Found a Mauser, Need Help with Markings, and What Mauser it is?

[Aragorn243]

It looks great. Nice having the stock mark. The thick butt plates are later as is the laminated stock. Thin plates are early. I think you did very well. As to what is original, probably all German but probably not original to this particular rifle. Most likely they separated the parts and reassembled from bins. Hard to date it without the German markings, might be something under the stock.

[68rs327]

It has the milled trigger guard and floor plate? Will this help narrow down the year it may have bee made? From ____ to _____ Years?

[Aragorn243]

No, because everything was probably mixed up. Floor plate could be late war, stock early war, barrel and receiver pre-war, you just can't tell. All you can know for certain is that it was built during the Nazi era due to the stamps on the metal and the stock and you can assume (fairly safely) that it was used by the Germans in WWII.

[rum_runner]

You did well.
If you purchased this Mauser for less than the $350 asking price.

You have an actual 98K.
While it is not a numbers matching G.I. "bring back", it is still a rifle that was probably used, by a German soldier.

[Flying10uk]

If you can see a serial number on the barrel it will probably be an original German barrel but if, more likely, you are unable to find a serial number on the barrel it will be a Yugo replacement barrel. The "thick" butt plates you mention are I think you will find are actually dished shaped and slip on over the butts giving the appearance of being thick. Personally I quite like these Yugo refurbished K98s and believe that they are massively under valued. I would not recommend trying to re-germanise the rifle by removing the Yugo markings but just enjoy it as it is. I believe that the Yugoslavs had quite a cottage industry refurbishing these rifles in the late 1940s and 1950s and some were exported minus the crest or so I was led to believe.

[68rs327]

I am going to try and disassemble the rifle this weekend and look at the serial numbers behind the wood. I would have thought it was most all original and just has the markings removed? The bluing looks the same all over the rifles, worn evenly? But, I guess the Yugo's could have reworked the bluing and made it look worn? Maybe the markings under the barrel will tell more. I would like to date most the parts if I could, just for the heck of it. That's why I was asking for a date range on various items.

[68rs327]

I took the rifle apart today and here are the markings I found... What can you tell me by these markings? Can we date the receiver/barrel by these markings? and Can we date the wood by the markings on the wood? Thanks,








http://i893.photobucket.com/albums/a...psmrwmkmxy.jpg

[Aragorn243]

Most of them are inspectors marks. The 5 digit number on the stock is the original serial number. Might be a date on the base of the stock, 9 43? September 43. Can't quite see it and not sure if the Germans stamped the date there. Other marks don't indicate dates.

[68rs327]

Most of them are inspectors marks. The 5 digit number on the stock is the original serial number. Might be a date on the base of the stock, 9 43? September 43. Can't quite see it and not sure if the Germans stamped the date there. Other marks don't indicate dates.

It is 9 43 ?

[68rs327]

It is 9 43 ?

Any information on dates would be appreciated. I know it's not a numbers matching gun and was probably made from parts and pieces? But, just knowing that it started it's life as a K98, most likely saw action in WW2, the history behind the guns alone is why I collect the military rifles. Numbers matching doesn't concern me as much as some collectors, the history is what I enjoy. I love learning as much as I can about the guns I own, the stories they could tell. I can remember growing up listening to my uncles talk about fighting in WW2. One was a Captain in a artillery unit in the pacific, my cousin has his army issued 1911. Three other uncles fought in Europe, they always told stories of fighting the Germans. Family get gatherings was always fun, and a history lesson. This is why I collect... the history.