Combloc1
Member
- Joined
- Oct 8, 2017
- Messages
- 187
...... I'd never walked into a shop and seen a vintage Mannlicher Schoenauer with such a beautiful patina hanging on the wall. Although I have the deepest respect for the sport, I personally don't hunt so why would I buy one? So, I was casually aware of these old Steyr rifles and I also knew that they were expensive and held in the highest regard when they were in production. Also, I had seen pictures in books but I'd never actually laid eyes or hands on one. And let's face it....I'm not what you'd call a "cultured" guy nor do I spend my time with those who are so where would I have run into one? Still, I DO have the ability to appreciate fine things and I'm not such a Neanderthal that I don't recognize a gem when I see it. As soon as I spied that full length European Walnut stock and the flat bolt handle, even though it was 30 feet away, I knew what I was looking at. Literally the moment I took it down from the wall, I knew I was holding the rifle equivalent of a Rolex. After just a minute of perusal, it was obvious that the rifle had seen a generous mixture of use, care and outright love. The bluing was worn to bare metal in places but absolutely none of it had turned brown. The stock bore only the most minimum number of indentations and had nearly perfect checkering. The scope, a Weaver K4-F (made in the 1960's) was still crystal clear with near perfect glass. It was abundantly clear that this rifle had seen MANY hours of use but ALL of them had passed with the utmost care. The rifle had been used for it's intended purpose and not simply hung on a wall. Man.....the stories this old rifle could tell! Wellllll, the combination of History (albeit unknown) outstanding Quality of execution, gorgeous stock, patina and just pure Beauty of the thing pushed me over the edge. I had to have it. And now I want to share it with you. This isn't going to be an in-depth article on the rifle but it is going to photographically document some things I couldn't find decent pictures of online. I might write a longer one later but for now, lets just have some fun and take a brief look at what I consider to be a well used yet well preserved example of a Steyr Mannlicher Schoenauer Model 1956 with factory installed scope mounts and a vintage Weaver K4-F telescopic sight.
First up are the right and left side general views of the rifle:
Next up are some markings starting with the manufacturer on the left side of the receiver:
From left to right on the barrel left side we have an inspection stamp, nitro proof stamp and year of manufacture (1957):
On the front left of the receiver we have an inspection stamp and the year of manufacture again:
On the bottom of the magazine we find the STEYR logo and the importer/US distributor, Stoeger:
At the top front of the receiver, there are more markings but the scope is in the way so it's difficult to get a good shot of them. Fortunately, this rifle was ordered with factory installed, quick disconnect scope rings. So let's get the scope off to get a look at those markings.
We start at the left rear of the receiver where we find this curious little mechanism (rear is to the right):
Notice the blued rectangle in the center of the frame with a "U" cut out of it. This is side of the mounting block for the rear scope ring. The block is held fast to the receiver with two slotted screws, one of which you can see to the left. There is a slot cut into this block from above to allow for a bare steel piece that also has a "U" cut in it. This piece slides back and forth and is held in place by two pins, the heads of which are visible on either side of the "U" cut. Additionally this sliding piece is pushed to the rear under spring tension and can be seen sticking out from the rear of the mounting block, forming a push button. To remove the scope, simply press forward on this button with the finger or thumb of one hand (thus lining up the "U" cut in the sliding piece with the corresponding one in the mounting block) while grasping the rear bell on the scope with the other hand and swinging it clockwise when viewed from above.
Once the bottom of the scope ring is free of the mounting block, release the push button and you have a situation as shown below:
Notice that there is a slotted screw on the ring where it fits into the mounting block. There is one on the other side too. These screws allow you to both make course windage adjustments and perfectly fit the ring to the mounting block so that there is zero side to side play.
Next, continue to swing the scope in a clockwise arc until it is positioned 90 degrees relative to the rifle:
Then you simply lift straight up on the scope to remove it from the rifle entirely. You may have to wiggle it a bit because it's such a perfect fit.
