Looking over the posts for the past week or so, it occurs to me that there are far too few entries which conform to the original premise of the GGP series, namely, providing pics of guns that we gun-lovers can drool over, for whatever reason. Allow me to remedy the situation forthwith.
Here’s one being offered by Collectors Firearms: a pre-WWII Mauser 98K Sporter in one of my favorite calibers, the venerable 7x57mm.
Good grief… this gun rings just about every single one of my rifleman bells: Mannlicher-style full stock, “butterknife” bolt lever, and a double set trigger?
The only way this rifle could be more beautiful is if it had breasts.
I know that modern-day shooters look askance at the old-style scope front claw mount (which grips the bell rather than the barrel), but there’s nothing wrong with the concept — having two barrel grips just simplifies the production process and therefore the cost thereof.
Okay, it’s expensive, because a) rare and b) Collectors. But like I said about the Colt 1903 pistol, this is not a “first gun”, at least if you wanted to go hunting: other more modern guns might be a tad better. But in a pinch, this gun could be your go-to hunting rifle, and I very much doubt that it would let you down, whether in its operation, accuracy, reliability or chambering. And for a hunting rifle, that’s pretty much all you can ask for, isn’t it? The fact that it is more beautiful than 90% of modern hunting rifles is just a bonus.
Speaking for myself: if I won the lottery, I’d buy this gun in a heartbeat.
Yes, on all of the above, 7×57 Mauser with Mannlicher stock would be good for most anything in the USA except maybe moose. It is a shame we can’t risk having nice gun racks on the wall and glass gun cases for home decor like we did in the good old days. Now to be safe we have to tuck them away in metal.
The Interarms (CZ) Mark X looks just like that Mauser – I have one in my safe.
The butter knife bolt is blue, not polished, and it’s .270 Win, but otherwise nearly identical. I believe it came in 7×57 as well.
Way less expensive, and easier to find.
Collectors, by the way, is a lovely spot to spend the afternoon on a hot South Texas Saturday. I have to admit they’ve gotten a bunch of my money over the years, mostly for unusual, used pieces. For a while there, I would monitor their new arrivals page daily. Want to by a brace of Baby Brownings or a single-shot .410? That’s the place. (Not an advertisement, merely an appreciation.)
I agree, that gun is a stunner, and if I owned it it would be on display, prominently – thieves be damned, that’s what the Beretta 92FS on the end table is for.
Let me step into nitpicking mode for a second. Admittedly, that wood going all the way to the end does it for me. If that doesn’t capture and hold your eye you don’t deserve the advantage of sight. The main thing that bothers me, and again, I’m nitting, is the scope. I don’t like it. But it’s not a deal breaker. Yes, I know about parallax and all that, but I just don’t like the way it is yanked “off center” to the rear like that. Looks out of balance. I’d consider a longer scope, more centrally mounted. And that empty screw hole in the scope mount. Put something in there already! Even just a small piece of black rubber, carved precisely, then twisted into it and trimmed off. Also, if you go to the link you can see the purdier side of the stock, the part with the raised cheek bed. WoW!
how is the recoil on 7×57 compared to .30-06?
I have had several 7×57 rifles and still have one, an old Mauser and the venerable 7×57 is very accurate and much easier to shoot than the 30-06 which was one of my favorites, I still have two rifles in 30-06 and too much ammo in that caliber because I am getting old. I used to be able to shoot a lot of 30-06 without much pain but now I am careful and that is about as much rifle as I want to shoot. I also have the 6.5×55 Swede in military and a CZ 550 Mannlicher in 6.5×55 and it is a delight to shoot. Nothing in Texas outside of a high fence exotic ranch that the 7×57 or 6.5×55 can’t bring down in its tracks.
Thanks for your reply!
I’ve owned a Ruger 77MkII in .30-06. It’s nice and all but was wondering about a lighter caliber for my wife or for me once .30-06 gets less enjoyable.
Jim
Elegantly simple. I wondoer how easy it is to convert the thing for left-handed use?
A few years back my wife and I visited people in Georgia that we’d met on our trip to Italy, one day the male-half of the couple was going to a gun show to sell off some stuff he didn’t want. One of the items was a rifle similar to that one (although not in SUCH a nice condition, and no scope or double-set trigger). Still a Mauser in 7mm. Had a $400 price tag on it. Had I not had to fly back to NJ afterward it would’ve come home with me.
Sigh, missed opportunities. Funny how I’m at the age where I’m more likely to regret guns I didn’t buy than women I didn’t lay.
Mark D.