Versailles Treaty "Double Date" GEW 98

[Patrick Chadwick]

Hmmm, well then why do my other Gew 98s not have the bolt stop feature? Their followers don't have the additional vertical cut at the rear.

Well that's an unfair question! How should I know where your rifles have been? But seriously, there were several follower styles over the decades - I have a few in my 98-family spares box. It looks as if only the original Gew.98 ones were numbered. Later examples are unnumbered, even unmarked.
Attachment 32449
From left to right:
1) Original, Prussian-proofed and numbered Gew.98 follower.
2) Later, anonymous Gew. 98 follower.
3) Follower from Carl Gustaf M1896 Swedish Mauser.
4) Follower with unidentified marking - looks like a kind of 8 within a circle - in fact, very like the Osaka Arsenal mark !!!!

Note various styles of left-hand milling and varying lengths. Once these things land in the spares box it can be difficult to work out where they came from. And any wartime armorer with a workbench full of rifles undergoing repair and overhaul is likely to mix them up and not give a hoot about collectors' ideas of "correctness".

So ask your rifles where they've been!


Patrick