My Gewehr 98

[Ovidio]

Tomorrow I’ll take my Gew. 98 to the range, again. After a long time.
Today I finally decided to change the front sight and got a tall one installed.
Made my maths and adjusted the rear sight to 800 meters, so I should be right on at 100, whereas with the original sight it shot 12 inches high at the same distance.
I really like this rifle.
It has been heavily used, but still shoots great, has a good bore and now, with a tall front sight, might even be usable again.
It is not matching, the bolt is a bit of a mix, but great rifle, still.
If 100 is ok, I’ll immediately swap to 200, just for the fun of it.
Back-up rifle will be my SMLE.
I bet it will be fun...Attachment 92808Attachment 92810Attachment 92809Attachment 92811Attachment 92812

[Ovidio]

Small mistake. It shot 24 inches high at 100 meters. 60 cm roughly.

[Eaglelord17]

With my Gewehr 98 I have to aim about a foot and a half below the target at 100m, the good news is it is dead on windage wise. I was shooting clays with it at 100m destroying them quicker with irons than my buddy was with his fancy SL8 with a modern scope.

I really wonder what the Germans were thinking when they decided to only have a 400m zero, they had a 200m when they had the earlier Patrone 88 but 400m is excessive, even for the era.

[Ovidio]

They changed the bullet, keeping the sights, if I’m not wrong. Just changed the numbers on the rear sight.
Today, with the 10 mm front sight and 700 m on the rear, depending on the load, I was fairly on.
2-3 inches high keeping a 6’o clock hold.
Very nice.
Now that I have found his “food”, I’ll start getting it really perfectly on spot.
Windage ok.

[browningautorifle]

Nice looking rifle, wish I'd grabbed one when they were still around. Who knew they'd become invisible and unobtainium...?

[Ovidio]

I admit that I literally jumped on it when I saw it.
No loss of time.
And shoots well.

[Calif-Steve]

I handload the 8mm round. I try to find a light load. I have piles of Turk 8mm ammunition. Pull the bullet and load 38 grains of Turk powder and Turk issue bullet. This will rainbow the bullet into the 200 yard target with the sight at 400 meters. But do note in the rapid stage in a Match the hot barrel will freeze up the rear sight. All in all. a poor rear sight and a bear to manufacture.

[Ovidio]

What does it mean “freeze up” the rear sight?
Apart from some truble with the heat from the barrel making sighting difficult, I have no other issues.
Bulky sight, but at the range I don’t need any peripheral vision, so it does not really disturb.

[CINDERS]

Think Steve is talking about the expansion of the metal maybe making the sight slide or ladder harder to move of the "S" type sight, unless you have a squad of troops assaulting your position Ovidio then I think the rear sight issue should not become apparent in your case

[Ovidio]

Certainly not. It was all quiet at the front.
I have no issues at all with the rear sight ladder, even after 30-40 rounds and a fairly hot barrel.
There is probably something not completely ok in Steve’s rifle I suppose.