Back when I started my interest in guns there lots of M96's were still being imported. I would go down to a store on Long Island and they would let me go in the back and handpick them. They were usually $79, sometimes on sale for $69. I have been selling them off over the years , they now bring $3-400 in top condition. I also have one of the ones that Kimber sporterized years ago. Mine is still in 6.5x55 and it is a surprisingly loud boomer but very accurate. Kimber did a bunch up in the .308 family and I have read of setback problems.
My first, and only, attempt at home sporterization was done to a lovely, $79, high condition, 1896 Obendorf. I had the barrel shortened by a good smith and then tried to alter the stock and some of the metal. It ended up looking like one of those guns the apes carried in the original "Planet of the Apes"movie. Someday I may post picture or even let it out of the house....
If a Swede has any condition I would keep it together, there are too many ones out there that have been cut already at cheap prices. I picked up a barreled action at an auction for $30, another at a store for $50. I have never read of one that didn't shoot well (though I am having scope problems on my Kimber). Brownells used to have barrels for them in great old cartridges like .300 Savage, .250 Savage and .35 Rem.
