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Sorry, Dons, but this really is an original Mauser commercial transitional action! Why: First photo: There is no bolt sleeve locking plunger or it's housing on the left side of the bolt sleeve! This alone says it is not a "full developed" M98 action. Also note the long commercial firing pin nut and the teardrop shape of the bolthandle. Second from top: You can see the Mauser serial # stamped at right angle to the receiver behind the recoil lug. This is Mauser's typical location for the serial # as stamped on all commercial actions sold as "action only" or "barreled action" to other makers like S&S, Rigby, H&H or Westley-Richards! Photo 4: here I can make out the typical location of the Mauser # on the top rear wall of the magazine. More often than not these serial numbers and their location are the only means to identify a commercial Mauser Oberndorf action used by other gunmakers. Photos 2,4,5: Here you see the typical Mauser factory set trigger arrangement with it's housing machined integral, no separate housing. Also note Mauser's long set trigger mainspring. All aftermarket dst arrangements used a separate housing, pinned to the triggerguard. Photo 2: Early Mausers all came from the factory with the military floorplate and release. The Suhl gunmakers often reshaped the larger-than-military trigger guard and they first installed the floorplate release lever, only later adopted by Mauser and perfected with a hinged floorplate. All in all, this is a typical example of an early commercial transitional action! I strongly recommend reading Jon Speed's "Mauser Original Oberndorf Sporting Rifles"! BTW, I know a very early 9.3x62 on an identical Mauser transitional action with the same bottom metal treatment. As it is the typical pre-WW1 Suhl style with ribbed,half-octagon barrel, side-clips and wedge schnabel foreend,fully engraved, probably made in, at least proofed before 1912 in Suhl, but retailed by W. Foerster, Berlin. It is still going strong after 100 years! |