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ar43 mismatched but honest

Redwormrancher

Active member
Greetings everyone,
I am new to the forum but have been a fan of the K 98 for quite some time. A friend of mine recently purchased this ZF 41 ready ar43 from an estate Picker for $300. I am in the process of trying to negotiate a trade but wanted some opinions as far as desirability being that the bolt is mismatched.

I have always been of the opinion that anything that was mismatched is not worth having - but in this case, I am willing to make an exception, maybe.

Assuming everything else is correct, which it should be, is this a collectible grade “poor man’s sniper“ or should avoid it. I know it all comes down to cost, and he is valuing this rifle between 1500 and $1800. My cost would be considerably less based on the items I would be trading.

By the way, I find it interesting the butt plate is flat and not cupped. It is in the 1000 block, so maybe it was a transition of sort?

Any input or opinions are appreciated, thanks very much -RWR

I just tried to upload pictures and my photos are too large on my phone. I would assume this is a common problem and I hope there is a common fix!
 
Is the stock matching ? Because you said bolt mismatch but i assume all the rifle is mismatched ? Because in 43 it should be cupped . Transition year was 40 to 41 from flat to cupped .
 
Borsigwalde rifles show up with flat plates much later than most, detail stocks pictures will help determine though.
 
Greetings everyone,
I am new to the forum but have been a fan of the K 98 for quite some time. A friend of mine recently purchased this ZF 41 ready ar43 from an estate Picker for $300. I am in the process of trying to negotiate a trade but wanted some opinions as far as desirability being that the bolt is mismatched.

I have always been of the opinion that anything that was mismatched is not worth having - but in this case, I am willing to make an exception, maybe.

Assuming everything else is correct, which it should be, is this a collectible grade “poor man’s sniper“ or should avoid it. I know it all comes down to cost, and he is valuing this rifle between 1500 and $1800. My cost would be considerably less based on the items I would be trading.

By the way, I find it interesting the butt plate is flat and not cupped. It is in the 1000 block, so maybe it was a transition of sort?

Any input or opinions are appreciated, thanks very much -RWR

I just tried to upload pictures and my photos are too large on my phone. I would assume this is a common problem and I hope there is a common fix!
Upload them in an album on imgur and link the album link here is the easiest way.
 
Is the stock matching ? Because you said bolt mismatch but i assume all the rifle is mismatched ? Because in 43 it should be cupped . Transition year was 40 to 41 from flat to cupped .
Everything is matching but the bolt. The stock was not numbered on this maker and year. Neither was the buttplate… according to the Backbone book, page 211

Sorry for the poor quality photo, my friend’s phone is really old. He said there is some hazy rust on the butt plate and need cleaning and oil. It’s dry all over.
 

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Everything is matching but the bolt. The stock was not numbered on this maker and year. Neither was the buttplate… according to the Backbone book, page 211

Sorry for the poor quality photo, my friend’s phone is really old. He said there is some hazy rust on the butt plate and need cleaning and oil. It’s dry all over.
It should be numbered internally on 43 and up, ask him to check
 
I wondered if it would be numbered internally.

He is not a gun guy so he won’t take it apart. It’s not been apart in years based on the look and the source. Not an option unfortunately.

So, assuming only the bolt being mismatched, and the condition being in the 85 to 90%-ish range, is it a “shooter” grade or is there still desirability as a collectable entry level example?

I’d like a keeper but don’t want to be stuck in it too deep. Thanks again for opinions.
 
My friend got it from a Picker. He is fine with the three day inspection thing but before I get into that, I’m just trying to find out if it is worth me messing with or not, again, assuming only the bolt is mismatched.
 

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