I posted about this in GD, but felt a post in this forum was warranted for those who stay out of that mire. ;)This past weekend I bought this Wartime Commercial Mauser C-96 at the gun show in Oaks, PA. The caliber is 7.63x25 Mauser. It was supposedly a WW2 bring back and came from a high-end York, PA collection. Given the condition, I wouldn't be surprised if it was a World War One bring back. Either way, it appears to have spent the past century being well-cared for.The original blueing is in excellent shape and the serial numbers on the barrel extension, frame, and bolt match. The bore is excellent. There is still some of the original fire blueing on the rear sight leaf and it's basically intact on the extractor.







There is still some old grease visible in the bolt and the hammer recess. I haven't taken it down yet. I have another Broomhandle, so I know what's involved with takedown and reassembly.






The stock which is in excellent shape is original, but not matching. Since it's an original German stock, BATFE doesn't consider the gun to be an SBR when it's attached. (I have an email to this effect from Tech Branch, addressed to me.) The stock has some pretty nice grain on the left side and it's even visible inside the stock where it's cutout to hold the pistol.The attachment of the stock to the grip frame is solid, with no wobble. Out of curiosity I attached it to my other C-96, and the fit on that gun is sloppy.








I have some original stripper clips and a few hundred rounds of Prvi Partisan 7.63 Mauser ammo that I bought after I got the first Broom. Damn skippy I'm going to shoot it after I verify that the locking block is in good shape. On my other C96 I replaced all the springs and this one is still more difficult to cock. Because it appears that the gun has seen very little use I'm going to hold off on replacing any springs.

Without getting into specifics, the cost was reasonable for the condition of the gun and stock.

After I shoot it, I will post a range report.

I was there looking for one!  I ended up with an OBI model.

That thing looks great!!!

Thanks. Congrats on yours as well. Did you get that reblued Red 9 with hashed barrel? (A "hashed barrel" C-96 has what looks like there's knurling where the barrel meets the barrel extension.)

No, but mine was definitely refinished though.  I wish I had seen all these at the show.  I had a table set up selling some of my own junk and wasn't able to get away all that long.

I'm on the hunt now for another one, and I'd like to go one of two directions: Either 100% original numbers-matching (which will remain in my safe), or a total hodgepodge of pieces just to have fun putting it all together and shooting it a lot.  If I can find a TOTAL trash upper, I may ever try to mill it for a red dot along with rehabilitating it.

excellent!

I saw your thread on the c96 list

old arf thread

http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_1_5/1694642_-ARCHIVED-THREAD----Today-I-Acquired-One-of-My-Grails--Mauser-C-96-Broomhandle.html&page=1

That was my first Broomhandle and it turned out to be a non-shooter, unless I can handload ammo with a larger diameter bullet. The bore is severely worn.

This thread is about the one I picked up last weekend.

So last night after dinner I field stripped this C-96 for the first time. G-d knows the last time it was apart. The grease that was inside the piece had congealed and glued the magazine floorplate and lockwork into the frame. I let a bit of FP-10 soak in and soften it, and I was able to get it apart.It's hard to tell from this picture but the fire blue on the safety lever is almost intact.



Upon disassembly I found that the serial numbers on the floorplate and grips do not match the gun. (It was not represented by the seller as all matching so I'm not upset, just mildly disappointed. They are correct replacements, however.)

I gently scrubbed the hardened grease off the exposed parts with a copper Chore Boy and solvent and left it soaking overnight in FP-10. I will need to fully disassemble the lockwork later today to remove the rest of the gunk. I'd hoped to avoid doing this because reassembly is kind of a PITA. (I've done it before on my other Broomhandle, which doesn't look anywhere near as nice as this one.)

The inside of this C-96 is pristine. Now that I'm able to look through the bore from breech to muzzle, it looks almost new with zero pitting and sharp rifling.

i joined the c96 forum to gain access to the 3d files of the pistol

I would love to see an investment cast frame and mim internals, 22lr one get made

not calling a dupe here, just linking to moar c96 pictures



so getting your first one relined is not worth doing?

Gotcha.

I sent the top end from the first C-96 to Redman's for relining and he sent it back. He uses a piloted reamer to prep the barrel for relining, but the bore on mine was too large for his pilot. He was concerned that it would wander. Also, it shows signs of previously being lined (something the Germans were known to do with shot out pistols). So, unless I can handload for it with a larger bullet it's a safe queen.

Can you not replace the bbl?  A legal antique 1896 in 9x19mm would be the bee's knees.

The barrel and barrel extension on a Broomhandle is one piece of metal. Replacement entails either a completely new top end or cutting the barrel off, boring out the extension, fitting a new barrel and welding it in place. Either option is expensive.

OTH, that would cost less than what I paid for the one in the OP. 

And now I know.  Thanks for the explanation.  Explains why the Bolo conversions were permanent.

Bolos were built new due to restrictions imposed by the Allies after WW1. There were also some pre-WW1 Bolos.

You may be thinking of the 1920 conversions, in which the barrels on C96s were cut down to 100mm, also at the behest of the Allies. Some of them may have been rebarrels but most of them were just cut down and had the front sight reinstalled.

BTW the best website about the C96 that I've found is 1896mauser.com.

very nice!  so jealous!

My rework Red Nine.  Someday I hope to add an unaltered one.  They shortened the barrel, put the front sight back on, removed the rear sight and milled off the sight attachment points. and added the fixed sight.

This one is my favorite out of the broomhandles I have.  I really like the fixed sight compared to the tangent one.  

Attached File

Tonight after dinner Dad and I went to his club and had the place to ourselves. We put 100 rounds of PPU 7.63 Mauser through the C96 with zero malfunctions. I had Dad take a video of me shooting it with the stock. You should be able to view it here:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/uv4mfkc45mft0dy/122416_Dave_C96.mov?dl=0

It's a ~101MB QuickTime file.

Shooting impressions:

• Loading a pistol with a stripper clip definitely isn't as handy as a detachable box magazine. In the case of the this pistol and these clips, you need to wiggle the clips down into the charging slot. They are a tight fit
• The recoil is pretty mild but after awhile the edges of the frame start to dig into the web of your hand.
• The trigger is similar to that of a Mauser rifle. I.e., it is a two-stage trigger. It's a bit heavy but not at all unmanageable. There's little to no creep and not much overtravel.
• The barleycorn front sight is hard to see with 48 year old eyes. It's worse when you shoot it as a carbine, because it's closer.
• Muzzle blast and flash is definitely more noticeable when shot as a carbine, but isn't too bad.
• Cases ejected straight up towards the front and then bounced all over the place with most landing in front of the firing line.
• When I did my part it shot into about a 2" group at 7 yards when shot with two hands. Mean POI was about 2" high.
• I love this gun!

Very cool!

That thing looks great!

I'm jealous! Much nicer than my shot out one. I wish a company would take on making a modern reproduction. Seems most parts could be made mim to keep cost down.

I don't know about MIM but certainly if it was made on modern CNC machinery, the cost would be a lot less than on the manual machines on which they were originally made. I would LOVE to have one rated to handle the hottest 7.62x25  or .38 Super loads and the ability to mount a micro dot sight like a Trijicon RMR.

The ability to mount an RMR is only a mill away now.  

Got one, and my C96 won't be going anywhere near it. Done a couple 80% lowers on it, though. 



(Pic from before I did a belt drive conversion and added digital readouts.)