Here are some pictures of my Erfurt 1890, a beautiful rifle that was attached to the 95th Infantry recruiting depot located in Gotha, Germany. The recruiting depot mark is very special to me because my great grandfather was assigned to a recruiting depot during the mid WW1 years.
She was given to the Turks sometime during WW1 and had the rear sight graduations ground off and Turkish Arabic numbers applied. After that, she was never sent back to the arsenal and did god knows what with the Turks. My understanding is that Gewehr 88s served with the Turks as training rifles right up to the 1970s...talk about a service rifle!
The barrel, as previously mentioned, is still original to the rifle from her time in Germany. I have include a few pictures to give you all an idea of the difference between Gewehr 88 barrel and a stepped Gewehr 98 barrel.
Bore is very good too and I can't wait until I can get her out the to range and run a report on how she shoots (which should be in a few weeks once time permits).
I am currently picking up a Danzig 1891 that went the same route as my Erfurt though she does not sport any matching unit markings.
I have also attached some pictures showing the attachment of a Seitengewehr 71 bayonet on the rifle. These bayonets, as well as a mulitude of others, were commonly re-issued with Gewehr 88s though the official one was the Seitengewehr 71/84. She becomes muzzle heavy when the S.71 bayonet is mounted.
Note: In the image showing the left side of the rear sight base, you will see "7.91". This is the German land diameter measurement as measured back in 1890. The critical part here is that the barrel jacket must match the receiver (along with the original matching barrel) for this measurement to hold true. In my case, all the critical parts match. My bore slug turned out the same measurement as well.
For the barrel comparison:
Note: Notice the Turkish military proofs right alongside the German proofs on the underside of the barrel for the Gewehr 88. Have a look at the sheer number of inspector stamps on the underside of the barrel, it will just blow your mind (pardon the pun).
Gewehr 88
Gewehr 98
I hope these pictures make others wish to get into Gewehr 88 collecting and also serve to help explain the technical differences between her and her sister rifle, the Gewehr 98.
She was given to the Turks sometime during WW1 and had the rear sight graduations ground off and Turkish Arabic numbers applied. After that, she was never sent back to the arsenal and did god knows what with the Turks. My understanding is that Gewehr 88s served with the Turks as training rifles right up to the 1970s...talk about a service rifle!
The barrel, as previously mentioned, is still original to the rifle from her time in Germany. I have include a few pictures to give you all an idea of the difference between Gewehr 88 barrel and a stepped Gewehr 98 barrel.
Bore is very good too and I can't wait until I can get her out the to range and run a report on how she shoots (which should be in a few weeks once time permits).
I am currently picking up a Danzig 1891 that went the same route as my Erfurt though she does not sport any matching unit markings.
I have also attached some pictures showing the attachment of a Seitengewehr 71 bayonet on the rifle. These bayonets, as well as a mulitude of others, were commonly re-issued with Gewehr 88s though the official one was the Seitengewehr 71/84. She becomes muzzle heavy when the S.71 bayonet is mounted.
Note: In the image showing the left side of the rear sight base, you will see "7.91". This is the German land diameter measurement as measured back in 1890. The critical part here is that the barrel jacket must match the receiver (along with the original matching barrel) for this measurement to hold true. In my case, all the critical parts match. My bore slug turned out the same measurement as well.
For the barrel comparison:
Note: Notice the Turkish military proofs right alongside the German proofs on the underside of the barrel for the Gewehr 88. Have a look at the sheer number of inspector stamps on the underside of the barrel, it will just blow your mind (pardon the pun).
Gewehr 88
Gewehr 98
I hope these pictures make others wish to get into Gewehr 88 collecting and also serve to help explain the technical differences between her and her sister rifle, the Gewehr 98.
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