Thoughts & Opinions of a Israeli Mauser in 308

[Bismarck 1941]

Good day All.
as per title suggestion i am planning to get my first Hunting rifle in 308 calibre.
Done a bit of research & still want to gather as much info before i spend the cash on one.I believe it has been
modified by the Israeli Military to 7.62 x 51 Nato..Will they accept 308 ammo available locally & even to reload later s there is much controversary regarding them,also not a lot of info available locally,must mention i am a Huge fan of Mauser in general as their quality is second to none!
Just cant afford a new Mauser.. or should i just buy a new Howa Or CZ if i have the cash that is.
any help or advice will be highly appreciated.

Rehards
H

[TStone]

I have owned and hunted with two Israeli Mausers, the first was a .308 of which the military stock had been sporterised and the bolt altered for scope use. The late Ian Goss told me that it was the ugliest rifle he ever saw. It was fairly accurate with PMP 168gr factory ammo and I killed quite a few animals with it. It still had the original factory trigger, which was horrible, and the stock was not really suited to scope use.

The second was a .308 which had been re-chambered to .30-'06 and re-stocked with an old Mauser style sporter stock, with a lot of drop at the heel. It was even worse for use with a scope than the first one. I fitted a Timney trigger and a replacement safety to this one and used it for several years. It had a 1 in 14" twist barrel, which meant I was limited to bullets at the lighter end of the scale.

Remember that not all military Mauser rifles are built on real Mauser actions, the actions were made by several different manufacturers. By the time you have fitted your Israeli Mauser with a stock that is suitable to scope use, have fitted a decent trigger and safety and had the bolt altered for use with a scope it will cost more than a new Howa with a trigger job. Also, many of the Israeli Mausers come with 1 in 14" twist barrels which will limit your choice of bullets.

If you like the Mauser for its history and nostalgia and are willing to spend a lot of money and time turning it into a hunting rifle, go for it. If you want a serviceable, affordable hunting rifle buy the Howa. If you do decide to go the Mauser route, have a competent gunsmith check out the barrel for you. Replacing a barrel cost more than buying a brand new Howa.

[BBCT]

The sensible answer is to buy a new Howa in .308. It will be more accurate, scope mounting will be easier, more accessories available, and all round it WILL just work better. The Howa might even work out to be cheaper as an overall package depending on what stock the Mauser has and whether it comes with scope, mounts and whether bolt handle is bent suitably for scope mounting etc.

Howa will be cheaper than a CZ if budget is a major factor, which seems to be your situation.

Having said that, if you have a thing for Mausers and the price is right, it might take a lot of willpower to be sensible............

And yes, an Israeli 7.62x51 will be able to use standard 308 ammo or your own reloads. The specifications for pressure in commercial 308 ammo allow for a higher maximum pressure than military 7.62x51 but the difference would not be a significant factor when used in an Israeli Mauser in reasonable condition.

[Bismarck 1941]

For sentimental values i would take one in a heartbeat if in good condition & the price is right,but taking into consideration the modifications to be made to get it to fit my purpose it would be sensible then to go the Howa route,if money permits.. which would be the Lifetime rifle to buy: CZ 550 308 or Howa since i dont think ill be buying any more Hunting rifle's anytime soon,i do love CZ,as i am waiting for my CZ 75 License which is @ Provincial still,want to buy Once,cry once since getting a License nowadays is a Looooong process?? However if the Minister of Finance only grants funds for a Howa..it will be a tough choice for me to make,..or do i save up for the CZ or even second hand Brno?? What you Guys think?

[vratvark]

I own a Israeli Mauser in 7,62, still in original military configuration.
They are fun to shoot, but considering the cost to make it a true hunting rifle you will be better off with a Howa.

Also search the site, a while ago Andrew posted a thread where he had real difficulty in developing an accurate load for the Israeli.
As TStone said, not all were created equal...

[TStone]

Either a Howa or a CZ will last you a lifetime, unless you shoot a lot more than the average hunter. If this is the case, both makes will need to be rebarreled at some stage.

[FNBROWNING]

There are often specials on CZ. The CZ standard is an excellent rifle with some of the Mauser features and can often be had around R12 000. Heck I got a CZ predator on special about a year and a half ago for R10 500.The Howa is very accurate and well regarded.It is however rather rough and aside from being bolt action is about as far from a Mauser as you can get.Get a CZ or Howa first.The military Mauser can also be a bitch to mount scopes. Yes you can mount them but the front and back base will almost certainly be out to a degree causing all sorts of issues.

[TStone]

TThe Howa is very accurate and well regarded.It is however rather rough and aside from being bolt action is about as far from a Mauser as you can get.

In my experience, the actions on CZ rifles are a lot rougher than those of Howa.

[BBCT]

In my experience, the actions on CZ rifles are a lot rougher than those of Howa.

My experience is the same as TStone

[Bismarck 1941]

Either a Howa or a CZ will last you a lifetime, unless you shoot a lot more than the average hunter. If this is the case, both makes will need to be rebarreled at some stage.

So Money wise the Howa is a better bet than the CZ,what about the action?