Building a rifle around an unused Mannlicher-Schoenauer action

Pine Marten

Well-Known Member
Hello everyone.

I spotted this Mannlicher-Schoenauer action on a French website and it made me wonder how one would go about building a rifle around it.

http://www.naturabuy.fr/boitier-STEYR-MANNLICHER-SCHOENAUER-item-1415463.html

Apparently this action has never been used, it’s been sitting around someone’s workshop, and so needs a bit of polishing and so on. Assuming that the action was sound, how would you technically and legally go about using it. For a start, presumably I couldn’t easily buy this and bring it back to the UK as I suppose it counts as a firearm. Or perhaps it doesn’t, I’m not sure, since there’s no barrel. Assuming you could work out the legal acquisition of this action, how would I go about adding a barrel to it, and then the really difficult and expensive bit, a stock?

I imagine you’d be looking at spending a vast amount of money on this and that it wouldn’t make any financial sense.

I’m sure there’s a raft of experience on here on this sort of project.
 
I am not and expert on MS actions but I also had one lying about my bench for 25 years waiting for a project. I finally gave it away. Not that they aren't nice actions but the original military actions in 6.5x54MS are tough to rework. It's not the far-from-standard bolt face, it's the magazine spool. Not a lot will fit. I think I narrowed it to 30 Remington and it's variants. (32 Remington, 25 Remington, 35 Remington)

That said, if that action is something other than 6.5 then the options are open.~Muir
 
There seem to be a lot in France that have been rechambered for 6.5x57, presumably because until last month, the 6.5x54MS cartridge was illegal for hunting as it was a military one. The same goes for the 6.5x55 Swedish.
 
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Hi
You may want to factor in the proof situation for the action - it may be acceptable over here but if not will need to go through the system - either as action only or following completion of the project. Custom build Gunsmiths should be able to provide food for thought.

In years gone by I recall a potential 'action' failing.

L
 
The Schoenauer action has a very slow lock time and as others have said the magazine is an issue in terms of changing calibre. It wont be simple project!
 
The M-S actions are very slick, but after watching a friend do a build on one, I wouldn't want to try it myself. As Muir pointed out, the rotary magazine really limits your choice of cartridges and it would be an expensive project.Doing a build should be a fun and enjoyable experience, if it were me, I'd choose an action that gives you more options as to caliber, scope mounting, etc. I love the classics myself, maybe take a look at a nice commercial Mauser 98 like an FN or a number of others. IMHO I think everyone should have at least one rifle thats built just for them......... or in my case,alot lol
 
Hello everyone.

I spotted this Mannlicher-Schoenauer action on a French website and it made me wonder how one would go about building a rifle around it.

http://www.naturabuy.fr/boitier-STEYR-MANNLICHER-SCHOENAUER-item-1415463.html

Apparently this action has never been used, it’s been sitting around someone’s workshop, and so needs a bit of polishing and so on. Assuming that the action was sound, how would you technically and legally go about using it. For a start, presumably I couldn’t easily buy this and bring it back to the UK as I suppose it counts as a firearm. Or perhaps it doesn’t, I’m not sure, since there’s no barrel. Assuming you could work out the legal acquisition of this action, how would I go about adding a barrel to it, and then the really difficult and expensive bit, a stock?

I imagine you’d be looking at spending a vast amount of money on this and that it wouldn’t make any financial sense.

I’m sure there’s a raft of experience on here on this sort of project.

A friend who is an RFD has got a whole collection of Mannlichers including a very nice he had built as a custom rifle in 22-250. It is a lovely little thing - a real gentleman Roe stalking rifle. Many of the top British makers used to build rifles around the Mannlicher actions, or more probably barrelled actions. Most were built in 6.5x54 Mannlicher, but other cartridges such as the 7x57, 7x64 and 270 and 9.3x57 win were also chambered. The magazines are wonderful, but quite specific to a particular cartridge. Go to nitroexpress.com and there is whole forum on these rifles.
 
