Mauser’s Affordable Modern Bolt Gun

Text and Images By R.K. Campbell

Contributing Editor

For the past forty years I have owned quite a few Mauser rifles.

A number of Model 95, 98, 98K, Brno, Zastava and other variants have given good service. All are based on the most prolific bolt action rifle of all time, the handiwork of Paul Mauser.

The newest Mauser bears little resemblance to the earlier bolt action rifles but the rifle, like earlier designs, is intended to compete and to sell well. I believe it will do so.

The Maser M18 is intended to offer a higher quality package rifle than many competitors while maintaining an attractive price point. While the Mauser is more expensive than the Savage Axis, Remington 783 and similar rifles, it costs a fraction of what the Blaser rifle may. Yet, as we will see, the Mauser 18 offers exceptional accuracy. The rifle is as modern as possible and offers features not found on less expensive rifles.

Firing the Mauser M18 for accuracy was a pleasure.

While the new rifle isn’t a Mauser 98, it is an authentic Mauser. For around $700 without optics this is an affordable first class rifle with good performance. It is a budget model for those that desire the best in performance.

The stock is among the M18’s best features. The stock features soft rubber gripping surfaces around the pistol grip and the fore end. There isn’t a lot of abrasion but the stock offers good adhesion in firing. The stock narrows toward the semi pistol grip and then swells where the palm sets. By pressing in on tabs holding the butt pad the recoil pad may be removed, allowing storage of small items like a cleaning kit. The stock is foam filled eliminating the drum sound of cheap synthetic stocks.

The Mauser rifle features clean functional lines.

The M18 isn’t a controlled feed design such as the original M98 but rather this is a push feed design that includes three locking lugs and a plunger type ejector. One of the locking lugs features a robust extractor. There is plenty of leverage thanks to the bolt design, with a sixty-degree bolt lift. The rifle is fast to cycle, however, the M18 also demands that you use a certain rhythm and work the bolt aggressively for best feed reliability.

The bolt’s operating knob is an ideal size for easy manipulation. The bolt shroud features a red based cocking indicator, and the bolt is not difficult to field strip, clean, and maintain. The action features a cylinder shaped action. This action isn’t difficult to machine compared to many of the more complex rifles of the past. This action allows precise machining and fit for excellent accuracy potential.

Among the rifles good features are a three position safety and a smooth operation.

Among the advantages of the original Mauser was a three position safety. This safety allows the shooter to operate the bolt with the safety on and lock the bolt as well if desired. The Mauser M18, however, handles the safety mechanism in a different manner. The safety is located on the side of the reciever. The position at the rear is safe and bolt locked, while the middle position is also safe but the bolt may cycle, while the forward position allows the rifle to fire.

After a few manipulations the safety is intuitive and very fast. Three dots provide visible indication of the safety’s location. Importantly, the safety operates silently. In the modern fashion the rifle features an adjustable trigger. There is a screw in the top of the trigger that may be turned clockwise to increase the trigger weight and counterclockwise to decrease pull weight. An important advatnage of the Mauser M18 is the trigger action. It is among the cleanest I have ever used in a factory rifle.

The detachable magazine is a good feature. It is reliable in operation.

The rifle is supplied without an optic. After some study and thought I added a Minox optic. The Minox ZL 3 4-12 x 40 Plex was chosen. While Minox offers several good choices, I like the choice of 4 to 12 power over the common 3 to 9 power. The optics are very clear and offer good clarity. The adjustment knobs are easily moved and the scope proved easy to sight in. The rifle is light enough at just over seven and one half pounds with the scope mounted. This is an ideal weight for a hunting rifle, not too heavy to carry all day but heavy enough to absorb recoil. With the standard 22-inch free-floated barrel the rifle has an overall length of 41.5 inches.

Mauser designed the M18 with a box magazine that holds five cartridges rather than the usual three or four.

Mauser offers the M18 in several calibers including one of my favorites, the .308 Winchester. In the interest of my education and the reader I ordered my example in 6.5 PRC. This is a brilliant new cartridge developed by Hornady. This cartridge has been called a short magnum for its performance. The advantages over the 6.5 Creedmoor include a velocity of more than 200 fps faster with the same bullet weight.

There are only two loads at present, the 143 grain ELD MATCH with an advertised velocity of 2,910 fps and the 143 grain ELD X at an advertised 2,960 fps. When fired in the Mauser rifle each was spot on for velocity over my chronograph. The 143 grain load was slightly faster at 2,976 fps.

The ballistic efficiency of this cartridge is impressive. With the rifle zeroed for a dead on hold at 100 yards, drop at 1,000 yards is about 25 inches. This is an impressive standard. Yet the 6.5 PRC accomplishes this without excessive recoil. The 6.5 PRC in my estimation doesn’t kick harder than the .308 Winchester. A hard kicking rifle will affect even the best rifleman. The 6.5 PRC is a cartridge that you may sit at the bench and fire for extended periods without discomfort. While there are good 6.5 cartridges from the past the rifle’s twist rate of 1:8-inch isn’t well suited to the modern low drag 6.5 bullet and neither is the cartridge case shoulder. Custom jobs may be ordered for a 1:7-inch twist for heavier bullets. The 6.5 Creedmoor is an improvement over these and the 6.5 PRC an even greater improvement.

Hornady Ammunition provided excellent ballistic performance and accuracy.

The 6.5 Creedmoor is an increasingly popular cartridge. The 6.5 Creedmoor is chambered in economy rifles and self-loaders. The 6.5 PRC due to its design isn’t likely to be chambered in a self-loader. The 6.5 Creedmoor will do much of what needs to be done in the hunting field, given proper bullet selection. The 6.5 PRC is for those that desire more performance.

The Mauser M18 was pleasant to fire and use with the 6.5 PRC cartridge. The rifle comes with an accuracy guarantee of 1 MOA and it certainly met any reasonable accuracy standards. Firing the 147 grain MATCH loading the rifle exhibited .6 to .8 inch groups. The 143 grain ELD X loading was even more impressive with three shot groups of .5, .7. and .8 inch. How I lined up the crosshairs and pressed the trigger was also a factor, but either load is more accurate than I am able to hold. This is a pleasant rifle to use and the 6.5 PRC cartridge is an outstanding choice.

The Mauser M18 is a classy rifle if not a classic yet. It offers excellent accuracy, smooth function and a pleasing appearance.