Is A byf 43 Restoration Worth the Effort?

[Nehalem Man]

First post. Thank you for letting me participate!

Fate has landed into my lap a sporterized byf 43.

I have had many military-to-sport conversions pass thru my hands over the years and generally I don't give them a second glance because they are often cut, drilled, bent, or chopped past being a candidate for restoration. However, for whatever reason, I looked twice at this one. No holes drilled in the receiver, barrel un-cut, and sights, trigger, trigger guard and floorplate still original. Plus, all of the parts still with the rifle are matching number. Whoever turned it into a sporting rifle simply replaced the original stock and made no further modifications that I can see.

The bad news of course is that the original stocks and numbered hardware are long gone, plus the cleaning rod, and front sight hood. Still, it seems that it might be a fun wintertime project to put the rifle back to its correct military trim.

Thoughts? Worth the effort? Hints as to where I might find correct parts other than eBay?

-E-

 

[bnz41john]

Welcome to the forum!

If the action, barrel, sights are untouched...then yes. It's a no Brainer. A walnut or laminate cupped buttplate stock, with 12 inch cleaning rod, and a sighthood should turn this back into a proper k98k.

A yugo reworked k98k stock would be the easiest route to go as they can still be found regularly and they are cheap. In comparison to non reworked stocks. But they are a bit frowned upon by collectors, as they have been scrubbed and renumbered by the yugoslavians.

A better route to go may be a norwegian reworked stockset. As they are less reworked then the yugo stocks. But they do cost more. The trader section of this very forum has these stocks pop up from time to time.

There is a original rifle made by the same factory, in the same year, and close in serial number to yours in the picture reference section of the forum. If you want to see how your rifle looked "new", that would be a great reference to look at.

Awesome rifle!

 

[luftpirate]

Heck Yeah! Do it up.

 

[Nehalem Man]

Welcome to the forum!


There is a original rifle made by the same factory, in the same year, and close in serial number to yours in the picture reference section of the forum. If you want to see how your rifle looked "new", that would be a great reference to look at.

Awesome rifle!

This one?

byf43 'f' block

I haven't posted any K98k in a while, so here is a very boring byf43 I picked up from Bruce ages ago. Some sloppy wood work in the sling and bolt cutouts but otherwise your typical f block.

www.k98kforum.com

What is the significance of the c, e, f, blocks?

-E-

 

[heavy_mech]

This one?

byf43 'f' block

I haven't posted any K98k in a while, so here is a very boring byf43 I picked up from Bruce ages ago. Some sloppy wood work in the sling and bolt cutouts but otherwise your typical f block.

www.k98kforum.com

What is the significance of the c, e, f, blocks?

-E-

Every 'block' represents 10,000 rifles. Is that what you're asking?

 

[AN-94]

Every 'block' represents 10,000 rifles. Is that what you're asking?

Should add this was for 1942 and before. 1943 introduced the 5 digit SN with each letter suffix corresponding to the month of serialization (no letter = January, a block = February, b = March, etc.). The j block was skipped due to being too similar to i in appearance thus leaving the L block for December.

 

[Cyrano4747]

Seconding what everyone else has already said, if the metal is as you say it is this is a absolute 100% easy layup of a restoration. No brainer. The only real question is going to be how much effort you put into getting a correct stock.

 

[Nehalem Man]

Seconding what everyone else has already said, if the metal is as you say it is this is a absolute 100% easy layup of a restoration. No brainer. The only real question is going to be how much effort you put into getting a correct stock.

So, to answer that question....not too much.

I like to shoot my firearms and since this one is already missing its original stocks and related parts, I decided to simply go with "period correct" parts for the time being.

Today I removed the hideous '60s stock and sent it to the trash bin. A previous owner had coated the barrel and action with some type of varnish or shellack which I removed with acetone. The remaining blue finish is actually in pretty good shape considering the age of the rifle.

Next week a stock from Waffenmeister's and replacement bands are due to arrive. Hopefully the stock cleans up nicely. If I eventually I stumble across a nice Wa135 stock, I will replace the mismatched stock, but for now, the one I have coming will get the rifle functional, even if it is in borrowed clothes.

