Sling On A K98K German Mauser?

hermiem

This is going to sound like a really idiotic question - but I'm going to ask it anyway.

I just purchased a K98K German Mauser. It did not come with a sling. I purchased a real (supossedly?) WWII surplus leather sling for it. After I figured out how to put it on and get the adjustment down I went shooting with it for the first time. The bottom line is that I could NOT get a comfortable grip on the rear of the stock. The buckle and the excess strap (Maybe about an inch.)interfered with the palm of my right hand, right thumb grip over the top portion of the stock and a portion of my forearm. I've shot the weapon at least a dozen times before without the sling on and my accuracy inproved significantly over that time. However,I've shot it twice with the sling on and I'm all over the target - at bench rest shooting. Is this just how it is, or is there a possible remedy for it?

gary wray

hermiem......if the sling is attached correctly it should not interfere with you shooting the rifle at all. Sounds to me that you have it tightened up too much, too snug against the stock and it is interfering with your grip on the rifle. Loosen it up to the carry position and it should not bother you aiming or shooting the rifle. To check to see if the sling is real WWII German it should have a waffen mark, and perhaps a maker on it. Go over it carefully with a mag class to find, particularly on the keeper. Many 98k slings are Israeli, aftermarkets, and such but the real German WWII slings are marked....and are getting rarer and rarer. Good luck!