I have a Yugoicon "capture" K98icon. Above the wood all German marks are scrubbed, but under it they are all still very clear and visible. The one thing I'd add to what people have said is to really look at the stocks and the finish. It seems to me a lot of importers like to "clean up" the wood and strip the finish from some parts so they are shiny. Or maybe it is previous owners, but in any case, if you are looking for a more "collectable" one keep that in mind. Otherwise I guess it doesn't matter. I got one with a cleaned up stock, it just looked so nice.