Good Evening,
I have an early '88 (1889) that runs great except the safety. If I move the safety lever from Safe to Ready with conviction, the weapon discharges. This does not happen if I move the lever slowly. Anyone have this issue.
Thanks,
Randy
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Good Evening,
I have an early '88 (1889) that runs great except the safety. If I move the safety lever from Safe to Ready with conviction, the weapon discharges. This does not happen if I move the lever slowly. Anyone have this issue.
Thanks,
Randy
Sounds like tenuous sear engagement. Have you tried cocking it and whacking the receiver with a plastic mallet to see if the striker releases without a trigger pull?
Worn parts.
Agreed! I have some parts on order from Apex.
Thanks,
Randy
Apex has Gew 88 parts? I'll have to look into that.
Unfortunately, they don't have what I need, a bolt head.
If you got to have one to get to the range:
https://www.myersarms.com/store/Gewe...&-91-c76066716
Randy
When I saw the thread title I was curious as to which safety issue you were referring to (as the Gew 88 has so many to choose from). Sounds like worn parts in this particular case though.
I have four so if I really need to take that one to the range, I can swap out a bolt head. I keep looking for a reasonably priced one. Saw one that just sold for what an entire rifle can be had for in some areas.
Please explain the many safety issues .Quote:
Originally Posted by Eaglelord17
Usual suspects include lack of controlled feed allowing out of battery detonation when second round (spitzer) hits primer of chambered round, over pressure due to change in bullet diameter, and barrel jacket obscuring bad pitting of barrel.
Explain over pressure do to bullet dia change . When the Gew-88 was in German service it used two different bullet diameters , the .3188 P-88 and the .3208 S round in its .3208 groove barrel [ .323 post 1896 1/2 ] . I have over 100 Gew-88's and none have any pitting on the barrel .
I've got no dog in the fight. Just relaying the standard stuff. Would be curious to know for sure why the throats were opened up in some cases though.
Please continue this discussion with a more civil tone. Thanks.
Bob
What part of any of the posts are not civil ? The throats on the rifles were not changed as the throat for the original P-88 ammo was 3x longer than needed for the shorter S ammo that had a bullet with a lot more taper . The chamber neck dia was checked to make sure a dirty S round would chamber easily as the S round cartridge neck was .002 larger in dia than the old P-88 . If there was already enough clearance the rifle was given the S stamp . Since most rifles as made already had .005+ clearance [ just measure a case fired in a non S marked rifle ] , they were just making sure ALL the rifles would chamber the S round . IF a tight chambered rifle was found they did ream the neck dia . BUT all of my non S and S rifles have the same size chamber necks , within specs . So that had nothing to do with pressure , just making sure the ammo would chamber in all rifles . If the bolt will close on a round in a tight neck chamber it will fire without a pressure problem . Many benchrest shooters [ including me ] shoot tight neck rifles with no problems . You have to use a little force to close the bolt , but with the tight fit you can reload the case without sizing it . Most benchrest shooters have a batch of about 25 cases that they keep reloading through out the match for each target round .
Well, frankly, your posting style was perceived as a little challenging and abrasive. It is okay to ask for clarification, but serves better to do so more gently. I asked for civility and your answer was in the same tone. Please ease up a little, my man. This can be no big deal.Quote:
Originally Posted by bob q
Bob
I do not understand how asking a question with a question mark is not civil ? Just like this . Statements were made and I asked that they be explained . I even said please . This is a real question , what was not civil ?
Thanks for the rational behind it there.Quote:
Originally Posted by bob q
You are welcome . I am glad my explanation made sense . There so so much bad info published about Gew-88 rifles . I have also seen the " corrosion under the jacket " in print , but never on real rifles . I do not know why people print it , just like the S round is longer than the old P-88 . If they had the two side by side they would seen that is not true .
I believe that particular conjecture was due to the notching of the receiver on the 88/05's. I understand that was because of the change to stripper clip feeding moving the round forward, rather than the actual cartridge length. Is this so?
