Israeli Mauser .308 Question

[DGleason]

I have a Mauser K98 that I bought back in the 1980s. I didn't know anything about Mausers back then. The sales receipt says it's an "Israeli Mauser .308" After I learned more about Israeli Mausers I found out that the Israeli Army converted a lot of their then getting obsolete K98s from 8 mm to NATO 7.62 mm in the 1950s because that's what their new standard infantry rifle used. But there was a prominent "7.62" marked on the receiver and on the stock to show which K98s were converted and which ones were not. My Israeli Mauser does NOT have these markings.

My Mauser K98 was produced in 1940 in Germany (code bcd), but has had the proof markings defaced. I've heard that this is because the Israelis wanted to remove the Nazi emblems from their weapons. Other than that, I don't know what marks would identify this as an Israeli Mauser. All I have to go on is the sales receipt that says it's an Israeli Mauser.

I showed my rifle to a gunsmith and he told me it was chambered for .308, not NATO 7.62 mm. I thought they were the same, but NATO 7.62 mm rounds do not fit well into my Mauser. I can chamber a round, but it is a tight fit to get the bolt closed, whereas with the .308 I have a good fit.

This leads me to suspect that somebody other than the Israeli Army rechambered the gun to .308 after the Israeli Army sold it off, or maybe it isn't even Israeli to begin with.

Here are my questions.

What are the markings that would prove that this is an Israeli Mauser K98?

How common was it for civilian owners to rechamber ex-Israeli Army 8 mm Mausers to .308? Why would somebody want to do that? Ammo supply? But 8 mm Mauser ammo still seems easy to get.

Could you rechamber a gun to be good for .308 but not work for NATO 7.62? I'd heard they are supposed to be interchangeable, but my gun doesn't seem to work that way.

 

[sprat]

welcome to the site,

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type in Israeli 308 Mausers or K-98 there is a ton of answers to your questions

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[bigwagon]

Israeli K98s usually have several Hebrew characters and/or Star of David markings on the receiver and barrel near where the serial numbers are stamped, along with the "7.62" mark on the chamber. If your rifle has none of these characteristics, it's possible it was converted by someone else. As far as the caliber, there are differences in the loading of commercial 308 and military 7.62x51, and military brass is usually thicker resulting in different internal volume, but the external case dimensions are the same. What you are experiencing is probably just a difference in manufacturing tolerance between different brands of ammo, or perhaps your rifle has a tight chamber.