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Inherited yet another rifle

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trimation

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Dec 24, 2002
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I posted on here the other day about how my brother gave me his Savage model 99 rifle.

Well, I was talking to my grandmother about it and apparently she did not know I was a firearms enthusiast. When she found this out she asked me if I wanted my grandfather's old rifle, he passed away. I told her that I would love to take it but I am not sure what type of rifle it is.

After all the info you guys gave me on the Savage I thought maybe you could help me out on this one.

It is a bolt action 30-06. On the left side of the bolt in the blueing it says "FAB.NAT.D'ARMES DE GUERRE HERSTAL-BELGIQUE"

There are some other marking farther up on the same side. One mark is of an "x" then there is what appears to be a crown over an R. Then there is another mark that I can't decipher followed by a final marking of a crown with a large circle under it and in that circle there is E
LG
*

I know that pictures would be better but I don't have a camera. Sorry. Is this some kind of mauser? It has an increndibly ancient scope on it, if you can call it that, and mounts the likes of which I have never seen.

Oh, and it appears to have a removable magazine plate.

Thanks for any forthcoming information.

Trimation
 
can't help you on your rifle-specific questions, but might be able to help ya on your restoration question...

you can have the steelwork stripped, polished, and re-blued. this will give all metalwork a fresh finish. prices on this will vary, depending how much, if any, work you perform yourself. i think you could probably expect to spend approx. $100 on blueing alone. one thing about re-doing the metal work... it sho' do dress a gun up nice, and can make even the oldest gun look pretty and proud.

another thing to do, and this is something that is probably best done by you, is re-finishing the stock. strip all the current finishing off it, sand it smooth, repair any dings and dents, and refinish it. this also dresses a gun up nice. might consider having the checkering re-cut by somebody who knows what they are doing.

good luck.
 
FN 98 actions are highly sought after. Many a custom rifle has been built using these actions. You have a couple choices the first being do nothing and shoot and enjoy as the rifle may be all you'll ever need as far as accuracy and reliability.
The second is to have it restored as you say. This could be a double edged sword though as any collector value will be lost unless strict attention to detail is followed and the rifle essentially is "reblued".
Third you could have it rebarreled and maybe a custom stock made for it. This will be, for all intents and purposes, a new custom rifle. Worth whatever the skill and craftmanship the gunsmith who did the work imparted into it.
My recomendation is leave it alone and enjoy it for what it is.
Look around on-line to learn about Mauser 98s'. You'll like what you find out and the story of the 98s' developement is interesting to say the least.
 
If you truly have a FN Mauser, it will have a stylized 'FN' cartouche in a circle on top of the front action ring.

The older FNs sported an excellent rust blue on the action and barrel and the bolt assy was polished bright- looks like chrome. The stock is probably French walnut.

I wouldn't mess with it until you further identified it. Search FN Mauser on the auction sites to see if you can get a better identification...
 
FN is Fabrique Nationale of Herstal, Belgium. A very highly regarded gun maker. They have built some of the best Mausers, the FN FAL, and a few US military weapons.
 
Trimation ... this is two (shade of green darkening! :D ) .... now ya know things go in threes .. so I am opening a book on what #3 will be!:p

Sounds good .. nice to know these pieces will be in good hands for many more years to come.:)
 
I say take it to the range where some Old Timers might be and show it off a bit.
Brag about Grampa some and shoot the gun the way it was for him first.
Then see if you still want to change it.

Grampa lives on in that gun, Son. :D
 
Busmaster-
You are right. The only reason I want to restore it is because it was once new for him and I want to take it back to that condition. The one it was in when he first bought it. I know he loved that rifle and I just think that he would want it taken care of.

Trimation
 
Barrelmaker-

Yeah, towards the end of his life he didn't take care of it like he should have. The stock has scratches on it and so does the barrel. The action is clean and very smooth. It also has some kind of green buildup on some parts of the stock. I was surprised how smooth the action was after so many years of neglect. I don't want to do anything drastic to it I just want it cleaned up.

Trimation
 
My mother in Law has a Sears catalog fromt he 1950's that has FN Mausers like that listed.

Beautiful rifles. They really do not make them like that any more.
 
imagine the day when you could walk into Sears and choose a gun and plunk your (real) silver coins down on the counter and walk home and no one would have thought twice, or asked any questions... i have only had dreams of such days but I am told it really happened... in this country.

