1943 Spanish Short Mauser

[Aragorn243]

Found one of these for sale today. Not seriously considering it but it has my interest. Exterior of the rifle looks decent. Overall good finish. some small pieces of wood missing from the upper handguard where it thins toward the receiver. Price seems reasonable at $249, could probably get it lower. Biggest problem is the bore. It has very sharp lands and grooves, crisp rifling but it all appears to be covered in rust. Can't be heavy rust as everything is sharp but it still looks like rust. It also has two sling attachments, one pair on the side and one on the bottom with swivels. They look original. Date of manufacture is 1951 and it is in 8mm. Not the fixer upper challenge I generally go for as the exterior looks good as it is but the bore could be problematic. How can you tell when the damage is too much for it to be functional? Rifling reminded me of the Mosin Nagants I have, very crisp.

It's not a Cabela's rifle either so this one is cash out of pocket. I have a Spanish Mauser bayonet but unfortunately it will not fit this one without an adapter. So that excuse is out the window with the wife.

Information

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[Patrick Chadwick]

How can you tell when the damage is too much for it to be functional?

Simple: When the shooting is lousy!
If the rust in the barrel is superficial*, as might arise from a gun being put into storage totally dry, then it can probably be removed by clenaing, shooting, cleaning, shooting...
But a badly eroded throat will produce very poor accuracy and maybe tumbing bullets. Nothing you can do except use the longest feasible bullets set out as long as the case/magazine will permit.
A nicked crown can be freshened up with a crown cutter.
But a badly worn or bellmouthed muzzle will also produce very poor accuracy and maybe tumbing bullets, and is again something that you cannot improve much.

Over here, the Spanish-made Mausers are not in demand, and the price would be more like 150. It is not a type on which it is worth spending much money or effort.


Patrick

*"superficial" is, of course, a very subjective evaluation. Any rust will leave microscopic pitting.

[Aragorn243]

Thanks Patrick. The Spanish Mausers in general aren't in high demand here either. Usually they are of the earlier variety, 7mm or converted to NATO. That's partly why I'm not seriously interested in it. They are one of the few types that sell cheap at the local gun auction. I felt the price while not out of line is probably about $50-$75 higher than it could be.

And the questionable bore only lessens my interest.

But it is a surplus rifle, the bore could easily get the rifle reduced significantly in price and the price is within my somewhat limited means which is making me think about it. There is a gun show nearby this weekend so I may go to that to get my fix on something in better shape.

[Al Diehl]

I have one and, although it is not my go to shooter, it is a decent rifle. Attachment 29780

I would be hard pressed to spend $250 on one though.

Al

[vintage hunter]

I've yet to run across one worth having at any price. Condition wise they all seem to be a little past worn out. There must be some interest in them though, saw a stock set go for right at $200 on ebay the other day.

[Aragorn243]

I have one and, although it is not my go to shooter, it is a decent rifle. Attachment 29780

I would be hard pressed to spend $250 on one though.

Al

Looks like you have a turned down bolt on that. How hard was the bayonet adapter to come by?

[Centurion]

I have a similar Spanish Mauser with an airforce crest on it. I was told that it wasn't worth much, and I decided to refinish it. Some of the noncritical small parts didn't hot-caustic blue, nor did they take a nitre blue. It seems they were made out of some cheap ferrous alloy. Apart from the metalwork, the bore is corroded, I suspect from corrosive ammunition. All said, the gun looks nice and I'm sure saw lots of history. You have to see Norm Christie's TV doc on the Spanish Civil War to really appreciate the sentimental value these rifles have. I suspect that their value will increase over the years as this is appreciated and as other currently popular Mausers become scarcer!

[Lialos]

Look under the wood and make sure it's not rusted and pitted under the wood. I had one where everything visible above the woodline was pristine, but under the wood it was a bit of a dog. Still shot just fine though.