K-31 Schmidt-Rubin

[Ron Smith]

I have been thinking about one of these for awhile. I've studied them somewhat and found that they are supposed to be very accurate, and very well made, as in, like a Luger.

"tac" sent me a photo of him holding his K-31, so I bought one on GB today. Figured that I should get one before they, like everything else, get too expensive. I found an amusing anecdote pertaining to the Schmidt-Rubin quality and accuracy, and thought that I would post it.

There is an apocryphal story of a visit paid to Switzerland by Kaiser Wilhelm II in the early part of the twentieth century. Upon his arrival, he was met by an honor guard of Swiss troops at the railway station in Zurich. Among the impeccably uniformed troops that comprised the honor guard was a crusty old sergeant-major. As he reviewed the troops, the Kaiser paused in front of the sergeant major.

"Is it not a wonder, sergeant-major, that the might of the German Empire is such that the numbers of our standing army are double that of your army, even with all your reserves activated?"

The sergeant-major immediately responded: "Jawohl, your majesty, it is such a wonder!"

The Kaiser prodded the sergeant-major a bit further.

"So what do you think should happen if we were to invade your country, with an army twice the size of yours?"

The sergeant major thought about this for a little bit, and responded.

"Then, your majesty, we should all have to fire our rifles twice!"

[MikeP]

You will like the quality other than the tin trigger guard.
I got one a few years ago-always thought they were funny looking.
The action is very interesting and superb quality.
You have to move your head the same amount as when cycling a regular bolt action. Don't see a lot of advantage.
Real accurate.
I remember when collectors thought G/K 43s were too funny looking and ugly to bother with. Even at a hundred bucks you-pick-it from piles of 50 or so.

[azlaw]

Neat guns, I have three of them. Lightweight and handy for a .30 cal military rifle, a great gun to take a walk with. Very accurate, and very well made. Factory Swiss ammo is pricy, but once you start reloading, it's just like any other .30 rifle round.

The stocks were made of walnut and then later of beech. Both are very nice wood, but the finish is awful; like shelac or something. Does not protect the stock well, which is why so many have those ruined butts from sitting in the snow. You want to refinish the stock with something more up to date if you take the gun out into the weather. Make sure to look for a "soldier card" under the butt plate, and then you can write a letter to the original owner if there is one. See "www.swissrifles.com" for the story on this.

The action is beautifuly made, like a proverbial Swiss watch. It would not last 10 seconds on a battlefield, mind you, but hopefully we won't be using the guns for that purpose. You get an "A" in shop class if you can take the bolt completely apart, get it back together again, and have it still work - without instructions. Took me 3 beers, not as hard as it looks, but be careful not to put the firing pin into orbit.

Straight pull actions weren't as good an idea as they seemed; it takes a pretty good "yank" to unlock the action, and a "shove" to close it - an you get no mechanical camming advantage on closing. The Enfield and Mauser designs are much better IMHO.

H

[Ron Smith]

Several years ago I had two Swiss Schmidt-Rubin Model 11 rifles. Ammo was impossible to find so I sold them.

The one that I bought has a nice walnut stock and I intend to refinish it. I'm also considering getting a second one to have rebarreled to .260 Remington, and sporterizing it.

Thanks...

Ron