Granted, these are unlikely events with factory cartridges. There is no safety lug on the bolt to help keep it in the gun in the event of a high pressure event, and there is no provision for the safe escape of gas in the event of a ruptured case. The 7.65 Argentine Mauser of 1891 is pleasant to shoot but it is not as safe as later Mauser models. Not to say that the flyers shown here are not my fault they might have something to do with sighting or holding in the rest, but nothing I can really put a finger on.īe that as it may, the groups demonstrate very good accuracy for the Model 1891 and they show that a good degree of precision is possible with the long sight radius, aperture sight setup. If I get a group that has a flyer that I know is my fault, I burn it. I have no explanation for the errant shots they are not “called flyers.” You will never see a group with a “called flyer” in my articles. The cluster in the right-hand target contains five shots and measures 0.65”. The cluster of four in the middle target measures 0.73”. Flyers also appeared occasionally as shown in the other two groups, each showing a superb cluster and then one flyer. The gun often prints a round group, such as the one on the left that measures 1.15”. You need pay no attention to the additional lines or circles in the upper circle. The lower circle is used to center the inverted V front sight and the upper circle catches the shots. That shows a need for a higher front sight, but I haven’t done that yet, so the target was designed to allow me to shoot groups in reliable, repeatable fashion. Even with the rear aperture sight set at its lowest point the gun prints about 6 inches high at 50 yards. The picture shows three of the groups, and the target needs comment. I shot about a dozen five-shot groups at fifty yards to get an idea of accuracy for gun and cartridge. I am thinking that a 24-inch barrel would produce velocity pretty close the 2430 fps of the factory Krag 180, and we know that that round is no slouch when it comes to the killing of game. Keep in mind, however, that these velocities were obtained using the 29-inch barrel of the Model 91 Mauser. 30-40 Krag, a military cartridge that was a contemporary of the 7.65 in the late 19 th and early 20 th centuries. 308 Winchester and that the 180-gr SP moves quite a bit faster than a similar bullet does when launched by the. Note that these velocities are in the ball park of the. PPU 180 grain SP (8 shots): Ave 2559 fps Spread 53 SD 16 PPU 174 grain FMJ (8 shots): Ave 2608 fps Spread 85 SD 28 Both loads performed well in the Model 91 Mauser in terms of velocity and accuracy.
#1891 argentine mauser carbine ammo full
The loads available from PPU are a 174-grain full metal jacketed round and a 180-grain soft point that would be suitable for hunting. Two loads are currently produced by PPU (Prvi Partizan Uzice of Serbia) and Hornady produces one load. A few American rifles, including the Model 70 Winchester, were chambered for the 7.65 round, and American loading companies produced it for a while, but that is long gone.
Bullet diameter is 0.311 in., the same as that used by the. 308 performs better because it operates at higher pressure, the 7.65 being held to 46,000 psi, or so. The rear sight is a military ladder type and the front sight is an inverted “V” This ’91 has a walnut stock, a straight bolt handle, and a 29.1-in. The machining and fabrication processes were also of high quality. My Model 1891, made by Ludwig Loewe of Berlin, was made for smokeless powder, and Loewe was known for using the best steel and heat treatment processes available. One thing we have going for us is the quality that was put into the construction of these arms. Shooting old military rifles is a very interesting pastime, but only when it can be done safely. It was an early step toward the famous Model 1898 Mauser, but not as strong or as safe as that later arm. The Model 1891 has an action identical to the preceding Belgian Mauser Model of 1889, which was the first Mauser model to have a bolt with two front locking lugs, a vertical magazine, and a design intended for use with smokeless powder cartridges. Since then I have had some additional shooting experience that I would like to report for the Model 91. You can check that out if you would like a complete description of this old, military number. Not bad for November, and a long shooting season is just one of the things I am thankful for.Īccompanying me to the range was a Model 1891 Mauser, caliber 7.65 x 53, also known as the “Argentine Mauser,” that I first described in a post on June 9, 2011. Yesterday I enjoyed a trip to the shooting range with an afternoon temperature of 61 deg. Only three days remain until Turkey Day, 2012, as I write this.