12-23-2011, 05:46 AM | #1 |
Member Location: Hartford, Conn. | Here's a picture of my 1940 'Russian capture' VZ.24 8mm Czech rifle (Mauser type '98 action). Its serial number indicates that it was originally part of a contract for use in equipping Romanian soldiers early in WW-II. After quite a bit of tinkering, I've finally managed to get it to where I can operate and shoot it reasonably well (currently around 2-4 MOA @ 100 yards prone depending on how clear my eyesight is!). At this point I think my eyesight will prevent me from achieving any better results using the iron sights. In order to get it to this point I've stripped and Tung oiled the stock, replaced the original barleycorn front and small 'vee' rear sights with a taller blade front and an aperture style rear, 'accurized' it by properly fitting / shimming the action and barrel to the stock, dressed and polished the trigger and sear components, installed an extended release plunger for easier removal of the floor plate / magazine, modified the bolt sleeve stop in order to quicken bolt cycling time, installed a stronger firing pin spring to improve primer strikes (especially helpful when using milsurp ammo), and fitted a 20 round aftermarket 'trench' magazine that increased the total capacity to 25 rounds. (FWIW, anyone considering using one of these aftermarket magazines better plan on spending quite a bit of time reworking it to make it function properly!) I'm currently using the slip-on recoil pad in order to help determine the exact length I'll need before eventually adding a permanent pad. This one increased the butt length by 15/16' and has helped considerably. The original LOP was way too short for me to be able to mount the rifle with any consistency (the average height of a WW-I & WW-II European soldier must have been a lot shorter than today!). I've been using 198 gr milsurp ammo (corrosive / Berdan primed) for practice. It's a lot cheaper and, with about a 5% 'dud' or 'two-strike' rate, it's great for checking to see if you're flinching! The storebought Sellier & Bellot 196 gr 'SPCE' cartridge is my reliability load and it definitely has significantly higher felt recoil compared to the milsurp ammo (the published S&B data states: Velocity @ 2,592 fps / Energy @ 2,924 ft lb from a 23.6' barrel which is +/- a few fps / ft lb of a 30-06 using a 200 gr Partition bullet). I've also done some reloading using the fired S&B brass. Best accuracy using the Prvi-Partisan FMJBT 198 gr bullet, Varget, and CCI primer combination was with 46.0 gr of powder (BTW, it appears that these new Prvi-Partizan bullets (Serbian made) are identical to the 1953 Yugoslav milsurp bullets; chances are they were probably made by the same factory 58 years later!) The bayonet was included with the rifle purchase. (It's been quite a few years since my bayonet training days but I still remember having to practice the various thrust, slash, and parry moves!) Possible future plan is to install a Timney or Bold trigger (any recommendations on which one to choose are welcome!) I'll have to take exception to my old Drill Sergeant's ditty: 'This is my rifle, and this is my gun, this one's for fightin', and this one's for fun!' I think I've actually found one that serves both purposes! (Well, maybe not completely!) it 'ain't' pretty but it's been a lot of fun to shoot and play around with! |