Not really . Yes the stripper clip was moved forward , but not enough to cause a problem with the S ammo . The notch was for the P-88 ammo in the stripper clip . As I stated earlier both types were in use at the same time . If you look at the notch you will see it is the exact shape of the nose of the P-88 ammo's bullet and beveled to guide it in . Also the German military manuals of the time show how to take the P-88 ammo out of the en-bloc clip and put it in the Mauser type stripper clip to load in the 88/05's if needed . What you said is in books and articles . Another example of people writing about things they do not understand .
Ah, so my take is indeed correct then. It's not due to the cartridge at all, just the feeding method.
That is why I said " not really " , it is just for the P-88 ammo , NOT the S ammo . So it is 1/2 cartridge related . So I should have said kind of . The 05 conversion was to let the Gew-88 fire the S ammo in the stripper clips the S ammo was issued in , sight change and new battle Zero for the S ammo . The notch was not needed for the above , it just let the old P-88 ammo to be still used even though the sights were now wrong for it .
Interesting, thanks. Good to get some accurate detailed info on these rifles. Obviously, the myths abound.
Here is a basic list which I am sure doesn't even cover all the potential issues to deal with shooting one of these:Quote:
Originally Posted by bob q
1- Poor gas venting necessitating a re-design in the cocking piece to try and re-direct the gasses away from the shooters eyes in the event of a case failure, some but not all Gew 88s will have this cocking piece (I have had examples of both styles in my collection). This is a similar modification as to what was done to the 1886 Lebel rifle. Still doesn't 100% resolve the issue, but it can help. Always wear shooting/safety glasses when shooting one of these.
2- Weak chamber designs which were strengthened early on, still doesn't mean the original barrels aren't kicking around on some considering how many were made. Even with the stronger chambers it still isn't a rifle you want to testing the pressure on, the receiver design (like many early smokeless designs such as the Swiss 1889 rifles and Krag rifles) is marginal in it's overall strength.
3- Varying bore diameters on the barrels which can range from .318" (Czech made barrels) to .323" (Turkish 88/05/35 barrels) with the majority being around .321". Using .32 Special bullets (.321") has worked quite well for me, however it is important to slug your bore yourself to know.
4- Issues with people double feeding the rifle causing out of battery detonations (more a user error, but is still a issue for a shooter to be aware of).
5- Extremely pitted external barrels due to condensation in the barrel jacket. Most won't be this way, but it is important to check it before you shoot a unfamiliar rifle to make sure it is fine.
So in conclusion it isn't nearly as safe or easy to shoot as most other modern firearms. If you aren't careful you could easily have a very bad day with one of these. Still fun little rifles to shoot, my 88/05 is one of my favourite rifles to actually fire.
I just have the one. It slugged out at .320, so I use the .32 Special bullets as well, with easy loads.
#1 about 95% have the gas shield , ones without are rare . #2 That problem was caused by bad ammo , it was not a chamber problem . It was changed early in production to the thicker barrel . Also the Germans keep the old barrels in service once the ammo problem was fixed and those barrels fired S ammo at 55,000 PSI for decades and through out WWI with no problems . #3 Was not a German military problem as the Gew-88 could fired any German ammo in service when the rifle was in service . It can be a problem today , but any rifle can have that problem if you fire the wrong ammo . #4 Was not a design problem as the round nose bullet it was designed to fire could not set off a round . Also setting off a round with a bullet is not easy . I have tried to set off primed cases with bullets and hammers and buy using another cartridge [ it just pushes the bullet back in the case . It may of happened now and then but no more than firing with a plugged bore [ again a user problem ] . #5 As I stated , I own over 100 Gew-88s and have looked at many more and have never seen a pitted barrel .
Did I ever say the ammo issue was a military issue? It is a problem for the civilian shooter as some commercial ammo regularly available in stores can destroy one of these rifles if fired in it. Just like how M1 Garands need M2 pressure .30-06 or you can't shoot higher pressure .45-70 out of a trapdoor springfield.Quote:
Originally Posted by bob q
I also wouldn't say it wasn't a design problem for the double feed as they did switch to using pointed ammo in the rifles in service and encountered the problem in service. Much like how the Lebel rifles suffered from a similar problem (resulting in the ring around the brass base to catch the tip). They were just willing to accept the risk a lot more than most would be today. There is a reason they designed out that issue from most service rifles.