Much the same story continued after World War II when the always-steady trickle of Mausers became a downright tsunami of not only German-produced guns but also examples made by companies such as FN in Belgium, Husqvarna in Sweden, Brno in Czechoslovakia, and elsewhere. Talk about a time machine! (Photo: Chris Eger/) 32CF Remington Rolling Blocks and Canadian Ross rifles. 30-06 with new 22-inch barrels, alongside Krag sporters. This 1927 Bannerman’s catalog has “Russian Springfield Rifles” which were Remington-made Tsarist contract Mosin M91s that were converted to. New custom gunsmiths like Griffin & Howe in New York joined well-known Army-Navy retailers like Bannerman’s in converting these guns over to use as “sporter” rifles. In a form of “swords into plowshares,” these went from arming soldiers to soldiering on in the task of putting food on the table and giving peace of mind as a symbol of democracy over the fireplace.įast forward to the 1920s and WWI surplus Pattern 17 ( M1917) Enfields and M1903 Springfields soon began appearing alongside older Krag. 43 Spanish, the big 10.4mm Italian 1871/87 Vetterli and the French M1874 Gras, chambered in 11mm. Some of the most popular rifles on the hunting racks from “sea to shining sea” in the early 1900s were milsurp European arms like Remington Rolling Blocks in calibers like. We are talking about the ones that have been “sportified” or, as some say, were “violated by bubba.” These guns, which still have the heart and soul of an old soldier, typically have seen scope mounts added, new Monte Carlo (or even synthetic) furniture added in place of the old full-length wood stocks, chopped-down barrels, and updated sights. These guns, with the right load ( 150 grains on Garands, please), work and work well.īut we aren’t talking about those vintage dual-purpose firearms. Truth be told, I harvested my first whitetail as a somewhat shaky pre-teen with the help of a stock Argentine DWM Mauser that stood about as tall as I did at the time. Now let us be clear, in most cases, a more or less correct retired military rifle in safe shootable condition, be it a Trapdoor Springfield, Martini-Henry, M1903, or even an SKS, can double as a deer gun with the correct ammo and little further modification. Love them or hate them, there are thousands of surplus military rifles that are floating around as sporters. SEE GREAT PRICES ON 100s OF USED RIFLES IN STOCK This M1917 Remington “ American Enfield” lost its ears and was sporterized decades ago but still clocks in regularly as a tried-and-true deer rifle. While the rule of thumb in milsurp rifles is “No, bubba, no!” there are thousands of sporterized military rifles already in circulation that need love, too.