A few general LR questions - 7mm Mauser

[LoKei13]

Some have wondered and it is indeed a 7x57. I took pictures (posted below) of every marking I could find without taking the barrel off and the head of the bolt in case that helps with anything. I did find a maker's mark on the safety lever (never saw it before honestly) however I am a little bit dubious of it seeing as we had the bolt repaired/replaced about 7 or 8 years ago (so I don't remember) and it could just be a bolt from something else.
Also, I really appreciate the time and thoughts you guys are giving me.

 

[epoletna]

Well you have a surplus Mauser, all right. I'm not sure why you replaced the bolt -- or was it only the safety you replaced? The safety is an aftermarket commercial safety that was designed to replace the military safety, that did not work with a scope because it could not be moved through it's entire arc under the scope. Looks like it's been refinished. There is probably an identifying mark under the front scope mount that would tell you what country used it. Some are very good and strong.

I have one like this. Except for the trigger, which is terrible, it is a good shooter.

 

[epoletna]

One other thing: it appears to have had the military barrel replaced, judging from what I can see of the barrel. Should be a good shooter.

 

[LoKei13]

The owner before my father in law took a file and shaved down the catch on the bottom to turn it into a "hair trigger" but then I closed the bolt and it wouldn't hold the pin back, then it discharged once when I closed the bolt (scaring the hell out of me).
I wasn't sure on the safety because the floor plate has a "B" stamped on it as well.

 

[epoletna]

"The owner before my father in law took a file and shaved down the catch on the bottom to turn it into a "hair trigger""

Not sure what you're referring to here -- the catch on the bottom of the bolt? Or on the trigger". If its was on the "bottom of the bolt", that would probably have been on the rear of the firing pin itself, and replacing the piece that turns onto the back of the firing pin would have been sufficient to make it safe once again. If they indeed replaced the entire bolt, I trust they checked the headspace.

If you're interested in having a lighter trigger than what you have on it now, there are a number of aftermarket triggers that can be installed on a Mauser and adjusted with a small screw driver.

 

[Memberberries]

That's a nice looking rifle and I would hang onto it if I were you. Personally, I would pull the scope and mounts to find out what it is because I'm curious but you could probably just use mild loads and not sweat it.

Have a friend teach you about reloading and then decide if you want to get into it. maybe buy 7x57 dies and try it with their press, powder measure, scale, etc.

 

[jspidle]

judging by the face of the bolt. The square bottom bolts originated on the M93 Spanish mauser. Some M95 Spanish mausers also had them. So this is an older receiver that is meant for lower pressure loads.

 

[epoletna]

Good catch, jspidle -- I missed that. Yep, it's most likely an M93. You probably don't want to shoot hot loads through it.

 

[ofbandg]

Did they change the bolt or just the cocking piece? I have also never seen a vent hole on the side of the action quite like that either. I agree with jspidle about being careful if it is an M95 or earlier. Stick with low pressure loads.

 

[Sirrated]

Welcome to LRH Lokei, I'll cut to the chase, in my small but odd ball collection of fire-arms is a Santa Barbra Mauser, it was a 7x57 originally, but the previous owner decided to ream out the chamber to take 7mm rem mag. Now I got this shooter fairly cheap, but it has proved to be an excellent fire-arm. The first two shots are very accurate( which is ideal for a hunting, not so good on the range). I prefer to shoot factory ammo, as it has been very successful so far. But that could be another option for you,,,Go see a Mauser Master (Gun smith) and get there advise,,,Safe shooting,,,

 

[robert l]

Brand new here guys (made the account to ask these questions) so go easy on me. A little background first:
I've only been shooting/hunting for nine years. After I killed my first deer with a rifled slug from my shotgun (nine years ago) my father in law gave me a bolt action rifle (he's not a fan of bolts) to commemorate the event. I still use that same rifle today, just a new bolt (previous guy made it a hair trigger himself and it was not good) and a new scope. The rifle is 7x57 or 7mm mauser and I love it to death.
Now, I've done a fair bit of research on the round and I've found that the round is actually fairly capable but manufacturers don't load hotter powders for fear of older blocks not being able to handle the pressure and exploding. That's reasonable since there are still ones from the Mexican/American war floating around. However, this means that I don't have as much oomph as I could which obviously limits me in many was.
Now for some questions:
I've looked into reloading, which you pretty have to do for some really far shots, but it's pretty darn expensive to get into and I don't know if it's worth it. I've read several articles saying this round can take most everything NA can throw at it. If so, then is getting into reloading worth it?
Or is it better (it's definitely simpler) to just buy a new gun? I know that the 300 WM is a really solid round, for instance.
How far can this thing realistically reach out and drop a NA big game animal?
Does anyone have experience with this round and it's realistic limitations for hunting NA big game?

Welcome to the site from south florida. To anser the one question I would highly recommend getting in to reloading.That will give so much more control of how your rifle shoots.

 

[rugers]

Thanks for pictures you have a small ring mauser most probably spanish by square bottom bolt, that # on side of action is the serial # it has been rebarreled and who ever did it obviously had some experiance because he added the later incorporated blow by hole in action. So if over pressure it blows out that hole and not back thru bolt into your face, do not be alarmed by non matching serial # on bolt or rest of rifle it was common, it was most probably made by a local gunsmith as sporterizing mausers was a common occurence in the 50,s. Nice gun. That all being said DO NOT LOAD TO TODAYS MODERN LOAD DATA. There is nothing wrong with velocity of the old rounds and with todays excellent bullets I'm quite sure it is a tack driver, most probably has a re shaw barrel on it which are good barrells, the safety is standard replacement for military safety, works good to. If you need new trigger timney makes drop in for that model that works real good. I have personally killed deer out to 500 yds with the old 7x57 just as dead as any other cartridge. Again nice rifle, if you want to hunt at longer ranges I would suggest you go with a newer caliber and rifle.

 

[LoKei13]

Rugers, thanks a lot for that info!
I love this gun so much, so I'm really glad someone else appreciates it. I have a question for you though: what can I reasonably expect to be able to down with it? I only get to hunt whitetail right now but I'm planning and trying to save to go out West and I've been trying to figure out if I need to budget for a new rifle or not. By out West I mean to hunt Mule Deer (which I'm sure it can handle) on up. For instance, my dream hunt is Caribou, then Moose, then Musk Ox. I doubt it can handle the last two, but what about the first?

 

[rugers]

Rugers, thanks a lot for that info!
I love this gun so much, so I'm really glad someone else appreciates it. I have a question for you though: what can I reasonably expect to be able to down with it? I only get to hunt whitetail right now but I'm planning and trying to save to go out West and I've been trying to figure out if I need to budget for a new rifle or not. By out West I mean to hunt Mule Deer (which I'm sure it can handle) on up. For instance, my dream hunt is Caribou, then Moose, then Musk Ox. I doubt it can handle the last two, but what about the first?