Bulgarian M88/90 Mannlicher

[Eaglelord17]

Hi all,

Today I have the pleasure of sharing my most recent acquisition a all matching Bulgarian M88/90 Mannlicher. For those that don't know the M88/90 was the main rifle for Bulgaria in the Bulkan Wars and WWI, as well as the main issued rifle for Austria-Hungary until 1916-1917 when M95s finally over took the M88/90 in quantity. Not nearly as commonly seen as the M95s and when they are usually they are in rough shape or altered. This example shall have a nice place in my collection alongside my 3 Bulgarian M95s in 8x50r.

I have always had a bit of a fascination with Mannlicher based firearms, and have to say this is already one of my favourites. Bolt is smoother than pretty much any rifle I have handled and I own quite a few Swiss rifles and have used such things as Krags and Enfields.

In any case here is some photos.






Note the volley sights on the side of the rear sight and the barrel band


Note the double serial number, I don't really understand why this is like that, but all the numbered parts are stamped with both numbers.




Crown 'F' marking is a Bulgarian marking, the other common one being a small lion




Better view of the rear sight, left hand side is for the standard rear sight, right hand side is for the volley sight. Note the sights are in Schritt which is approximately .75 of a metre.


Bolt with both serial numbers


Both serial numbers on the stock as well as a faded rampant lion on the stock


Unsure of this marking on the stock


The other metal parts without serials have this IIQ on them, which as I understand it is a export marker.

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