What Mauser action do I have here? Caution, its a Sporter

[Thisisyourcaptin]

You did a beautiful job on that stock. The rest of the rifle seems well done too. The sight is frustrating, so time to go, and a good scope will make that a lot more enjoyable to shoot. My swedish mauser wears a 2-7x Leupold in a Burris Signature mount, and that works well for me.

I will add to the chorus of those suggesting that a new barrel costs money that isn't reflected in the value of the gun, and there are always risks. If economy is a consideration, I see 8mm starting below 50c per round, and available in many different flavors. https://ammoseek.com/ammo/8mm-mauser 243 is likely to be at least as expensive, and SAAMI pressures are slightly higher than 8x57.

I can understand the desire for a smaller diameter, higher velocity chambering, but you could have a new Howa for less than the $900 minimum you would have in this project https://www.budsgunshop.com/product_info.php/products_id/101810/leg+hs+prec+6.5cr+22+grn+blk+4 or Tikka https://www.budsgunshop.com/product_info.php/products_id/100642/tikka+t3x+hunter+6.5creed+24+blued+walnut+1:8 for a few $$ more. I had a Husqvarna re-barreled to 6.5 Swede and it turned out OK but my old Tikka T3 does the same job with much less investment.

I’m looking at a Leupold 1x4 vx2. It’s older but in great shape it looks like and gloss blue, which matches the guns finish. Any thoughts on the scope? I’ve never had a Leupold. Only cheap Amazon crap as I’ve never need a real scope till now as my eyes get older.

 

[Dave DeLaurant]

I've got three of the current Leupold VX Freedoms and they've been pretty good scopes. Since they lack objective bells, they are easy to mount properly without resorting to extension rings. Many folks prefer more magnification than 1.5-4x, but if you can live at the lower end I'd say it's a good choice.

My 'classic' Mauser sporters all carry period Weaver optics of 4x and under, mounted with plain Weaver rings and bases, but they're just informal target rifles these days.

 

[21H40]

I rebarreled mine to the hard-hitting 45 ACP!

Using the short and fat round, it works well as a single shot, and OK from a magazine. For what I wanted - an easy shooting fun rifle in a common caliber - it is perfect.

Of course, that's a great way to convert your $400 sporter into a more expensive to you $400 sporter.