Here is the mounting lug on the front ring:
And the front mounting point on the rifle:
notice the raised areas to the rear of the mounting lug hole and on the right side of the mounting point. These are slotted and engage with lugs on the scope ring to lock it down as you swing the scope into the mounted position.
An above view of the rear mounting point with scope removed clearly showing the retention and release mechanism:
At the rear and similar to the front mounting point, we have a raised area with a slot cut to lock the scope ring down. This system locks the scope on as tight as if it were screwed to the rifle and guarantees a perfect zero no matter how many times the scope is removed and replaced. I mean it is rock solid.
And now that we have the scope out of the way, we can get a look at the markings on the front receiver ring:
Notice how perfectly struck the lettering is. SCHWEET!! Also notice the fine stippling applied to reduce glare when using open sights. To a guy like me used to military grade firearms, this stuff is pure Art!! These were available in various calibers, some of which are a real pain to get these days. While I would have bought this thing no matter what caliber it was in, .308 was a nice bonus since I have a number of rifles in that caliber already. Back in 1957, .308 Winchester was a pretty new thing!
First up are the right and left side general views of the rifle:
Next up are some markings starting with the manufacturer on the left side of the receiver:
From left to right on the barrel left side we have an inspection stamp, nitro proof stamp and year of manufacture (1957):
On the front left of the receiver we have an inspection stamp and the year of manufacture again:
On the bottom of the magazine we find the STEYR logo and the importer/US distributor, Stoeger:
At the top front of the receiver, there are more markings but the scope is in the way so it's difficult to get a good shot of them. Fortunately, this rifle was ordered with factory installed, quick disconnect scope rings. So let's get the scope off to get a look at those markings.
We start at the left rear of the receiver where we find this curious little mechanism (rear is to the right):
Notice the blued rectangle in the center of the frame with a "U" cut out of it. This is side of the mounting block for the rear scope ring. The block is held fast to the receiver with two slotted screws, one of which you can see to the left. There is a slot cut into this block from above to allow for a bare steel piece that also has a "U" cut in it. This piece slides back and forth and is held in place by two pins, the heads of which are visible on either side of the "U" cut. Additionally this sliding piece is pushed to the rear under spring tension and can be seen sticking out from the rear of the mounting block, forming a push button. To remove the scope, simply press forward on this button with the finger or thumb of one hand (thus lining up the "U" cut in the sliding piece with the corresponding one in the mounting block) while grasping the rear bell on the scope with the other hand and swinging it clockwise when viewed from above.
Once the bottom of the scope ring is free of the mounting block, release the push button and you have a situation as shown below:
Notice that there is a slotted screw on the ring where it fits into the mounting block. There is one on the other side too. These screws allow you to both make course windage adjustments and perfectly fit the ring to the mounting block so that there is zero side to side play.
Next, continue to swing the scope in a clockwise arc until it is positioned 90 degrees relative to the rifle:
Then you simply lift straight up on the scope to remove it from the rifle entirely. You may have to wiggle it a bit because it's such a perfect fit.
Here is the mounting lug on the front ring:
And the front mounting point on the rifle:
notice the raised areas to the rear of the mounting lug hole and on the right side of the mounting point. These are slotted and engage with lugs on the scope ring to lock it down as you swing the scope into the mounted position.
An above view of the rear mounting point with scope removed clearly showing the retention and release mechanism:
At the rear and similar to the front mounting point, we have a raised area with a slot cut to lock the scope ring down. This system locks the scope on as tight as if it were screwed to the rifle and guarantees a perfect zero no matter how many times the scope is removed and replaced. I mean it is rock solid.
And now that we have the scope out of the way, we can get a look at the markings on the front receiver ring:
Notice how perfectly struck the lettering is. SCHWEET!! Also notice the fine stippling applied to reduce glare when using open sights. To a guy like me used to military grade firearms, this stuff is pure Art!! These were available in various calibers, some of which are a real pain to get these days. While I would have bought this thing no matter what caliber it was in, .308 was a nice bonus since I have a number of rifles in that caliber already. Back in 1957, .308 Winchester was a pretty new thing!
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