1916 Mauser Kit .308WIN with Wood Stock

This project is not for an inexperienced enthusiast. The headspace needed to be set (used a lathe to cut 0.325"), chamber had to be reamed (both coarse and fine), and throat had to be cut. The most tedious part of this project was finding a firing pin. I ended up just making my own using a large ring firing pin, cut to size. The stock I received was cracked and split in two from the bayonet lug to the handguard/sling swivel. I cut the wood to the swivel so the front end of the stock is 6" shorter than a complete stock. The wood however cleaned up beautifully and I am particularly happy with it. After FFL fees, and additional parts this project cost me $215, all the labor was done by me saving me around $180-250 in labor. I strongly recommend only experienced smiths buy this with the intent to DIY. Pros: cheap, unique project, variety of skills required Cons: FFL fees, action parts can be difficult to find especially the firing pin, labor intensive, wildly varying quality of parts, large variety of caliber specific tools required, gages are mandatory to ensure safety.

I purchased one of these kits at the store a few days back, and it’s turning into more of a project than I had hoped it would be. The rifle I received did not have the burnt stock at least so that’s a plus, but that’s the only good thing I can say about it. Someone tried to remove the barrel on mine and gave up, its unscrewed about 1/8th of a turn and the receiver was warped in the process. The bolt was locked up solid In the receiver because of this and it took a mallet to remove it, and a couple of hours work to get it to go back in smoothly. The tools that I need to realign the barrel will cost more than the kit plus a long list of missing parts, and I’m not sure if it will even headspace safely after that. It needs a new firing pin, a new extractor, new ejector, a rear sight spring and screw, rear sight pin, both trigger guard screws, sear pin and spring, bolt lock spring and screw, rear sight slider assembly, a new stock and hand guard (but not completely necessary), magazine follower and lastly the magazine spring. This will easily cost me an extra $300 to get it back into decent shape if I buy the correct tools. Maybe I just got a dud.

I purchased this as a parts gun knowing I wasn’t getting a show piece. What I received was in much better shape than I expected, yes it was missing springs, pins, and the firing pin was broke as expected. The receiver and barrel were in very good shape, the rifling is very strong and sharp with a mirror finish, very little surface rust with minor pitting on bluing, the sights had to be reclocked. The stock is cracked all the way down the middle with a chunk missing from the butt stock, all of the stock hardware was there. Everything is reparable with a little work. The customer service is in it’s self worth 5 stars, they went above and Beyond to answer the questions I asked and alleviate any concerns I had.

Everything was as expected except the description didn’t say to expect a bent receiver. Do not purchase this if you don’t have the skills to correct the problems. This is not for an ameture.

Received my kit as described in offer, and by previous reviewers. Lucked out by receiving a good wood stock with minimal damage, other than obvious acetelene torch burns around the trigger guard / magazine. Was able to sand burn marks down to good wood. Missing essential small parts such as bolt extractor, magazine well follower and spring, receiver screws, bolt release parts, cleaning rod and handguard. Handguards no longer available from most suppliers so I will fabricate one from another Mauser. Receiver is scrubbed SCW. Sourced most missing parts from Numrich. Found original sling on eBay. Will make a good wall hanger when finished and re-stained, but not a shooter. A good project gun, but requires additional money to complete.