Help with Spanish 1916 mauser bolt

[bk117]

Hi guys, new to mausers, looking for some help, my son came home from a gun show with a really worn out Spanish 1916 mauser. The rifle needs to be completely redone, so it's a great project gun for him to learn on. My concern at the moment is the bolt. The safety was inopt when he brought it home, after disassembly,and cleaning, we reassembled the bolt with the same issues, when installed in the action and cocked, the rear cocking cover is not being pushed back far enough to allow the safety lever to move. It appears to be about a1/4 inch short. I suspect the parts are incorrect, but visually they appear correct. Any info will be appreciated .
Thanks in advance

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[Patrick Chadwick]

A non-functioning safety lever on a Mauser action is an A1 danger signal.

This sounds like Bubba, who may have
1) fudged together bits from different types of Mauser actions. Like, for instance, installing a striker with incorrect length.
2) FUBARed the sear/cocking piece/bolt sleeve interaction in a misguided attempt to lighten the trigger pull.

In both cases, the rifle is in a possibly dangerous state, and the cure could be expensive.

Whatever you do,
DO NOT TRY TO FIRE IT.

The FIRST thing required for diagnosis in such a case is PHOTOS of all the bits!

[bk117]

thanks for the reply

[bk117]

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[bk117]

sorry patrick had problems with the upload, hope the pics help, i'm at a loss for what bubba did, and may need to try to find or borrow a complete bolt.

[HOOKED ON HISTORY]

Caliber 7MM? Samco has the 7.62 x 51 conversions for $169.95.
Numrich has barrels & bayonets only.

[Patrick Chadwick]

Thanks for the photos. As you pointed out, the bits look plausible enough. From here I can only guess, and my guess is that the bolt assembly is a mixture of odd components.

Only a hands-on examination will clear up this one. To which end, borrowing a known correct bolt and comparing the parts is an excellent idea. If you are lucky, there is just one "dud" component that can be replaced at an acceptable cost.

[bk117]

Thanks for the photos. As you pointed out, the bits look plausible enough. From here I can only guess, and my guess is that the bolt assembly is a mixture of odd components.

Only a hands-on examination will clear up this one. To which end, borrowing a known correct bolt and comparing the parts is an excellent idea. If you are lucky, there is just one "dud" component that can be replaced at an acceptable cost.

Thanks for the help, I think we'll try some gun shows, and maybe compare bolts and cocking pieces, mean while my son can blast all the metal parts and clean and refinish the wood, since it has no value. I.m a retired machinist, so I'm leaning towards the cocking piece being the culprit. Thanks again.

[Al Diehl]

I had a Kar98 that was the same way and it turned out, as near as I could tell, that someone had over buffed the cocking piece where it engaged the sear thereby shortening it ever so slightly. (the whole gun had been over buffed before it was re-blued)
I dug through my box of Mauser parts and found a CZ cocking piece in good shape. It fixed the problem. So, the cocking piece is the first place I would look on this Mauser too.

Al

[Patrick Chadwick]

that someone had over buffed the cocking piece where it engaged the sear thereby shortening it ever so slightly. (the whole gun had been over buffed before it was re-blued)

Again, the result of Bubbaring about...
...

2) FUBARed the sear/cocking piece/bolt sleeve interaction in a misguided attempt to lighten the trigger pull.

Fudging the sear/cocking piece ledge is a "sure-fire" way to produce a dangerous rifle, with effects such as slam-fire or safety-off fire. Whether accidentally (by buffing everything) or deliberately (trying to lighten the trigger pull, my basic advice is DO NOT FIDDLE WITH THIS UNLESS YOU ARE SUCH AN EXPERT THAT YOU DON'T NEED TO ASK QUESTIONS ON THIS FORUM. And if you DO fiddle with it, then you are all alone with the responsibility for the results.

I hope this heavy, but necessary hint, makes it clear that you should also NEVER shot/sand/bead blast/buff/file the sear edge/cocking piece ledge surfaces.