Making a Crossover Bolt For the 98 Mauser

Well past its 100th birthday, there isn’t much left to discover about the 1898 Mauser. It’s certainly been one of the most talked-about, written-about, customized, sporterized, homogenized, pasteurized, and plagiarized bolt-action designs of all time. Unfortunately, from the left-handed shooter’s point of view, it has never been very ergonomically friendly. Simply put, the bolt is on the wrong side.

And unfortunately, little has been done over the years by aftermarket manufacturers to address the need for left-handed parts for left-handed shooters. I searched in vain for a Mauser trigger with a left-handed safety so I could put one of those spiffy aftermarket bolt shrouds on my gun.

But, alas, the right-handed majority give us lefties no sympathy and either ignore us or apparently think we’re just being stubborn and should learn to shoot the "right way." I even read one article that suggested that the old straight bolt design was "ideal" for the lefthanded shooter! Ideal? Sure, if you don’t mind that big bolt knob poking you in the belly whenever you carry the gun. And who’s going to spend hard-earned dollars to customize a rifle and then not mount a scope?

Normally, there aren’t many problems that can’t be cured with a suit- The compact arrangement is much handier for the southpaw than the normal right-handed bolt. able application of cash, and it is possible to purchase a left-handed Mauser-style action on the aftermarket. That’s great if money is no object, but the primary thing that’s made the military Mauser so treasured by both professional gunsmiths and hobbyists is the fact that they can be purchased cheaply.

Come to think of it, I don’t know a gunsmith’professional or amateur’who hasn’t cut his gunsmithing teeth on the 98 Mauser. If it wasn’t the first bolt-action rifle he worked on, it came along pretty soon thereafter, and most have worked on lots of them over the years because it’s affordable to experiment on them. To a large degree, that’s still true today. There are still bargains to be had on military Mausers that lend themselves to an almost endless number of projects for the gunsmith.

The hammer marks that moved the metal to shape are still apparent at this point. For this project, I bought a Czech Mauser at a great price. I got the whole rifle, but what I was really buying was the action, bolt, and related parts, since the rest of the rifle will be scrapped. The first order of business was to disassemble the rifle and replace the barrel with a sporter style. I decided on an Adams & Bennet barrels at a reasonable price. Once that was done, the real fun began.

The stock was ordere estock for any action that they cut. I bought a Claro walnut stock for a 98 Mauser with a left-hand cheekpiece and no bolt-handle cutout. They took the order in stride as if they get that request every day. The safety lever that blocks the striker is available from just about all the gunsmithing tool houses, and that allows you the choice of triggers from all the major manufacturers.

So far, other than the stock, and the lack of a trigger with a left-handed safety, it’s been simple to find parts for my Custom Mauser. The problem comes when trying to do something about the right-handed bolt handle. The standard arrangement is unsuitable for the lefty because, to operate the bolt to reload the chamber, he has to reach over the scope and operate the handle in a very awkward fashion.

Years ago, I’d seen a photograph in a magazine of a crossover bolt that was made for use on the Krag with iron sights, and I had spent a lot of time thinking about the concept. The main problem, as I saw it, was that the crossover bolt stuck out the left side of the rifle and was there to catch on every bush, branch, and vine in the forest. The idea I came up with was to build a crossover handle that would lie alongside the scope.

It would be worked with the left hand by rotating it down to open the action, leaving the handle sticking straight out, then pulled back, pushed forward, and finally rotated up to close and lock the bolt. This "butterknife-style" bolt handle can be just as attractive on any hunting rifle and its slim close-to-thestock design can add an elegant look to a cherished rifle. They aren’t very expensive; you can buy one for a right-handed rifle for about $25.

But for a left-handed crossover design, you’re going to have to do some metalwork. A crossover bolt handle for a left-handed shooter doesn’t have to be of the butterknife style, of course, but I wanted it to lie as nearly flat as possible so that was my choice. To duplicate the part I made, you’ll need apiece of square or round steel stock approximately the size of the base of the bolt handle. I found a 36inch-long piece of 7/16-inch square stock at my local hardware store for less than $10.

Next, you’ll need a few tools such as a good file, a torch, and’one of my favorite tools that I rarely get to use’a big old ball-peen hammer. Use an anvil or a block of steel as a base and start forging the bar from the tip. You want to achieve an even taper from the tip to the base of the handle and an even flair from the base to the tip. Hearing protection is an absolute necessity unless you want your ears to ring for the next week.

Keep your blows moderate to heavy to start, and finish with lighter blows to smooth out the surface and reduce the amount of filing that will be required. Forge the handle to shape until you’re satisfied with its width and thickness. Should a crack appear in the tip, stop and cut or file it off. The crack will only get longer if you keep

Once formed, the handle should be sanded with emery cloth to a burnished finish, starting with 60 grit and working up to 100 until all the scratches have been removed. forging. Heat the tip with the torch and allow it to cool slowly, then continue the forging process. Once you are satisfied with the overall shape, eliminate the hammer marks in the surface of the handle by "draw filing." For draw filing, the file is held in both hands with the cutting edge of the teeth facing you.

The file is then placed on the work and pulled toward you. If you’ve been careful and left an evenly hammered surface, you should be able to file the part smooth in 15 or 20 minutes of relatively simple work. Now that you have a smooth and nicely shaped handle, break out the torch and heat the tip, bringing it to as close to ared color as you can. This will allow you to bend it without cracking. Use a glove and hold the bar as far from the heated tip as possible.

Place the tip over the edge of your anvil and hammer it over. This is the time to determine how sharp an angle you want. A good point to start the bend is about 3/4 inch from the tip. The final shape and taper is sculpted with the file. Round the tip and smooth out the taper with the file while removing any "waves" left by the hammer. A rotary tool comes in handy for quickly polishing the file marks out of the handle, sculpting the back to the final shape, and bringing the part to a final finish.

If you do not have a rotary tool, the job can be done just as well if more slowly using files and emery cloth. The general shape of the underside was determined as the metal was stretched during the forging process. You should not have to hammer the back but will have to file and polish it to its final shape. What that shape will be is up to you, it can be flat, round, or scalloped as you see fit. This will take a little file work, but the reward is worth the effort.

You don’t need to bring the part to a mirror finish at this point, since welding it to the bolt will discolor it and require polishing it again. You are now ready to cut the part from the bar. I cut mine at about 5 inches from the tip. Figure 1 will show you the approximate dimensions I used in the final version of the handle. These dimensions are not carved in stone, but will give you a great place to start. Now you can bend the part to shape.

Careful file work will help to sculpt the handle into a pleasant shape, will remove metal anywhere the handle comes in contact with the ejector housing as the bolt is opened, and will smooth out the final shape. Welding the finished part to the bolt is a job you might leave to someone else if you haven’t done it before.

On my first attempt at this project, I tried to keep the bolt as close to the top of the receiver as possible, only to find that the height it crosses over is determined by the ejector housing on the left side of the rifle. When the handle rotates to open the bolt, it must pass over the ejector housing. In my case, this dictated the use of medium rings to mount the Leupold 3×9 scope and have the handle pass under it while still being high enough to clear the ejector housing. Figure 1.

Approximate Dimensions The finished project will produce a modestly priced sporter that is much more left-hand friendly than the original Mauser and allows the southpaw to mount the scope of his choice. I