a strange Mauser Sporter - authentic ?? or not

[buckstix]

I actually had a chance to review the rifle in hand ... and many of the following observations come from Axel.

this is a real type A Mauser commercial rifle, built 1930 – 31 for retail by Manton, Calcutta. But it is NOT a Mauser, Oberndorf “Magnum” action. It is a 10.75x68 rifle on a standard length action.

It was altered which destroyed its collector value:

As you have commented, the receiver bridge was ground down, removing the clip guide, the receiver was drilled and tapped for a scope mount. The bolt is a new low bolt handle welded on, and a low profile Buehler safety was installed to clear a scope.

These mutilations destroy collector value, but it is still a rare model A Mauser in 10.75x68.
All 10.75x68 original Mauser, Oberndorf commercial rifles are rare. Most of them are of the B type. Only about 15% of the small number of these rifles are type A.

 

[RayAtkinson]

Its a standard 98 in a great caliber and a excellent rifle by a good gunsmith and the safety appears to be a Timney or Timney type..Under the circumstances of doubtful birth I rate it at an easy $2800 to $3000 based on guess and by gosh, but Ive seen a dozen of them pretty much the same..Id call it a true Mauser cobbled up to suit the gun nut owner and well done.

 

[pjaln]

if it were never altered it would easily be worth 5k usd , type A mausers are scarce

 

[buckstix]

The buyer has left negative feed-back for the seller about the transaction ... and Master Card reversed the charges for the buyer ... (for now) ... the recent negative feed-back from the buyer brought his rating down from A+ .... to A ..... he has 18 negatives ... and 4 negatives in the last 20 days this month ...

https://www.gunbroker.com/a/feedback/profile/4892790

""" GUN LISTED AS MAGNUM MAUSER- RECEIVED A STANDARD MAUSER- LISTING SAID +100% FOR MAGNUM- PAID $5,075 FOR A $2,000 GUN- REQUESTED TO RETURN- NO RESPONSE TO EMAILS, PHONE, OR TEXT- A FRAUD w 18 NEGATIVES """

 

[pjaln]

gun listed as a magnum mauser ??? but if you know it isn't then why buy it and complain later , someone lays out 5k for something they obviously know nothing about then get mad .I looked at the add ,the seller is without a doubt a rabid liar I looked at the gun for 10 seconds and know just what it is these guns are for the people who know them

 

[buckstix]

The buyer didn't know ... she bought it as a gift for her husband and went by the description. Only later was it found NOT to be a Magnum. Can't fault her for believing the seller.

 

[pjaln]

• 
  
  * A bid is a promise to pay! PERIOD​

• * Our descriptions are done with great care & to the best of our ability. This is our opinion..
  HOWEVER! YOU as the BUYER must come to your own conclusion!! We provide an exceptional amount of high quality photos to help you come formulate your own conclusion!! We will not be held liable if your opinion differs from ours....​

• *We do not take returns! We did for a while, but sadly have been burned to many times!​

can't be any more clear the guys sells himself as an expert but anyone here who knows guns knows he isn't ,,next time the buyer should ask for an opinion from someone who knows that being said the only big problem with the gun is the bolt handle being altered and the holes in the receiver that could be filled if needed , the stock looks good and original wood butt hasn't been shortened if the bore is good he should be happy and just shoot it . if it wasn't altered it would be a 6000-7000k gun all day

 

[pjaln]

thats too bad she did that but gun broker is no place for taking things for granted , I wouldn't want my wife to buy me colducts let alone a rifle

 

[buckstix]

Yes, she didn't know that you can't trust a seller on Gunbroker with an A+ rating. She didn't know to check the feedback to see that the seller had over 34 Negatives. She didn't now that when the seller says MAGNUM in 3 places, he may be lying. Even those that know guns, know that Mauser did make Model A Magnum action rifles, and that there is only a .31 inch difference in length that can't be seen in pictures. Too bad Gunbroker doesn't do a better job to police their sellers.

...... and FYI ... the bolt handle was NOT altered. The original was removed and a replacement was welded on, and the stock was altered to fit the replacement handle..... and .... the rear receiver bridge was ground down, removing the clip guide, and then tapped for a scope base ..... etc ... etc ...

I hope the lady gets her money back from the MC charge-back, and that Gunbroker polices its sellers.

 

[pjaln]

if she gets nowhere and has to keep it I would get EAW mounts on it and live with it ,,hopefully the bore is good

 

[buckstix]

The husband hasn't pushed the issue because after all it was a Valentine's Day Present and she meant well. But unfortunately she got taken by a crooked dealer. It will take months to sort this out. Lets just hope it gets settled and sent back to the dealer, so he can try to stick it to someone else.

 

[buckstix]

Well, the sellers account was suspended ..... but 4 hours later it was re-activated ..... must be that gunbroker kept their account active because of the thousands of dollars they make in commissions, even from a fraudulent seller with over 40 negatives ... eight of which are for being a "non-paying bidder." ... go figure.

 

[Ontario Hunter]

I recently bought a very fine stock from a fella who got a "great deal" on a magnum Mauser action that he was hoping to build into 404 but then changed his mind. Can't afford it right now. So he decided to sell the stock and hang onto the action (which came with no barrel). I took one look at it and told him it was NOT a magnum action. Confirmed it when he measured the action screw spread. "But it has a magnum bolt face." So does my standard 98 Mauser 404J. Someone started a magnum build project and gave up after opening the bolt face. Fortunately, the project was abandoned before tackling the feeding rails or modifying the magazine. Whoever started the project clearly did not know what he was doing. The bolt face MAY have been opened up too much for 404 (way too much for any other suitable magnum except 416 Rigby and that build would be pushing the envelope in standard action). A damn shame because this was also a very fine commercial Mauser in beautiful condition. But I benefited by acquiring the stock, highly figured black walnut with impeccable checkering, at a good price. Good as in fair price, not ripping him off. As it turns out the stock did not belong to the action anyway. His action has trigger block side safety and the stock is cut for bolt shroud safety. My rifle has Model 70 style safety so it should work for me.