Gew 98 Help - Pics Added

[Recce21]

Very interesting. My grandfather on my father's side was enlisted into the Luftwaffe as a service technican. I saw photos of him working on Ju 88s, He 111s, and near a Fi 156 recon plane. You can pick him out in the group of his comrades right away as he was always the tallest one. The photos must have been circa 1941 summer or 1942 summer as there was a Soviet SB2 medium bomber with it's engine nacelles destroyed to deny it's use to the enemy.

As far as I know, he was stationed near Leningrad for the war. His military pass did not survive as he was forced to destroy the papers in 1944 with the Soviet advance. He was captured but managed to convince his captives he was a Dutch worker forced to work for the Third Reich, having lived in Holland for some time before the war. He was sent back to Holland to face war crimes in 1945 on a series of trains and trucks but when his truck passed near to Koln, he went for a piss break and never came back. He rejoined the family in Koln. They moved to Canada in 1965 and I am one of the first generations on that side of the family in Canada.

Again, I know little to nothing about my paternal side of the family. Not much was ever written down or spoke of. Same goes for my wife's family. I got the official records out of Berlin for her Opa and that is the only reason we know so much. He only mentioned briefly that he was Kriegsmarine and that he was wounded. The only clue was his Kriegs "hero" photo taken in his navy white's post basic training. But once we got the records it opened up a lot of info:

Apr 41: Attended basic training in occupied Holland
Summer 41: Joined the 44 Minensuchflotille
Spring 42: Transferred to the 14. UJagdflotille operating off the coast of France
Fall 44: Transferred to Marine-Infantrie Abt. Haackert at Festung Saint Nazaire. Basically, after D Day, all the crews of ships that had been operating on the coast anchored at the nearest u Boat base, did a quick infantry training course and set up defensive positions to protect the bases. Hitler even issued a "to the last man" order. So there he swapped rounds with the Americans until Capitulation on 8 May 45 but since they had mined the area so heavily it took 3 days to demine an exit to formally surrender. The troops at St. Nazaire were among the very last Wehrmacht soldiers to surrender during WW2.
May 45-46: POW in French camp. He was allergic to sea food and the French would feed him it regardless and it was either eat it and be sick or starve. He said that they got tired of dealing with him vomiting so they threw him out of the camp one morning. He somehow hitch hiked back to Munchen from the coast of France but that story is lost since he died in 2005.

 

[Nabs]

I have a 1890 Amberg Gew 88, all matching except the bolt which is a czech replacment. Unit marked with no X'd out previous unit markings. Unit is B 10 R R 2 50. It is in mint shape but has a turked sight ladder. No other turk marks anywhere on it.

Alright, now you've done it, just the Gewehr 88 I want for my collection too .

Which band is the unit marking stamped on ? Pics ? I might as well torture myself some more.

Again, I know little to nothing about my paternal side of the family. Not much was ever written down or spoke of. Same goes for my wife's family. I got the official records out of Berlin for her Opa and that is the only reason we know so much. He only mentioned briefly that he was Kriegsmarine and that he was wounded. The only clue was his Kriegs "hero" photo taken in his navy white's post basic training. But once we got the records it opened up a lot of info:

I have been thinking of contacting the proper authorities in regards to my great uncle (brother to my great grandfather). He was in the Navy during WW1 and was attached to the S.M.S. Derfflinger according to a single photo I have of him in uniform. Thankfully the ship name is partially visible on his hat.

I do not know if he was at Jutland on the Derfflinger but it may be possible.

Aside from that, I know very little of him. I do know he survived the war. Which authorities did you contact ? Perhaps I'll have some luck if they have WW1 records stashed somewhere.

 

[Recce21]

Alright, now you've done it, just the Gewehr 88 I want for my collection too .

Which band is the unit marking stamped on ? Pics ? I might as well torture myself some more.

It is unit marked on the rear band. I know how you feel though, I see some guys on here with the EXACT rifle or militaria I want and it kills me. I have been feeling the same way bout your Gew 98's and Luger!

I have been thinking of contacting the proper authorities in regards to my great uncle (brother to my great grandfather). He was in the Navy during WW1 and was attached to the S.M.S. Derfflinger according to a single photo I have of him in uniform. Thankfully the ship name is partially visible on his hat.

I do not know if he was at Jutland on the Derfflinger but it may be possible.

Aside from that, I know very little of him. I do know he survived the war. Which authorities did you contact ? Perhaps I'll have some luck if they have WW1 records stashed somewhere.

Here is the link to the Tracing Requests for NOK. h ttp://www.dd-wast.de/frame_e.htm

I didn't hotlink it so just fix the http part.

They sent me photocopies of all his records they had. It was interesting though that there were errors. It showed that he was awarded the Minesweeping and Submarine hunting badge in '43 but it did not mention anything about Saint Nazaire other than a penciled in "Autumn 1944 St. Nazaire" as a posting. I contacted a French gentleman who runs a museum in saint Nazaire dedicated to the "St. Nazaire Pocket" as they call it and he informed me of quite a bit of info about the German soldiers there. The Marine Infantrie battalions along with the Fallschirmjager's were eligible for awards but not many were being presented becuase of the siege. Supplies only came in through U-Boats and it was food and bullets mostly. He was wounded there but never recieved his wound badge or Infantry assualt badge. The defenders of Festung Saint Nazaire were also being awarded EK2's but I have no idea if he was one or not.

