Massive target destruction with Teutonic Boomstick @ Eastern PAFOA shoot 08/09/08

[King 5.45]

Okay, firstly, here's the weapon of choice: a minty Russian capture K98 8mm Mauser rifle, with a smooth, clean nicely grained stock, matching major parts (action, bolt, bolt sleeve), and one dainty electropenciled "x" on the top of the ring to indicate that it was captured.



8mm Mauser ammunition from Europe, for those of you who don't know, especially the surplus stuff, is pretty stiff in the recoil department, unlike its American counterpart, which is designed to shoot in all 8mm Mauser chamberings. Ask pisnapalm about it. Not to go into a history lesson too deeply, but there are some older 8mm Mauser actions that are not proofed to the same pressure levels. Consequently, US stuff is loaded about on a par with .30-30.

Another thing about these surplus rifles: their sights are graduated in meters, not yards. Now, it's easy to compare meters and yards and suppose that one isn't quite comparing apples and oranges, and then faithfully apply this to US ranges, which are typically set up in yards, with the exception of the military. In general, you can only get away with so much on a yard range with meter sights, especially given the size of the target that you're shooting at, unless you do some fairly nimble calculations in your head.

You see, old Yugoslavian 8mm Mauser ammo is 198 grains, just like the stuff that the Wehrmacht gave out to their troops in WWII. It's decent stuff, if it fires consistently, but given the size of the bullet (almost four times bigger than typical 5.56 AR fodder), it has a tendency to have an interesting, somewhat loopy trajectory. While it isn't quite like .45-70 Government or .35 Remington, let's say that gravity isn't entirely the friend of this .32 caliber cartridge.

Now, let's get back to the yards and meter thing, before I lose you completely.

I was on a 75 yard range, which in meters is only about 69 meters, or so. Holding dead center on the target over sights set at 100 meters, I took my first shot, at one of two 100 yard bullseye rifle targets that I had placed in the farthest-out target holders, which were fiberboard set in steel frames, and about as big as an IPSC target, maybe.

Shot number one seemed to have destroyed the target on the left. There it was, flopping back and forth in the light wind and hanging by its remaining bottom staple.

Shot number two produced exactly the same result, an instantaneous dropped-potato-sack reaction on the part of the right target, which then sat and flopped about as well.

Hmm.

What I found at the other end of the range:



My lack of stopping to do the mental math and blindly trusting in the presence of the backstop had an unfortunate, if not quite humorous result: two massive divots, like only an 8mm Mauser Teutonic Boomstick can make, in the downward-angled cross-member (like this \ relative to the horizontal) of the steel target stand. The former steel contents of divots had neatly emptied themselves, as miniaturized shrapnel, downward and across the face of both of my targets, ripping out the top staple and rendering both targets completely useless.

Shooting one round to the exception of others (in my case, 5.45 x 39, go figure) can introduce a relative stupidity into one's actions with regards to where whatever it is that one has discharged might just wind up. Fortunately, it didn't wind up back in my lap, or worse.

[Emptymag]

This is the only effin' gun porn thread that gave me a headache after viewing it.
(I'm more of a picture book kinda' guy)



Nice rifle though!

[King 5.45]

Originally Posted by Emptymag

This is the only effin' gun porn thread that gave me a headache after viewing it.
(I'm more of a picture book kinda' guy)



Nice rifle though!

I made you think, huh?

neener, neener ...

[PisnNapalm]

Those two targets were something to see in person. I was with King when he retrieved them from the target holders. The "divots" in the steel frame holders were impressive to say the least.

I'll say this about King though... He's a helluva good shot. Those frames were maybe and inch and a half wide.

[King 5.45]

Originally Posted by PisnNapalm

Those two targets were something to see in person. I was with King when he retrieved them from the target holders. The "divots" in the steel frame holders were impressive to say the least.

I'll say this about King though... He's a helluva good shot. Those frames were maybe and inch and a half wide.

Nah, I'm not that good, just fairly consistent. Notice the path of downward destruction, approximately the same on each target. Next, you're gonna have them believing that I wasn't holding on the bull or something?

[Pector55]

I did the same with my Lee Enfield. I asked my son to hang my target while I set his up on a wooden stand. He is 9 so he thought nothing of using the duct tape to attach my cardboard to the steel corners. When I shot the target with my No1 MK4, the bullet hit the metal, then exploded shrapnel back, blowing the target (cardboard and paper) nearly in half. I knew right away what had happened so I fixed it but it was cool to see.

Just curious about your 98k.. mine has what looks to be more of a black walnut stock. What was more common? Your light stock is very nice looking.

[King 5.45]

Originally Posted by Pector55

I did the same with my Lee Enfield. I asked my son to hang my target while I set his up on a wooden stand. He is 9 so he thought nothing of using the duct tape to attach my cardboard to the steel corners. When I shot the target with my No1 MK4, the bullet hit the metal, then exploded shrapnel back, blowing the target (cardboard and paper) nearly in half. I knew right away what had happened so I fixed it but it was cool to see.

Just curious about your 98k.. mine has what looks to be more of a black walnut stock. What was more common? Your light stock is very nice looking.

The camera phone picture doesn't do it justice.

It's a dou '44, apparently manufactured in Banská Bystrica, Czechoslovakia -- which I think might be related to the factory in Brno (Brünn)? You can read up on the specific factory here:

http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cache...lnk&cd=3&gl=us

According to the link, laminates were typically used, but I don't think that this was a Russian replacement of some kind, since it has the German specification bolt disassembly donuts in the butt-stock, unlike postwar Yugoslavian clones, for example.

[Pector55]

Originally Posted by King 5.45

The camera phone picture doesn't do it justice.

It's a dou '44, manufactured in Brno (Brünn, in German). You can read up on the specific factory here:

http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cache...lnk&cd=3&gl=us

According to the link, laminates were typically used, but I don't think that this was a Russian replacement of some kind, since it has the German specification bolt disassembly donuts in the butt-stock, unlike postwar Yugoslavian clones, for example.

I really need to do a lot more research on mine. I love the looks of my K98 but I have not shot it much because I can't hit anything with it. My Yugo Mauser is completely opposite. My K98 has a very dark wood so I need to track down more details on it. If I recall corectly, mine is stamped 1938 but I have purchased so many guns this year, I could very easily be wrong.

[King 5.45]

Originally Posted by Pector55

I really need to do a lot more research on mine. I love the looks of my K98 but I have not shot it much because I can't hit anything with it. My Yugo Mauser is completely opposite. My K98 has a very dark wood so I need to track down more details on it. If I recall corectly, mine is stamped 1938 but I have purchased so many guns this year, I could very easily be wrong.

You may need to tear it apart and subject it to some "electrotherapy."

http://www.surplusrifle.com/reviews/copperout/index.asp

Loosening up decades worth of fouling might do the trick.

[Garpman]

It looks like a Mauser from Mitchell's Mausers...I hope for your sake it isn't, because they use deceptive marketing to rip off unsuspecting buyers.

They take your standard RC K98ks and remove all collector value/appeal from it by getting it to look all clean and pretty. The Germans never had an in the white bolt...I know you said it was Czech, but I'm pretty sure they didn't either (not for a wartime K98 anyway).

Mitchell's will go as far to call their rifles "factory overhauled", and tell you some made up story about how it was stored for years, blah blah blah. They'll even call some of their rifles K98-M48, there is no such thing, a K98 is a K98 and an M48 is a M48, which is post war.