Mauser Europa 66 rifle - Little understood at the beginning, appreciated later when the practical tests had also illustrated to the tenacious lovers of the past the qualities, the rifle moult Europe 66 marked an era with a totally innovative design. Among the very first to understand it was the never forgotten Pietro Colombano, technician and journalist of primary caliber, while among those who were slow to understand there was also myself convinced then, like many others, by the practical tests carried out by the Master of chamois hunting with a of the first specimens arrived in our area. The projects date back to the end of the 30s and bear the signature of Walther Gehmann, a very valid technician and shooting champion, probably among the few who managed to save some papers and some drawings in the imminent military occupation of Germany in 1945 by the Allies. Twenty years passed before these cards saw the light again, giving rise to something unusual with very particular characteristics. The objectives tended towards a shorter and lighter than normal rifle, all other factors being equal, and together the valuable opportunity of the interchangeable barrel arose, obviously on similar groups of calibers. There was already something to be happy about, but other solutions saw the accuracy significantly improved: we remember how in those days the mountain hunters considered valid the rifle that a hundred meters away placed the shots in one hand, while the less demanding even spoke bottom of a bucket. With the moult one begins to think easily in terms of MOA and to observe the triad of holes almost tangent to each other. The technique sees a telescopic bolt as the basis of the solution with the closure in the breech of the barrel to which is added a recess of extreme precision and tightness.
The technique
The castle is non-existent therefore barrel and bolt have very different supports from the usual: the first is stopped by two Allen screws that cross the stock shaft and the force discharge passes through a prismatic base, milled by the sleeve invested on the barrel itself, placed at contrast with a bronze parallelepiped fixed, by means of two other screws, in its seat carved into the wood. Originally this piece was flat, later assuming the shape of an L with the long side horizontal to gain a contrast of greater efficiency, moreover, in the following types, the length of the sleeve itself will be increased, obtaining a more extended base for fixing. front of the optics by increasing the total weight, which is even too light. Only in the latest edition, already with some investment cast pieces, this sleeve will undergo a new reduction, but the fixing of the optics on two points always remains: the barrel and its sleeve. The first screw is fixed in the socket of the sleeve by joining these pieces; a second junction point is given by a thick foil tightened between barrel and breech and inserted in a pocket made in the barrel: the second screw passes into the front prong of the guard and is tightened in an abutment obtained in the lower thickness of the breech. Further back we find a third anchor formed by a semicircular coupling between the breech of the barrel and the box defined as a fixed breech, recessed in the rear area of the stock, and from which the seats for the slide guides of the bolt carriage, of the magazine cartridges and cog. Another small prismatic base, made with precision from the casting of the piece, has its seat in the wood: the third clamping screw is positioned in its thread after passing through the rear prong of the guard. A short distance from the start of production, a bed of epoxy resin is added to guarantee immovability: the complexity of the manual work can be understood, but the costs were not yet prohibitive and the shooting accuracy was usually amazing even with the usual section of barrel very slender.
The bolt is truly innovative, presenting itself with two pieces that slide one inside the other and the assembly in turn slides on the fixed breech equipped with special guides. In the bolt you can see the cylinder equipped with the two thick closing wings with seats in the mortises milled in the breech ring of the barrel. The lowered face with peripheral bevel houses the hole of the ground firing pin and the spring strut of the ejector; qualifying the H-shaped extraction nail, in special hardened steel, sliding orthogonally in its seat placed above the right wing, held in place by a noose spring with the prongs inserted in the shutter body and the slot that grips in a small rounded recess. Excellent precision work for an important piece. During the speargun's thirty-year life, the handlebar will vary slightly while maintaining its excellent functionality, except in a model with a spherical knuckle cut in half: a real incongruity. At the rear end, a shaped prism houses the sturdy round crosspiece of the safety which acts on a corresponding recess made in the shank of the firing pin: absolute stability with rapid intervention and silence. Also in this detail, a different solution will be seen in the latest models where the round crosspiece will be replaced by a button with a spring lamina: similar is the locking of the firing pin obtained with the rotation rather than with the translation of the axis. The function also blocks the handlebar, so it is not possible to release the safety catch by extracting the chambered cartridge. The movable breech is prism-shaped with smooth lateral surfaces that rise from vertical to the base then inclined: at the front it is open with the two prongs to be inserted in the seats of the fixed breech. The movable breech and the bolt are connected by an upper arch bridge and a lower half arch to allow the passage of the cylinder and the movement of the two pieces with different length strokes. The solution allows you to save about 6-7 cm compared to a K98 action with excellent fluidity of movements. A striped button, placed under the right side, releases the shutter at the end of its travel.
Stock, details and considerations
The choice of woods has always been oriented by the adequate structure and the beauty of the vein: the skilfully crafted one-piece combines German and American style with excellent yields in set shooting and good in running. In the details we note the trigger, certainly among the best ever tested, with a stroke of the firing pin of 5,7 mm and surface of the engagement surfaces equal to only 1,5 mm²: the stecher with two triggers, with fine adjustment, is superb. The lifting sole of the cartridges is made of polished steel: activating this mechanism produces a sound that the shrewd souls dedicated to beautiful sensations will not fail to appreciate. Over the course of about thirty years, the costs and conditions of work have varied so much that even such valuable solutions have had to be put aside. We are comforted to observe how this shotgun is still followed by many connoisseurs on the second-hand market: in our opinion, together with a Mannlicher Schönauer and a Sauer 80, by design and execution, they form a special triad capable of bringing prestige to a rack.
Mauser Europa 66 rifle
Data Sheet
Builder: Mauser Werke AG - Oberndorf am Neckar (Deutsche Bundesrepublik)
Current brand importer: Bignami spa, via Lahn 1, 39040 Ora (BZ) - tel. 0471/803000 - fax. 0471/810899 - www.bignami.it - [email protected]
Model: Europa 66
Type: Rifle Shotgun
Operation: sliding rotating telescopic shutter with ordinary repetition
Closure: two front flaps - mortise in the breech of the barrel
Percussion: firing pin with coaxial spring inside the shutter
Extractor: nail with H base and orthogonal movement - flush register spring
Ejector: elastic pawl at the head of the bolt
Barrel: in steel replaceable according to groups of calibers
Trigger: adjustable stecher with two triggers or direct release
Safety: transversal button on the bolt shank with two positions - locks firing pin, handlebar, trigger - side button to release the bolt at the end of its travel
Magazine: fixed steel 3 or 4 + 1 cartridges
Sight: U or wide V rear sight with drift adjustment and prism front sight - snap-fit optics attachment on front drawstring and rear welded base on barrel breech
Stock: one-piece walnut wood with fine manual checkering or scottish in the grip points - bakelite buttplate
Calibers: 8x68S Schuler (wide choice among the calibers in vogue during the production period) Materials: forged and milled steel for castle and bolt with some die-cast details - carbon steel barrel
Length: 110 cm with 650 mm barrel
Weight: approx. 3.000 to 3.400 g without attachments and optics
Finishes: central body polished shutter and burnishing of the remaining parts