I say clean it up nicely with some Flitz and Hoppe's, steam out the dents and dings. Its obviously a serious hunting caliber and go out and honor your Grandpa by hunting with it!

if possible, get Grandma (or your parent or uncles/aunts) to recount as many tales as possible of game taken with that rifle.

I stand to inherit a savage 99 and a 12 ga A5 as does my brother (each grandpa owned own of each coincidentaly enough, says something about those old timers not needing a mega magnum) one grandpa is still alive and kicking well. he has made it clear to me that he wants us to have his guns and not sell them. I try to tell him that I could go buy both those guns in like condition for less than 500$ total and that i have many guns ive spent at least that much on. Its the fact that HE owned it and put game on the table with it, that makes it so much more valuable.
 
ElToro,

If you don't mind me asking, how exactly does one steam dings and dents out of the stock. What tools and steamer do I need to get it done? Or if you could direct me to a source of information where I might find the answer myself I would appreciate it.

Trimation
 
take a regular old clothes iron and wait till its good and hot and then put a towel over the ding in the stock and if its not too deep a ding it should come right out . may need to use the steam function. ive seen it done both ways...
test a piece of wood first if you can. cheaper than having the stock refinished.
 
Re: Steaming out stock dings

This treatment is not needed if we're only talking about minor scratches. Depending on what the original finish was, perhaps you can cure minor scratches with a little boiled linseed oil (Cheap by the quart at Home Depot or a large hardware store.) You might want to case the rifle and take it to a gun show or sporting goods store and see what knowledgeable gun guys say about the finish.

If there are dents and dings of sufficient depth to steam them out, don't be distressed if the stock color is altered. This is a minor matter and easily cured. For maintenance tips, don't hesitate to post questions on THR Gunsmithing and Repairs forum.

I hope there were other family members or hunting buddys who can give you some stories about your granddad and that old rifle. I always urge guys with a "Legacy Gun" to avoid refinishing if possible. The rubbed blue and minor stock wear are part of the history of that firearm. You can always save your pennies and go purchase a NEW rifle, and the FN bolt guns are classics, even without the family connection.

All best wishes,
Johnny
 
Johnny,

Maybe you are right. Maybe I should just go and buy a new rifle. Maybe I should just leave it like my grandfather had it. I don't know. I think that I will take it in to a guy at my local FFL and see what he has to say about it. You all have been great with the info. I really appreciate it.

Trimation
 
"...a real keeper..." I'll say. That picture though is a civilain stocked variant of the same rifle. Seems to me FN made K98's for Israel. If your's is in military configuration leave it be. If it's similar to the picture, you have a dandy hunting rifle.
 
Actually the stock on the one in the picture doesn't look like mine, but the action looks exactly the same. The stock on mine is a really light color.

Trimation
 
I hardly know how to phrase this properly - - -

- - -trimation. I don't want to impugn the integrity of your local firearms dealer, but, chances are, he's in business to make money. If your Granddad's rifle is what we're thinking it is, it is superior to most standard type, brand new, rifles being sold today. there's a good chance you'll be offered what might sound like a heckuva deal on a trade. It may actually be a GREAT DEAL, on a dollar-for-dollar basis.

If you care about family heirlooms, though, or hold fond memories of granda', by the time you hit middle age, you'll rue the day you let his rifle go away. Please, re-read BusMaster007's response above. If you like shooting rifles, at least take it out and shoot it some, before you make up your mind . . . .

Best,
Johnny
 
FWIW...

it's you gun now, so you can do what you want...but...

I saw an reply in American Rifleman to a guy that had a very early, extremely rare Smith & Wesson revolver....only a few hundred of this particular variation made IIRC. Guy had it refinished because it showed wear.

That took a gun that was worth over $100,000 down to $5,000

You can always fix it up later. You can always sell it later. If you change it or get rid of it, you'll never get it back.

Be careful what you do. Too bad you're not close here. You could bring it in and we'd clean it VERY CAREFULLY and let you know what it's really worth.
 
Oh, I am not planning on selling it. I don't care what it's worth. What I meant was, I would take it in to my FFL and see what he thought about its condition, if I should clean it up, or if it would be in my interest to leave it be. Since it was my grandfathers I have no interest in selling it. I don't have much of anything that was his that was special to him so for that reason alone I would never let it go.

Trimation
 
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