OK folks, here's the question...

How do you determine a fair value on a sporterized Mauser? A friend is interested in selling one. All I know so far is "Mauser", .30-06 and "nice". I haven't seen the rifle yet. I realize that there are a ton of variables here but where would you start to determine a fair (to both of us) price?

go on gun broker and do a search and see what folks are paying, then loook at the facts of how much do you want it.. to me a sporterized maus aint worth much, but to someone else its a million dollar gun..

Good point Morax...Well said.
And www.gunbroker.com is a good place to start. Another thought is why does he want to sell it. Bills to pay? Got tired of it? wants to buy a new rifle and one had to go first? And the biggy...Is it worn out or can't hit the inside of a barn with the windows and doors boarded up?...Just how good of a friend is he?

Can't help it...I'm just a suspicious person...

I gave $250 for a Mauser action rebarreled in .243 with a synthetic stock. It will shoot the private parts off a prarie dog. Best money I ever spent.

It is hard to tell by a surface look how well a sportser job was done. You really need to shoot it to be sure.

Thanks Morax! I looked there and there is a WIDE range of prices.

Bushy, LOL! Those are good points! He's a straight up guy, retired USMC. He was given the rifle by a widow in return for work he was doing around her home. She didn't want it around any more and my friend doesn't hunt any more. I don't think he's ever even fired this one. I'm betting he'd let me shoot it before buying.

Dawgdad, thanks for the input! That's in the range I was thinking but obviously I won't know until I see the thing.

glad i could help ya, i figured you would find everything from 1.00 to 1K for the critters.. also since ya'll seem more versed on "sporterizing" than me, just what defines something being sporterized? like Dawgdad stated a mauser actioned 243, but now is this a major or a minor sport? besides that i dont wanna change thier religion i wanna make them living challenged! hahhaha

To me "sporterised" usually indicates the stock has been remodelled to make it look more like a sporting firearm. Anything more than that I would consider "customised".

I know that out here in Australia you wouldn't get that much for a sporterised Mauser unless it was in "mickey mouse" condition.

Take it for a shot or two Punkin and see how it stands up. If'n it is a shooter then I think that your mate would either say $X or "make me an offer". Dawgdad has put you in the ballpark so from there it comes down to how much you want it or how much its worth to you.

Cheers, Vince

I'll try to get ahold of this rifle for testing and take some pics. I'll let you know and see what you think.

You know you might get a bit of luck to intervene and have it be a Springfield. Some folks get these mixed up EASILY, even some who should know better still make mistakes. I would think what has been suggested sounds right to my way of thinking. But then I am not the one "looking/fondling" it. HA HA!!

It depends. I have a bunch of sporterized '98 Mausers and have spent as little as $10.00 and the most I have ever paid was $150.00. It depends what was done to the rifle, who did it and how good was their workmanship. I have passed up a lot of sporterized Mausers that had mutliple holes drilled in the receiver or other abuses. So a careful examination is required. Some spoerterized Mausers can be remilitarized while others make wonderful sporters. There are some that are just lost causes. So, it depends. All the best...
Gil

Thanks Gil, good info.

There are so many things when it comes to Mausers and other military arms to base their "value" that its really a case by case basis and its in the eye of the beholder and what he wants and is willing to pay.

Was it arsenal refinished? How was it sporterized? Does the buyer want it as a hunting rifle, a restoration project, to add to a collection etc? Does the serial number on the parts match? Does it have specific makes markings or dates that are deseriable? Was it converted to a different caliber and/or bolt face? Do spare parts exist to restore it to make it valuable to a collector or restorer? And many more.

If the stock was the only thing touched, it may be salvageable by the de-sporterizers, which makes makes it more valuable to them then to lets say a hunter as they pride themselves in restoring guns. Most of these are "Bubba" jobs, someone who wants to make a military rifle quickly into a hunting rifle with iron sights.

If metal was touched, depending on how it was done it was ether a "bubba" or "custom" job. They may or may not be restorable based on the availability of the parts and if they were drilled and tapped. IE if the metal removal seems rough, kinda looks like someone used basic hand tools to do the job, well then its a "Bubba". On the other hand if it was done right, the barrel cut down on a lathe, the scope mount drilled and tapped properly etc. Well then its a "Custom".

Dimitri

Since gunbroker has such a range I would compare it to what it is, an older 30-06 bolt action. If the stock is just a cut down it would be a lot cheaper than a fancy grade walnut job with 20 line/inch checkering. How's the metal, blued or worn? Is the overall appearance pleasing to the eye? Most importantly, what are you going to use it for and what's that worth to you? All in all unless it's absolutely fabulous work comparable to a commercial version I doubt if I'd go more than $200 even if it shot half inch groups.

There are a lot of sporterized '98 Mausers on the used gun racks around here and prices are all over the map. Most of the ones I have examined are priced at $200.00 or less, often much less. Now is a good time to shop for a rifle and the prices are usually negotible.

Be careful with '98 Mausers in .270, .280 and .30-06 because they may not feed cartridges at normal OAL. The magazine box is set up for the shorter 8mm Mauser round and needs to be modified for the longer .30-06 class of cartridges. Take care...
Joe

More good info! See why I like this site? Thanks all!