Thanks for all the well thought out and great post. Still time for any younger member to speak up.
When I was 14 or so I was waiting tables at the Boulderado Hotel in Boulder Colorado. I saved every cent of my tips and when Sears (or was it Penneys) in Boulder put 1891 Argentine Mausers on sale for $29 I bought one. Bought the rifle which came with a 100-rounds of FMJ and a box of Norma hunting ammo. I still remember walking from the store back to the hotel with the rifle in one hand and ammo in the other.
One of the first things I did was cut off the stock and with a hacksaw and file shortened the barrel. If I remember correctly the front sight was on a band or I made it a band. I then filed the barrel down for the front sight to fit and soldered it on, a couple times until I got it right.
I shot a couple deer with it then ordered a semi-finished stock from ???? for less then $10 and got the rifle into the stock using a knife and a couple of my dad's chisels. Horrible job but looked good to me at the time.
I've not stopped yet, just don't try to screw up many unaltered military rifles. For those who never had a 91-Mauser the workmanship was tops of any military Mauser IMO.
