinda sentiment, or does it just depend on the rifle? I've always been a little on the fence and curious about that sorta thing. For example, I have a Russian-refurbed Kar98k in my collection I want to turn into a lookalike sniper rifle for reenacting, so I wouldn't have to use a valuable original, but I wouldn't want to take a markings-intact Kar98k and do the same thing to it because the refurbed one doesn't have that same historic value.

Webley Green
As long as the rifle is kept as original as possible I see no harm. I have seen a beautiful Lee speed rifle with an original Rigby barrel rehired to .375 express and it was gorgeous. It actually added to the value.
It also depends on the rifle. You wouldn't butcher a pristine Vz34 but on that's already been modified yes.
Cheers mate Bob

 

[bruce moulds]

reboring a barrel requires certain considerations.
the main one is that all the rifling must be removed enough to make a smooth bore, which is then rifled.
taking a 30/06 and going to 33 or 35 is not an issie, the bore diameter of 33 or 35 is bigger than the 308 groove diameter of a 30/06.
some 30/06 military barrels went as big as 310 groove diameter, but there is still a safety margin there.
not sure of the bore diameter of 9.3 mm, but given that rifling might be a min of 0.004", a 366 groove diameter would have that less 0.008 bore diameter, which is 358.
probably too close for comfort.
going to 375/06 would be safe.
a 9.3 x62 chambered barrel that is marked 35 whelen could also present a safety issue down the track, and this is an important issue to consider as well.
bruce.

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

reboring a barrel requires certain considerations.
the main one is that all the rifling must be removed enough to make a smooth bore, which is then rifled.
taking a 30/06 and going to 33 or 35 is not an issie, the bore diameter of 33 or 35 is bigger than the 308 groove diameter of a 30/06.
some 30/06 military barrels went as big as 310 groove diameter, but there is still a safety margin there.
not sure of the bore diameter of 9.3 mm, but given that rifling might be a min of 0.004", a 366 groove diameter would have that less 0.008 bore diameter, which is 358.
probably too close for comfort.
going to 375/06 would be safe.
a 9.3 x62 chambered barrel that is marked 35 whelen could also present a safety issue down the track, and this is an important issue to consider as well.
bruce.

Bruce
Maybe even the 375 Whelen AI. just the 35 Whelen AI necked up with a better shoulder for headspace. Or if room allows the 400 Whelen AI.
BOB

 

[WebleyGreene455]

reboring a barrel requires certain considerations.
the main one is that all the rifling must be removed enough to make a smooth bore, which is then rifled.
taking a 30/06 and going to 33 or 35 is not an issie, the bore diameter of 33 or 35 is bigger than the 308 groove diameter of a 30/06.
some 30/06 military barrels went as big as 310 groove diameter, but there is still a safety margin there.
not sure of the bore diameter of 9.3 mm, but given that rifling might be a min of 0.004", a 366 groove diameter would have that less 0.008 bore diameter, which is 358.
probably too close for comfort.
going to 375/06 would be safe.
a 9.3 x62 chambered barrel that is marked 35 whelen could also present a safety issue down the track, and this is an important issue to consider as well.
bruce.

I'd have it remarked to 9.3, of course, but either way, I don't think I'm going to go that route. Rechambering it would be difficult at best considering the differences in sizes, and ultimately the rifle I was looking at just doesn't fit my aesthetic interests after all. So I'll be continuing the search.