1909 Argentine mountain or "engineer" carbine question.

[Fruler]

A LGS has a 1909 Argentine mountain carbine made by Deutsche Waffen und Munitionsfabriken (DWM). The carbine is in near mint condition, possibly a factory refurb, beautiful tiger stripe wood... The receiver has been blued at some point, which makes me believe it's a factory refurb... and the wood looks amazing. Doing my own research I've seen several blued receivers with this model... Which originally I believe were left "in the white."

Now the questions...
I've read on another forum that these may have soft steel... What that means exactly I don't know but it sounds a bit silly to me. Can anyone shed any light on to that theory? I understand for being made over 111 years ago anything is possible and metallurgy has made leaps and bounds since then, but I'm not a metallurgist. Is there anything else I should look out for with these rifles? I'm not a Mauser expert.

This rifle is similar to a K98k in appearance but has a slightly shorter barrel, I believe 22 inches. It's not to be confused with the Argentine cavalry carbine which has a 1894 swedish carbine type muzzle style.

This has been on the shelf at the LGS for a while now, at a very reasonable price, so I've decided I want it... I think... that's if you guys talk me out of it for some reason. The mountain carbine is beautiful and I've always wanted a rifle in 7.65x53 Mauser caliber.

Thanks guys for reading and replying... Like always, I very much appreciate any information you can give me.

(((If I buy the rifle, I'll certainly post pics.))))

Information

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[oldfoneguy]

Don't worry yourself about the quality of that steel. The Argentine Mausers were THE most sought after action by Custom gunsmiths when such a thing still existed. Those actions were known to be smooth as glass, slick as spit and fast as lightning. As peace time built rifles they were lavish in both build quality and materials.
A true example of the gunmakers art. If I had laid eyes on that carbine it wouldn't have been in the rack for long.
I don't know where you read that but whoever wrote it has no idea what they're talking about. Argentines have been built with some of the most wicked magnums and custom wildcats on the planet and are plenty strong enough to deal with them.
The 7.65x53/54 cartridge is within the power range of the 308 and is a handy little round. I hunted with it for years with good success. It tends to be loaded light due to the weakness and limitations of the 91 action. I strongly suggest handloading this particular round and develop a load to take advantage of the strength and accuracy of these rifles.

[Daan Kemp]

I would recommend buy it immediately. Negotiate price because it's been ignored for so long.

[mmppres]

That little gem is a great rifle an calibre to own an shoot. Keep in original an enjoy it. You will love it. Post pictures.

[Fruler]

I would recommend buy it immediately. Negotiate price because it's been ignored for so long.

Store is closed today, will go there tomorrow. Definitely will negotiate the price down.

---------- Post added at 04:41 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:34 PM ----------

Don't worry yourself about the quality of that steel. The Argentine Mausers were THE most sought after action by Custom gunsmiths when such a thing still existed. Those actions were known to be smooth as glass, slick as spit and fast as lightning. As peace time built rifles they were lavish in both build quality and materials.
A true example of the gunmakers art. If I had laid eyes on that carbine it wouldn't have been in the rack for long.
I don't know where you read that but whoever wrote it has no idea what they're talking about. Argentines have been built with some of the most wicked magnums and custom wildcats on the planet and are plenty strong enough to deal with them.
The 7.65x53/54 cartridge is within the power range of the 308 and is a handy little round. I hunted with it for years with good success. It tends to be loaded light due to the weakness and limitations of the 91 action. I strongly suggest handloading this particular round and develop a load to take advantage of the strength and accuracy of these rifles.

Thanks for the reply. I wish I would've got into the milsurp game 15 or 20 years ago... It's just in the last few years I've got into it. I've heard the 1909 was a favorite to sporter back in the day... I like my milsurps in military configuration, I get a little teary-eyed every time I see a sporterized milsurp. Prvi has a 174 grain fmj loaded at 2625 according to their website with a 24 inch barrel... That's my ideal bullet weight and velocity. It sounds almost like the perfect cartridge to me... I've always been a fan of the .312 diameter bullets... Like you can find in the Enfield, mosin and Mausers own 7.65x54.

---------- Post added at 04:43 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:41 PM ----------

That little gem is a great rifle an calibre to own an shoot. Keep in original an enjoy it. You will love it. Post pictures.

Will definitely keep it original configuration... I cannot sporterizle a rifle... Make me sick to see that lol. The LGS is closed today, will go there tomorrow. Thanks!