new barrel for vz-24

rwelfley · 07-31-2004, 10:41 AM

hope someone out there can help me. i have a vz24 that i got from my brother a few yrs back. only one thing, the barrel is starting to pit real bad. i have seen replacement barrels and thought of going to the 30.06 caliber. anyone know we i could find a bolt to fit the vz24 in that caliber. i shoot a lot of surplus ammo and my boys are still a little shy of the 8mm round. if not a new 8mm barrel will have to be bought. thnx

lefty o · 07-31-2004, 01:45 PM

the bolt you currently have in the rifle will work perfectly with the 30-06 cartridge. just have the rifle rebarreled and correctly headspaced.

rwelfley · 07-31-2004, 03:21 PM

thnx, i wasnt sure if the bolt would work or not, now i can get a good barrel for the rifle, again thnx

Ricochet · 08-04-2004, 01:31 PM

If the barrel's starting to pit, and wasn't pitted to start with, you're not properly cleaning it after shooting the corrosive primed surplus ammo. You have to first clean it thoroughly with water or a water containing solution like ammonia (which also removes copper.) That dissolves and washes out the corrosive potassium chloride salt left by the primers. My practice is to turn the rifle muzzle down and upside down so it won't run into the action, and run patches dripping wet with ammonia from the breech to the muzzle. One way only, so you don't pull the salt back into the cleaned bore. (About 10 patches.) Then finish with your favorite cleaning solvent and oil.

You may encounter feeding problems with a .30-06 conversion, as it's a longer cartridge than the magazine follower's designed for. Mauser used a different follower for every cartridge. Personally, I'd stick with the 8mm as it's equivalent to the .30-06 in power, accuracy and versatility, but still available in cheap surplus ammo which the .30-06 isn't. (Yeah, I know there's some out there, but it's no longer cheap.)

Many rifles with pitted bores still shoot quite well. A good throat and muzzle are the most important barrel factors for accuracy; careless use of a cleaning rod's the quickest way to ruin one by damaging the rifling lands at the muzzle.

Snakebite · 08-04-2004, 07:17 PM

If they are shy of the 8mm they wont like the .06 any more!
I've seen the barrels chambered for .308. That would be my choice.

Ricochet · 08-06-2004, 02:52 PM

My suggestion, if you want to tame the rifle down for the boys, would be to handload some light loads in the 8mm. Cast bullets are especially nice for this, but on Hodgdon's web site they have some nice recommendations for reduced loads with jacketed bullets that are still in the short range deer hunting class.

My VZ.24 has a lot of frosting and some pitting in the bore, from the days 60 years ago when some Romanian soldier was carrying it to fight the Russians and didn't always take time to properly clean it. (Likely because he was running to save his hide.) It still shoots very well. Give that thing a good cleaning, try it out, and read up on cleaning after shooting corrosive-primed ammo. Bet it still is a fine shooter.

Shaun · 08-06-2004, 03:43 PM

I have a VZ24 in 06' and the mag feeds perfectly no modifications

07-31-2004, 10:41 AM	#1
rwelfley Member Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 33 Trader Rating: (0)	new barrel for vz-24 hope someone out there can help me. i have a vz24 that i got from my brother a few yrs back. only one thing, the barrel is starting to pit real bad. i have seen replacement barrels and thought of going to the 30.06 caliber. anyone know we i could find a bolt to fit the vz24 in that caliber. i shoot a lot of surplus ammo and my boys are still a little shy of the 8mm round. if not a new 8mm barrel will have to be bought. thnx

07-31-2004, 03:21 PM	#3
rwelfley Member Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 33 Trader Rating: (0)	re: thnx, i wasnt sure if the bolt would work or not, now i can get a good barrel for the rifle, again thnx

08-06-2004, 03:43 PM	#7
Shaun Super Moderator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Nashville, TN Posts: 8,585 Trader Rating: (0)	I have a VZ24 in 06' and the mag feeds perfectly no modifications __________________ "Homeland Security is the responsibility of an armed citizen" ME http://webpages.charter.net/s.s.v/

07-31-2004, 01:45 PM	#2
lefty o Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: mn Posts: 4,672 Trader Rating: (0)	the bolt you currently have in the rifle will work perfectly with the 30-06 cartridge. just have the rifle rebarreled and correctly headspaced.

08-04-2004, 01:31 PM	#4
Ricochet Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Bristol, Tennessee, USA Posts: 166 Trader Rating: (0)	If the barrel's starting to pit, and wasn't pitted to start with, you're not properly cleaning it after shooting the corrosive primed surplus ammo. You have to first clean it thoroughly with water or a water containing solution like ammonia (which also removes copper.) That dissolves and washes out the corrosive potassium chloride salt left by the primers. My practice is to turn the rifle muzzle down and upside down so it won't run into the action, and run patches dripping wet with ammonia from the breech to the muzzle. One way only, so you don't pull the salt back into the cleaned bore. (About 10 patches.) Then finish with your favorite cleaning solvent and oil. You may encounter feeding problems with a .30-06 conversion, as it's a longer cartridge than the magazine follower's designed for. Mauser used a different follower for every cartridge. Personally, I'd stick with the 8mm as it's equivalent to the .30-06 in power, accuracy and versatility, but still available in cheap surplus ammo which the .30-06 isn't. (Yeah, I know there's some out there, but it's no longer cheap.) Many rifles with pitted bores still shoot quite well. A good throat and muzzle are the most important barrel factors for accuracy; careless use of a cleaning rod's the quickest way to ruin one by damaging the rifling lands at the muzzle.

08-04-2004, 07:17 PM	#5
Snakebite Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Tucson, Mexico Posts: 1,837 Trader Rating: (0)	If they are shy of the 8mm they wont like the .06 any more! I've seen the barrels chambered for .308. That would be my choice.

08-06-2004, 02:52 PM	#6
Ricochet Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Bristol, Tennessee, USA Posts: 166 Trader Rating: (0)	My suggestion, if you want to tame the rifle down for the boys, would be to handload some light loads in the 8mm. Cast bullets are especially nice for this, but on Hodgdon's web site they have some nice recommendations for reduced loads with jacketed bullets that are still in the short range deer hunting class. My VZ.24 has a lot of frosting and some pitting in the bore, from the days 60 years ago when some Romanian soldier was carrying it to fight the Russians and didn't always take time to properly clean it. (Likely because he was running to save his hide.) It still shoots very well. Give that thing a good cleaning, try it out, and read up on cleaning after shooting corrosive-primed ammo. Bet it still is a fine shooter.