The stocks come up on Egun every now and then. There is one up for sale at the moment. Nice rifles but I am biased:D. You could rebarrel it with a Bergara barrel, not overly expensive.
The magazine spool could be a bit of a bugger. Depending on the original calibre it may feed properly or not. My rifle is rebarreled in 308 from 6.5x54MS. It loads 3 rounds successfully.
There is also a gunsmith,Schroder,who until recently made/supplied a lot of spare parts including magazine spools. Probably still does.
Good luck if you go ahead.
 
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Erick Schroeder ceased trading in January this year apparently. I know that some later Mannlicher Schoenauers were chambered in calibres all the way up to 9.3x62. Now that would be something!
 
I have just spoken to an RFD mate who has rifles built for him. He has a very nice one, originally in 6.5x54 but now in 308. Fully engraved it is accurate and reliable if a little slow to cycle. The issue in his opinion were:
Stock. This needs to be done correctly, to get the comb position right for a side mounted scope that is high to clear the bolt lift. There probably are mounts available if you look.
Cycling speed. Not that fast.( although Lord Lovat survived Ww2 and I think he had one instead of a Lee Enfield)
Effort. How patient are you? It might take some time to get it right for you.
Good luck English!
 
I've got a pair of Mannlicher Schoenauer factory guns that were built in the early 60's . Ones a 308 with a half stock and the others a 243 with a full length stock or as you fellows call it a stutzen . I'd like one more stutzen in 270 or 280 and that would most likely do me for Mannlicher Schoenauers .

Oh I forgot I have a Model 1908 in 8x56 MS . But I've yet to load ammo and shoot that one .
 
I know that some later Mannlicher Schoenauers were chambered in calibres all the way up to 9.3x62. Now that would be something!
I'm fairly sure that Richard Harland had one in .458 Winchester which accounted for a great many elephants on culling operations in Zimbabwe
 
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The one pictured above is the post 52 model hence the angled back bolt handle. That would have the spring steel cartridge guide and not the fully contoured magazine spool shown in the French Auction one. The fully contoured spools are very difficult to change profiles on. Prior to 1924 the magazine floor plate was also bi directional. They made them fit one way after that to save a bit of money so i was told.

To make them more desirable to the American market in the 1950's they altered them with the swept back bolt and made them in American chamberings like 270 Win, 30 Springfield (30-06) ............................. sorry not sure if they did the .308 or not.

These American aimed ones are easier to change chamberings on I understand. I have an article somewhere on just such a job. Hmm will have to try and remember what publication is was in and see if it's still here or if it also went walkies.

I have yet to find this slow lock time that is so often quoted :rolleyes: I wonder if those who do so have really had any first had knowledge of te rifles or are just repeating what they heard/read :-| ?
 
I have a rifle built by Dan'l Fraser (in the Bernard Horton days) which is built on the same action (Mine started life as a 6.5x54). It's barreled in 7x57. I've used this rifle for years without any issues at all. Horton did comment at the time the rifle was built that a lot of time went into magazine work and getting the feed correct, but I use either RWS 123g cone-points or Norma 140s with no problems. My action has the bi-directional floorplate - some complain that they're difficult to open but I prefer that to having to root around in the grass for your rounds after a Mauser style floorplate has dropped and dumped all your squibs out!

I've also heard of this story of slow lock time, but in reality the distance travelled by the firing pin is virtually the same as a Mauser, but you don't hear any stories about those.... In practical terms, fast lock times may have an argument for running game, but if you're taking the vast majority of your shots at standing targets, then I don't believe it's a concern.

The things I really like about the MS actions are the smoothness, secure magazine, and the fact that the magazine is a rotary, so when you want to clear your weapon, you open the bolt and press the magazine release which releases the rounds into your hand....no cycling of the bolt required! A modification to consider is an additional safety - I have the original military 'flag' safety which blocks the trigger and locks the bolt, but Horton added a tang style safety (like a shotgun) which only locks the trigger. This has the advantage that the trigger can be blocked when loading and unloading, plus at the moment of the shot, you can ease the flag safety off, and still have a totally silent safety to unblock the trigger immediately before you actually shoot.

Great rifles....don't be put off!
 
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