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I've been wanting to get a 8x57 Mauser for awhile but have been wondering what the integrity of these surplus actions (mainly imported by Century Arms I suspect) are with factory and mil-surplus loads? I've seen some VZ-24 and other variants at some of the local sporting emporiums but was not sure as to how strong the actions would be. Given the wood looked a bit scarred I wonder how good the action would still be, also given that advertising mentioned "collectible" and not much said about shootable ...

Can anyone give me some idea of where a good place(s) would be to look for a 8mm shooter in reasonable condition? Not wanting to customize or collect, just want something fun to shoot or different to tote in deer season when the mood strikes. Have considered some of the local gun shows as a number of dealers seem to carry them for $180-250 but here again would appreciate some advice from folks in the know.

Dont always go by the grading that these companys say the gun is in this cond.What you call "good cond" and what they consider good shape are two different goods.
I purchased a M43 spanish mauser in 8mm a few years ago from century arms.
Though the gun looked fine,it wasnt by far
The chamber had a bulge in it and it jammed every time i fired it
so be aware of what they are trying to sell you.
The gun i bought for 149$ ended up costing me 400 by the time the gunsmith repaired it,and i ended up re barreling to a larger caliber to get rid of the bulged chamber
I ended up going to 30-06

Check out these guys. They know their Mauser Stuff:

http://p198.ezboard.com/bk98kpage

BTW: I love my bcd4 Mod 98 8mm. Battle dress w/Rem 170 Core-Loks shoots great. I used bore paste on the barrel and it cleaned up very nice. It is a hand me down from my G/F.

Most of the Czeck 24s I have seen would be graded as junk to poor. I bought 5 and found and saved 1 good action for a project rifle. I'm going to build a .458 Win Mag out of it. Buyer beware.

There are a few things you have to keep in mind when you go looking for one of these surplus rifles. First, these are mainly used (and abused) combat rifles. They most likely have been used with corrosive ammunition (pitting and rusting of the bore, etc.). They most likely have been sitting in some armory for years collecting dust and getting banged around so they are not going to be in pristine shape.

However, the companies that do deal with surplus arms (century, SOG, AIM, etc.) are selling working guns. If you find something wrong with the gun when you get it that prevents it from being safely used you can more than likely send it back (I have done this on numerous occasions). The only exception to this are the U-Fix-Ems that these companies sell...but they usually make it clear right in the ad that these rifles may or may not have enough working parts to fire.

And what Hummer said before is right. An excellent grade surplus rifle is not going to be as good as an excellent grade commercial-made Remington or Winchester. When they give you the shape the gun is in, they are basically telling you
"taking into account that this rifle is 70 years old and has been through a World War, it's in _________ shape"

Also keep in mind these things were built to withstand the rigors of war and still function reliably. A few dings in the stock or scratches on the metal are usually a result of storage and age, not the working condition of the gun. I've bought surplus guns that looked like they were no better than paperweights, and with a little refinishing, found out that they were very reliable and rugged guns just waiting for a little TLC.

Wound up buying a Yugo 24/47 and bore/blueing is in great shape. Wood is so-so but not horrible and should be refinishable at some point where it could even look ok. SHoots pretty well with Rem Core-Lokts though my tired old eye and mlitary sights don't do the old warhorse justice.

The one thing I want to do is improve the trigger. Having arthritis, the very heavy pull is not something I can tolerate on a regular basis. Plus I think I can improve my accuracy with a more reasonable pull around 3-4 lbs.

Question - Are the Timney Mauser 98 triggers compatible with the Yugo 24/47 OR can the trigger be adjusted at all?

Most likely the Timney triggers are compatible with the 24/47. They are basically the same rifle, however some fitting might be required. If you find that it's just not working you could also check this out...http://www.huberconcepts.com/

From what I've heard their triggers are really nice and super easy to install

I thought the people who were from countries that the Nazis invaded that were made to work in German factories intensionally made the guns unreliable.

Indeed there were instances of such sabotage though historical documents on the topic also indicate that the German supervisory staff was aware of this and had some rather draconian methods for dealing with it.

why would they? their own countrymen were the endusers

Plus if you think about it, it if it was made to intentially fail, then it probably failed in the field 50 years ago and was left in the dirt somewhere.

The mausers made by the Czechs and Yugoslavians were either refurbished Nazi captures taken after the war (and most likely check by techs at the arsenals then for working condition) or made with surplus machines after the war to defend those countries borders...don't think they want their own troops getting crappy rifles.