Several years back I got a great deal on a Swedish M96. It is not a total mixmaster...bolt and bolt components, receiver, and buttplate match. Floorplate, barrel bands and bolt release do not. Bore is great.






My cheap camera can't quite capture the bore's shine.



I never really shot it much, but here is 5 rounds of the PPU 120gr "target ammo" @ 100 yards shot with iron sights right after I got it.



A few months ago I decided to convert one of my M96's into a Swedish sniper rifle for use in the CMP vintage sniper rifle matches. This one got the nod. I bought an Accumount repro scope mount and sent it to a trusted gunsmith. He is fairly busy and it took some months for him to complete the job. In the mean time I got a smoking deal on a real Swedish M41B sniper rifle, but that is a different story.

After he completed the job, he sent me several pictures of the rifle and I must admit, it came out looking good.





I'll post more pics and a range report when I can.

Here are a few more of pictures of the Swede...

I got a chance to shoot the CMP vintage sniper match "faux" Swedish sniper and it shoots like a house on fire!

I shot a three shot group at 25 yards to make sure it was on paper. I used Prvi Partizan 120 gr "match" ammo. (only had 6 rounds)



Since the rifle was on paper, I switched to a target at 100 yards. I fired the remainder of my 120 gr PPU match rounds and got the blue circled group.



I then adjusted the scope and here is where things went a little janky. My son fired three rounds of PPU 139 gr SP and got the red circle group (!). My son is a great shot, as you will see later, and I'm sure that the scatter group was a result of adjusting the scope. I then fired three rounds of the PPU 139 gr's and got the yellow circle group. It appears that it took a couple of rounds to settle the scope down after adjustment (?).

My son then used some 108 gr Lapua ammo that I have and got this group @ 100 yards...about 1/2 MOA



I then shot this 5 round group with some handloads that I had loaded for my Ljungman (again, at 100 yards).




Except for the burble after adjusting the scope, the Swede is shooting outstandingly.

I MUST AGREE. I DOUBT THAT YOUR REAL SNIPER WILL SHOOT MUCH BETTER.....

__________________
'Nam 1968-69.DAV,VFW,NRA Inst.

Looks like your hand loads are good to go. From the pics the rifle you started with looks to be in very nice condition as well.

__________________
Hue 68 noli me tangere

My handloads shoot far better than PPU 139 gr. or match 120 gr. in any of my Swedes.

__________________
LIVE FROM THE DAWGHOUSE

Thanks, guys.

I think my current handload is good, but could be better. I developed it for use in my Ljungmans and use IMR 4064 powder in it. The medium burning powder is good for semis, but may not be optimal for the 6.5 bolt gun.

Vonn, the base rifle was in good shape and I struggled with whether I should alter an otherwise unmodified rifle. It came down to the cost of the reproduction mount and gunsmithing to mount it. The rifle was actually the cheapest part of the equation (I got it several years ago for a little under $200). In the end, I could not justify putting the money into anything less than an excellent rifle.

Thanks, sd. Would love to get your load data. As I mentioned above, I was using some handloads that I have developed for my Ljungmans that my sons and I shoot in vintage military rifle silhouette matches. I've not done any Swedish bolt rifle loads yet.

I took the faux M41B out this weekend for some 200 and 300 yard shooting. It did pretty well with my reloads.

@200 yards, first two were 7:00 o'clock in the 10 ring, the next three were in the x ring. Group size was about 1.5", or about .75 MOA.



Things opened up considerably at 300 yards

@300 yards. The barrel had cooled down, not sure what order the shots were because I could not make them out with my spotting scope. Group size is about 3.5", or just over 1 MOA.

Thanks for the range report, it is nice to see the progress of people’s projects. One moa is impressive from a military battle rifle.

__________________
Hue 68 noli me tangere

Looks like your gunsmith did a pretty good job. 6.5x55 is a pretty phenomenal cartridge

__________________
Some Might Say.

Fine fine rifle! Wonderful that you were able to obtain the necessary parts to produce the faux 41B. Just a joy to read you post. Sincerely. bruce.