 

[Recce21]

BTW Nabs, I flipped the stock disc using your fork method (genius!) and nada. Just a nicer looking blank side. It does have a small proof mark on it though. I ordered Dieter Storz book as well so I can do some real research.

 

[Nabs]

BTW Nabs, I flipped the stock disc using your fork method (genius!) and nada. Just a nicer looking blank side. It does have a small proof mark on it though. I ordered Dieter Storz book as well so I can do some real research.

To be expected with some discs. I felt the same way when I flipped my Danzig 1905's disc only to find it blank. That just means it was re-issued more than three times or it was simply swapped sometime during 1916 and later. Perhaps your 1914 had a similar path ? In any event, I am equally satisfied that my fork method worked for you.

Keep the side with the inspection mark facing out. The inspection mark is typically centered at the 6 o'clock position (have a look at my earlier Bavarian unit marked disc for instance). If you wish, I usually take some 0000 steel wool to discs that I remove to clean off the rust and grit so it is both more visually appealing and allows the disc to sit better in the stock disc cut out.

As for Storz's book you will not regret it for a moment. I will honestly say alot of my information comes from this book. He is soon to release a similar book detailing the Gewehr 88 so I am extremely eager to acquire and read that and compare what he has found in the archives that are left intact to what I have left on my Gewehr 88 examples.

 

[joe n]

Hope you two don't mind me eavesdropping but I really enjoyed your family stories. Thanks for sharing, and that is a beautiful rifle btw.

 

[Nabs]

No problem Joe, I am always happy to share my family stories with fellow collectors. Not only do fellow collectors understand me better but they can also see the reason why I collect the rifle types of the time period I have chosen.

By all means, if anyone else has German military heritage from WW1, go ahead and share. Perhaps our ancestors were beside one another in the trenches ? You just never know.

 

[Recce21]

joe n, the more stories the better! The lives and deeds of those that brought us to where we are today only live on if we tell them.

Nabs, did you try the WaSt link I posted? It cost me 19.50 euros for the package from Berlin. Also, I still haven't been able to get the rear retention spring to release from the stock. Also, I haven't been able to get the front action screw loose yet, but when I do, I am going to replace it with a Sarco sourced screw and locking screws. The damaged screw isn't stamped to the rifle so I figure no harm in replacing it.

I also ordered the Gew 88 book by Paul Scarlatawith. I am a knowledge sponge so the more books out there on things I am uber interested in, the better.

 

[Nabs]

Hmm, I can't seem to find the link in the previous post ? I might just be missing it tonight.

As for the front screw and rear band spring, you will just have to work with them until they are ready to come out. The penetrating oil idea mentioned earlier may lead towards a successful solution in the near future.

As for the Gew 88 book by Paul Scarlatta, it is a great reference about the Gewehr 88 though the book tends to be looked down upon in some collector circles in regards to the bore diameters provided. I focus more on the other information provided (i.e. the history and lead up towards the adoption of the Gewehr 88). With that in mind, you really get a feel for the 1880s and 1890s as far as advancements in firearms go and you can make connections to other countries and their arms production.

In the end, it is a great little book for the price.

joe n, the more stories the better! The lives and deeds of those that brought us to where we are today only live on if we tell them.

Nabs, did you try the WaSt link I posted? It cost me 19.50 euros for the package from Berlin. Also, I still haven't been able to get the rear retention spring to release from the stock. Also, I haven't been able to get the front action screw loose yet, but when I do, I am going to replace it with a Sarco sourced screw and locking screws. The damaged screw isn't stamped to the rifle so I figure no harm in replacing it.

I also ordered the Gew 88 book by Paul Scarlatawith. I am a knowledge sponge so the more books out there on things I am uber interested in, the better.

 

[Recce21]

Here it is again Nabs. The link to the Tracing Requests for NOK. h ttp://www.dd-wast.de/frame_e.htm

 

[Nabs]

Thanks for the link. I will have one of my family members help me write up a request as I have three names I would like to check.

How was your experience with them ? I see it costs some euros per sheet so it will be interesting to see what they find on my behalf.

 

[Recce21]

Thanks for the link. I will have one of my family members help me write up a request as I have three names I would like to check.

How was your experience with them ? I see it costs some euros per sheet so it will be interesting to see what they find on my behalf.

I ended up being charged 19.50 euros. Problem was they have a weird payment system and I have been talking in german back and forth with them to get it resolved. They did send me the documents though with the bill so even though the payment is all screwed up, I do have what I requested.

I have another request in with them for Herr Hüber to see if it was the 6th or 7th Bavarian Reserve Infantry but until the payment issue with the first request is sorted, I have a feeling that I won't be learning anything new.

 

[Nabs]

I am guessing correspondence is done via e-mails and not telephone ? How long did you have to wait for the first processing to go through and arrive to you ?

 

[MauserMike]

Nice bayonet. I used to live in Duisburg for a year.