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I have just acquired a GEW 98 (marked 'Deutschse Waffen Und, Munitions Fabriken, Berlin, 1915') which, I was told, is chambered for the .303/270 cartridge. I am not totally sure of the chambering because there are no calibre markings on the rifle and the only other markings, which are on the barrel, are: 'Rohler Spez Lauf Stahl'. However, the bolt face has definitely been opened up for a .303 rim, the bore appears to be around .270 caliber and the chamber 'looks' like it is for an improved case. I plan to do a chamber cast shortly, to be sure.

I bought this rifle because it was so cheap that I couldn't say no, and I was going to strip it down for parts, but now I am fascinated by this rifle and want to learn more about it and I am going to keep it and reload for it.

During my research, into this rifle, I have learnt that, in addition to the thousands of SMLEs that were converted to .303 derivatives, some Mauser 98s were also converted - which is something I wasn't aware of. However, I have been unable to find any real information about our Aussie .303 derivatives, in general, let alone the Mauser conversions.

What is interesting is that this rifle has no modifications to the magazine and I can only conclude that the shooter has to be very careful about how to load the mag or there will be lots of jams with rims catching behind the rims of round still in the mag.

Apparently, the 303/270 was developed by a J. Black in the 1930's or 40's and that the 303/270 Magnum, which is essentially an improved 303/270, was developed for front-locking lug actions (Mausers and P14s). This rifle has now got my interest up about all of the Aussie .303 derivatives (I guess you can't call them wildcats as the ammo was once available as factory ammo).

So, I am hoping that someone, out there, might be able to shed some more light on my rifle and the chambering, specifically:

1. Any specific information about Aussie .303 derivatives, such as .303/22 (all versions), .303/25 and .303/270, including dates of introduction and who was responsible for those introductions and who was J. Black,

2. Any information about Mauser 98s chambered for Aussie 303 derivatives,

3. Any information about appropriate magazine modifications to make these rimmed cases feed reliably from the M98, and

4. Any information on availability and sources of reloading tools and components.

Thank you in advance,

Edited by BwanaBob (03/12/15 01:57 PM)

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