-E-

 

[k98dave]

In the world of restoring GI bring back/ sporters you got a winner for sure.

 

[Nehalem Man]

Damn!!!......Did this project turn into a money pit!!! Let my experience be a warning to the new people who think "Hey! that would be really fun!!"

So, it turns out that this rifle was not as unmolested as I had previously thought. My mistake for not knowing enough about the original specs on the rifle. Whoever sporterized the rifle milled down the barrel steps, the handguard retainer on the rear sight base, and obviously re-blued at least the barrel. I almost abandoned the project at this point and put it aside for a few days.


After thinking on it some more, I decided to move forward. The missing barrel steps, while bothersome to my OCD, would be nearly concealed under the stocks and barrel bands. That I could live with. The rear sight base and the missing hand guard retainer were another matter and would need to be remedied.

I located a replacement base from a dealer in Wyoming. Initially it seemed a rather daunting project since both the front and rear base were soldered in place. Then I realized that the set screws held them in proper place while new solder was applied. The whole operation from start to finish took only 30 minutes.

 

[Nehalem Man]

The rifle stocks turned into another learning experience.

Since the rifle was going to be a conglomeration of mismatched parts and never again more than a shooter grade rifle, I bought a laminate stock from Waffenmeisters. Their ad on Gun Broker notes that some of their stocks are Yugo numbered but fails to mention that they might also be Yugo length.

When I unboxed the stock, the first thing I noticed was a too new looking cupped butt plate. The rest of the stock was in great shape. No cracks or large chips or gouges and the handguard was a good match.

 

[Nehalem Man]

Next step was to drop in the barreled action and lower magazine assembly. Everything fit like a glove!!..............except the upper handguard!!

It was here that I learned that the Yugoslavians sometimes shorted K98 stocks by 1/2" by moving the barrel bands and bayonet lug back. What I received was a Yugo shortened stock and an unmodified German handguard. Luckily, I had been conversing with a guy on another forum who had knowledge of the Yugo stocks and also had a couple of Yugo modified handguards. We did a swap and got the ball rolling again.

 

[Nehalem Man]

Once the handguard issue was resolved, it was then just a matter of assembly of the other small parts I had collected up.

Overall, great learning experience for me. I learned a great deal about the K98k and its variations, and ended up with a cool rifle that I don't have to feel guilty about shooting. Would I do it again? Definite maybe.



-E-

 

[heavy_mech]

Once the handguard issue was resolved, it was then just a matter of assembly of the other small parts I had collected up.

Overall, great learning experience for me. I learned a great deal about the K98k and its variations, and ended up with a cool rifle that I don't have to feel guilty about shooting. Would I do it again? Definite maybe.

View attachment 371618View attachment 371617View attachment 371619

-E-

It turned out nice from what I can see. Good on you! Shoot it and enjoy it.

 

[Remfan]

Good for you. It looks nice. Learning experience plus brought back to more normal. Enjoy shooting.

 

[bnz41john]

A experience most of us learned in the same way. Now you have a decent rifle and the knowledge to do even better the next time you run across a sporter. Glad to see you took the time to go through with it.

 

[skearns]

Forgive me for highjacking your post. I can move this question if needed.

For the experts in the room - I’m in need of some learnin. Is the metal discoloration inside the red line normal? At first I thought it was lighting but it appears to be squared around the serial. I looked in the picture reference and couldn’t locate any others like this. Thanks

 

[bnz41john]

Forgive me for highjacking your post. I can move this question if needed.

For the experts in the room - I’m in need of some learnin. Is the metal discoloration inside the red line normal? At first I thought it was lighting but it appears to be squared around the serial. I looked in the picture reference and couldn’t locate any others like this. Thanks View attachment 371681

Rifle looks like it was sporterized. If so, someone may have put some tape over the serial number to preserve it when they were cleaning or refinishing the rifle. After the tape was pulled off, it left a distinct line in the finish. That would be my best guess from this singular photo.