How to Reshape the Rear Tang on a Mauser Receiver

Contouring the rear tang of a Mauser receiver is a pretty standard process when customizing. Notice the hump on top of the pistol grip created by the original tang.

To contour the tang, we first need to place the receiver in a holding fixture. Using layout dye, we'll put a thin film on the tang so we can scribe the guidelines.

Start with a mill bastard file, or switch to a hand grinder if the metal is too hard. If you want the process to go by faster, you can also use a bench grinder.

You may want to switch from the bench grinder back to the hand grinder as you get close and finish up using the file. Once it's completed, you'll be able to see the difference between the original and the new tang. The new contour will greatly improve the shape of the pistol grip.

It's a neat little trick to customize the Mauser receiver that perhaps you haven't seen before.

-- Larry Potterfield