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K98 barrel life .. shoot it or save it?

K

Keks

Member
Hi Guys,

I have a nice but Frankenmauser... Although I dont really enjoy shooting full power 8mm so much, it is fun to shoot with low power PPU ammo or hand loads.

Now I am wondering ... am I wearing the gun out to the point of it being trash metal? After all, cant really replace those guns...

How many rounds does a K98 typically last for?

Mine is a 1937 model and I suspect it has not seen combat, but who knows ?

Should I hammer rounds down range or not?

Cheers
 
A Frankenmauser, so not matching and original? If not, and you’d classify as a shooter grade, than shoot it. That’s what it’s designed to do.

Now if we’re talking about an original and correct rifle, matching or not, I’d be more hesitant to put unnecessary wear on it all the time. Something of this description would in most cases not be a shooter, but rather a rifle you limit usage from.
 
Herk1994 said:
A Frankenmauser, so not matching an original? If not, and you’d classify as a shooter, than shoot it. That’s what it’s designed to do.

Now if we’re talking about an original, correct, and of course matching rifle, I’d be more hesitant to put unnecessary wear on it all the time.
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yep. non matching franken mauser. but nice looking

I guess if the barrel shoots out I can still look at it .. hehe

How many rounds is a K98 barrel supposed to last?
 
Keks said:
yep. non matching franken mauser. but nice looking

I guess if the barrel shoots out I can still look at it .. hehe

How many rounds is a K98 barrel supposed to last?
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I’m in no place to give you an estimated round count, for that I defer to some of the senior guys here. What I will tell you is that it depends on how you take care of it. Keep it clean and oiled between range visits. Dry patch before you shoot. The common rules of thumb here.

I’m sure there’s verbiage somewhere that describes an expected round count.
 
mto7464 said:
Need pictures.
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http://www.k98kforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=223143&d=1576042520.

attachment.php
 
With appropriate service type ammunition barrel life should be 10,000 to 12,000 rounds.

Most barrels suffer more damage from improper cleaning than from being shot.

Corrosive primed ammo requires that the barrel be flooded with water to remove salt deposits that WILL ruin a barrel quickly, if not dissolved and flushed out.

Oil does not remove residual salt deposits , and salt does not dissolve in oil, only in water, which is why you MUST use water, or a water based product, FIRST when cleaning after firing CORROSIVE PRIMED AMMO.
 
DaveDavis said:
With appropriate service type ammunition barrel life should be 10,000 to 12,000 rounds.

Most barrels suffer more damage from improper cleaning than from being shot.

Corrosive primed ammo requires that the barrel be flooded with water to remove salt deposits that WILL ruin a barrel quickly, if not dissolved and flushed out.

Oil does not remove residual salt deposits , and salt does not dissolve in oil, only in water, which is why you MUST use water, or a water based product, FIRST when cleaning after firing CORROSIVE PRIMED AMMO.
Click to expand...

I only shoot S&B, PPU and will shoot hand loads.... I have only put 40 rounds through it... not sure how much the germans fired it.

Is there an estimate how many rounds soldiers would typically fire with a rifle?
 
I have put close to 3000 rounds through my 1940, 42 code Mauser over the past 15 years. Mostly original German ammo. I always run several pints/gallons of really hot water through the barrel (and fresh water on bolt face) on returning from the range. I then dry, clean with solvent, oil up with CLP and put away. The barrel still looks shiny and pristine and it still shoots as accurately as always. I suppose it would be possible to wear it out. My guess is the barrel would last around 10,000 rounds, but it's just guess. I used to change my 7.62 target rifle barrel at around 5/6000 rounds. I enjoy the shooting experience., but as I get older I find I shoot less as the recoil gets tough on my arthritic shoulder. I wouldn't shoot a collectible piece, but have no qualms shooting a mixmaster, common code rifle. I believe one should enjoy the time with these historic pieces on the range.
 
I remember reading that the life of an average barrel is about 5-10 seconds, give or take. That time is accumulated by the thousandths of a second at a time that each round spends travelling the barrel. I agree that poor barrel cleaning can dramatically affect that time also. No way to know how many rounds went through it for certain prior. Only a guess by looking at bore/rifling condition. Some got used enough to get new replacement barrels and others probably saw limited use during the war.
 
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DaveDavis said:
Corrosive primed ammo requires that the barrel be flooded with water to remove salt deposits that WILL ruin a barrel quickly, if not dissolved and flushed out.

Oil does not remove residual salt deposits , and salt does not dissolve in oil, only in water, which is why you MUST use water, or a water based product, FIRST when cleaning after firing CORROSIVE PRIMED AMMO.
Click to expand...

Boiling water preferably, about 3 litres worth, as it dries quicker and then you don't need to use as much patches to dry it out (there was a war on) and oil the bore afterwards.

The British Army in WW2 used locally made up pouring funnels with a bent section of pipe brazed into the end of a spent 303 case to make the task easier.
 
GeeRam said:
Boiling water preferably, about 3 litres worth, as it dries quicker and then you don't need to use as much patches to dry it out (there was a war on) and oil the bore afterwards.

The British Army in WW2 used locally made up pouring funnels with a bent section of pipe brazed into the end of a spent 303 case to make the task easier.
Click to expand...

Boiling waters is over kill. Warm soapy water is better. Boiling hot can dry so fast you get flash rusting. I have seen this happen when I used HOT water in a BP rifle. Ran a patch after the HOT water and it was light red from the flash rusting.
 
Guys .... I appreciate the advice on boiling water but there is no corrosive ammo near my gun!

Lets focus on the initial question:

How many rounds is a k98 barrel supposed to last. Lets assume new barrel
 
I've read somewhere that if you can wait at least 35 seconds between shots it will extend your barrel life substantially.
 
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