2015 so far- Yugo M48 and M24/47

[81turbota]

Hey all,
I've been enjoying the freedoms of the C&R + COE....
Anyways- I've been looking for a nice sturdy Mauser to shoot to save my matching bring back K98 stress (worn bore anyways), and I found these two Yugo Mausers for a great deal. I'm a lefty, so I imagine Ill shoot the 24/47 more due to the straight bolt, but the M48 was too good of a deal to pass up ($225 shipped with a bayo and sling)

Both of them are matching numbers, minus the trigger guard. The 24/47 was bought from a fellow Calgunner and is great shape! He said he got it new still wrapped in the arsenal paper. Absolutely mint bore. The M48 came from gunboards and what looked like a slightly pitted dark bore cleaned right up, now it's mirror bright. The M48 appears shiny like it's been refinished, it's just a little oily.

Ill compare the 24/47 to the M48:
-The bolt on the 24/47 is slightly easier to operate due to the extra leverage of the bolt handle.
-Flat buttplate on the 24/47 vs cupped on the M48
-Crappy trigger on the M48, good one on the 24/47
-Sling loops on the 24/47 vs K98 style on the M48

Now the two versus my K98:
-The German bolt is MUCH smoother than both of the Yugos. The German bolt is tight and buttery smooth, whereas the Yugos are a little loose and have tight spots (think Mosin)
- The sight hoods on the Yugos are shorter than the K98 (or the post is taller), so the sight picture feels "crunched"
-Trigger is better on the K98, same weight as the 24/47, but the K98 is crisper
-The Yugos didn't stamp every little part like the Germans did, only major parts like receiver, bolt body, magazine and stock

All in all, I think both of them will outshoot the K98 simply based on bore condition. Range report to follow!

[DennisCA]

Congrats - Great way to start 2015!
Can't wait for a range report!

[Capybara]

Nice Yugos! I have an M48 that I really like but a 24/47 has eluded me so far. I need a proper German K98 someday when I have disposable income again.

[mj1]

[Bobby Ricigliano]

Yugo Mausers are a good foundation for a Mauser collection. All of the ones I have are great and feel overbuilt, as Yugos typically are.

If you mix up a K 98 and a M48 in a blender you end up,with a 98/48, or Yugo capture K98. All the slickness of a K98 but scrubbed and reworked by the Yugo and at 1/2 the price or less.

[xDoodles]

Nice man!

[Enfield47]

Congrats again, you've had some really nice acquisitions in the last few weeks!

[nick]

Funny, I picked up a couple of Yugos right before New Year's too, an M48 and M98/48.

Your M48 is likely not a refinished one, but just has a good stocks, like many of them are. Does it match the rifle?

[81turbota]

Thanks guys, I expect them to perform well at the range. I've always loved Mausers, but the ammo was the drawback that fueled my Mosin hoard. It seems the heyday of 8mm surplus has come and gone. I wouldn't pass up a 7.62x51 Mauser if I found a good one.

Nick,
I need to clean the light oil off the M48, it's coated pretty heavily. The stock is matching.

[Gaius Marius]

I'm fond of those Yugoslav mausers too, most I've seen have really nice bores, and shoot pretty well if you put some quality ammo through them. For some reason I like my 24/47s more than my M48 though. The bolt isn't turned down for enough or something and the straight bolt feels easier to me. I know that probably sounds strange since my other belt bolt mausers are easy to work. They still all shoot nicely though, I was thinking of using that M48 as a camping gun.

[armenjs802]

Lets go find one.

[81turbota]

Yep, one is up for adoption..I like the 24/47 better