I went into my local gun shop yesterday to order something for my daughter when I happened to glance over at the used/consignment rack.
There was an old Swede, missing the threaded end cap. One glance at the brass medallion and the price tag that was one third what it should have been and I was heading for the counter.
The man knows AR's and high end shotguns better than anyone I know, but he doesn't know Mausers and he doesn't know Swedes. Something wasn't right here, so I let him talk. "Someone's messed with the muzzle so it can't be worth much of of anything to a collector. Widow needs cash, just dropped it off this morning, already sold off all the nicer pieces for her. If you want a shooter it's a good deal." No one messed with it. The world is full of idiots and the shooting good smiled upon me. It followed me home after I forked over a ridiculously small amount of cash and with some research it's worth twice what I'd guessed in the shop.
Some 96's, both the rifles and some of the later carbines, have threaded muzzles with special threaded protectors so they can fire a screw-on blank adapter. Not a lot of either, but they are documented as variant m96B. Got two protectors on the way.
The bore is as close to brand new as they come. (It's nicer than the brand new unused barrel I took of the Yugo Mauser I built my daughter's rifle on. Looks like the bore of a Swiss 31.) Brass medallion on the stock when translated reads perfect bore condition with 6.40mm bore and 6.51mm groove diameters. Karl Gustav 1907, stock has a ding or two but the metal is perfect, numbers all match. I do not think this rifle was ever issued. With the muzzle protector it is collector grade, about 99% condition. Gobs of cosmoline inside the mag well, will have to strip it down and clean it all properly. The bore is mirror perfect, the crown is perfect, too, under 20x mag. Trigger is glass smooth, crisp, not a hint of creep and about 6#.
I can't wait to shoot her. New brass on the way, all I have is neck sized for the other rifle. Maybe I have some range brass in the mean time....