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Attachment 119912
I have virtually no Mauser knowledge. I collect British military small arms, particularly sniper variants. I got over-excited on eBay and acquired the attached. It claimed to be a WWII ZF39 for a K98k. To me the rails on the tube look different to photos of actual WWII optics. Maybe one of you guys could kindly let me know what I have got, and if it could legitimately be added to a k98k. More photos to follow.
zf39 scope for k98 mauser - Bing images
I think yours is for a sporter application.
Here's one for reference. Not much info though. https://www.vintagegunscopes.com/rar...ry-good-c-1953
Here's a nice one that sold for comparison. Hensoldt Wetzlar Dural-Dialytan 4X scope #19706 in fine condition with fine optics. Est.: $200-$400.
Yours doesn't seem to be Waffenampt though...sporter maybe?
Ref 3rd pic; The German abréviation for "number" is "Nr." (nummer) not No.. You can see this, Nr., on the pic on Jim's first link.
Ok, so a sporting mount, numbers that suggest uk or us market, pretty conclusively not a German wwii scope. Inapprocafe this mount type is not standard for a K98, but my understanding is the use of ZF39 scopes was a trifle adhoc. Is anyone aware of this type being used ever, or am I really flogging a dead horse?
The good thing about eBay is that it is quite easy for "the buyer" to get their money back, if they are not happy with their purchase, but don't expect the vendor to be overly pleased. Always keep any communication with the vendor polite and civilised, even if the vendor is not with you, because if eBay have to step in to settle the matter the first thing that they are likely to do is to read all the communication between both parties.
Thanks, it is more from an interest point of view; I bid thinking the description was wrong/ambitious. It has cost me £80. I intend to own a ZF39 scoped K98 at some point. I currently service my British optics, so even if it is a sunk cost to learn some new internals, that is fine with me. If the service is successful and has no place on a k98, I will see it; if I can't recover it spares are always useful.
The dovetail rail is a dead giveaway of post WWII origins. Otherwise the design is much the same as the pre-war/wartime Hensoldt Duralyts, though I don't believe the aluminum alloy tube model was accepted for military service, except perhaps towards the end of the war as an emergency use.
If you want definitive answers on German scopes there are some experts here who can and probably will help.
The "ZF39" was the Zeiss Zielvier with metre graduations. AFAIK, there was no other difference.
The Zielvier entered production in the early 1920s I believe. The earlier ones have a flat top to the drum saddle and the glass is SUPERB.
You'll hunt long and hard for an original, but the Chinese replicas appear to be excellent value, though I have no idea if the internals are actually the same design as the originals.
Warren, have you been into any of them?
Civilian scope almost certainly.Quote:
Originally Posted by Micheal Doyne
Does the elevation adjustment ring have markings on it or is it unmarked? Military scope were marked with BDC grads, civie hunter scopes were unmarked. A photo of the adjustment ring would be useful. There is a chap in France making replacement rings with correct markings, for the ZF39 and scope end caps so if you can get the mounts off the tube OK, and the reticule is the correct type, it's going to be close enough for a repro setup if refurbished.
However, there was a shortage of scopes in 41/42 and the military asked for hunters to give up there scopes for mil use under the Jaegerspende scheme.
Getting hold of a good shooting K98k however is going to be almost harder than finding a suitable scope now these days :lol:
Thanks, you mentioned they are pretty rare. There are a few listed on eBay in the £500-1200 region, are these also post war versions?Quote:
Originally Posted by GeeRam
Some could be post war, some with low numbers could likely be pre-war commercial scopes, having a quick look on ebay. The dodgy guy in Frankfurt has quite a few for sale as per normal. Anything in that price range is a commercial scope. Pre-war commercial scopes are easy to spot as that don't have bloomed optics. If its got the right reticule type, you can get the repro elevation knob and then its pretty much a mil version anyway.Quote:
Originally Posted by Micheal Doyne
There's real WW2 mil spec Ajack scope on high turrets on ebay in Belgium......at a suitable price of over $3k..........which shows where pukka scope prices are sitting in comparison to commercial versions.
As I said, I'd be looking for the K98k first rather than the scope..........the rifle is going to be harder to find, and potentially more expensive as well......the days of nice K98k's for £500-600 or less are long gone, and even RC's with miss matched parts, scrubbed and peened waffss etc but with a decent bore are over £1k now, on the rare occasions even they turn up.
But it all depends on how accurate a copy, or 'fake' you want it to be. If you want a real accurate copy, then you are even further limited to looking not just for a nice shootable rifle, but one with the right factory codes for what type of sniper you want to build, be it SSR, LT, HT or LSR?
I am aiming for as closer functional faxicimaly as I can manage. If there was no material impact to function I would take a post war rifle. If it shoots I'm fine with an RC or any other miss match.Quote:
Originally Posted by GeeRam
There is a “real” sniper on at Highwood classic arms, but I know too little about these rifles to contemplate dropping 14k on it.
I would avoid a post war one. RC's are you best bet (especially if you find one that hasn't had the waff's peened, as not all of the Soviet factories did it) but even they are getting hard to find and have increased in price by 50% in this past 12 months.Quote:
Originally Posted by Micheal Doyne
The well known K98k experts that have viewed the advert photos say it's not a real one. Its a very good fake, and not therefore a £14k rifle.Quote:
Originally Posted by Micheal Doyne
14 thousand pound Sterling...so much to pay for a lesson. Link to see and a couple pics for posterity. Mauser K98Single Claw Sniper RifleQuote:
Originally Posted by GeeRam