__________________
<><

Nice job, wish I had a place to shoot my 96 since I last moved eleven years ago. I bought it for about $75.00 from a Roses department store in the early 90's. It shoots great, even if it is a foot high at 100 yards.

Even though I don't shoot it, It's survived several personal firearms purges, just because I like having it.





As you can tell by the disc marking, the bore is perfecto:

Common for a Swede and the right load. You won't find a more accurate bolt action military rifle.

__________________
LIVE FROM THE DAWGHOUSE

The Swedes zeroed their rifles at 300 meters that's why it shoots a foot high. A taller front sight is needed for shooting at 100 yards, probably a +2.00. A good sharp file will come in handy for tweaking it.

An arrow over the one doesn't mean perfect. It means some very minor corrosion in some spots between the lands and grooves. No arrow or stamp over a number in that section means perfect, as new. A number 1 barrel is an extremely good barrel though. The Swedes replaced the barrel when graded worse than a 3. I have a #3 that shoots m.o.a.

Attached Images

	1924 m96 disk.jpg (82.8 KB, 12 views)
	1915 3 barrel disk.jpg (109.5 KB, 12 views)

__________________
LIVE FROM THE DAWGHOUSE

By chance, are you a consultant?

Just a collector, I have 15 of them.

__________________
LIVE FROM THE DAWGHOUSE

Thanks, guys! I'm having fun with this project.

That is a beautiful rifle, BB. Also, 1921 is a relatively rare production year for the M96...only about 5,000 were made that year.

It kills me how cheap the Swedish Mausers used to be. I remember a a few years back a guy posted his Roses Department store receipt for the purchase of three Swedish Mausers. I think it was dated in the late 1980's or early 1990's. On sale, he paid $49.99 each for them!

I'm lucky to live near and be a member of an excellent shooting range complex. It has about 15 different ranges from 50 yard small bore to 1000 long range. My sons and I shoot in several different matches...a "vintage military silhouette match" which involves shooting chicken, pig, turkey and ram silhouettes at ranges of 220 yards (chickens), 330 yards (pigs), 420 yds (turkeys) and rams (550) yards. Rifles are 50 year old "as issued" rifles, shot prone off a soft front rest (sand bag or backpack). Here's a picture of the silhouette range at my club:


We also shoot these same rifles in a " long range" vintage military match. This is a match shot at paper bullseye targets at 300, 500, 600, and 800 yards.

This match is shot at the 1000 yard range at the top of this satellite picture

Bing Maps - Directions, trip planning, traffic cameras & more


Anyway, next purge, if it looks like that Swede might have to go, let me know and you can double your money

What he said.

I usually use a Swiss 1911 rifle at the match, but not because it is more accurate than the Swedish Mauser.

Sweet rifle, I too have a Swede Mauser and an AG-42. The swede guns are sweeeeeet shooters.

Calfed, can I come visit? That range is beautiful.

Any old time, Hat

I made another trip to Sac Valley earlier this week for some 200 and 300 yard shooting. I changed my 6.5x55 load slightly and got a somewhat better result.

The shot down at 5 o'clock was a pulled shot. I knew it was off and where it it was going to hit before looking at the target. For reasons not entirely clear to me, the group shifted about 1/2 MOA to the left with the new load.

@ 300 yards, group size 2.4" (not including the pulled shot)



I adjusted the scope and later in the day, shot this group, also at 300 yards. By then the wind had picked up and there was a breeze from left-to-right. I think that accounts for some of the horizontal dispersion. The last two shots are the ones just off the reactive target.

@ 300 yards, group size 2.7"

Thanks, Valmet

The gunsmith did a phenomenal job. He really got the scope mount on straight and trued to the bore axis.

These targets...

@100 yards



@200 yards...



and @ 300 yards required not one of click of windage to maintain alignment