Hello, I've been into firearms now for about two years and love the WWll firearms and the history they carry. I have a line on a WWll k98 that is a Russian captured example. Still trying to learn as much as i can but want to know if this gun will be worth it's $600 price tag?? What else should i look for when going over this rifle? Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks.
WWll K98 Question??
- Thread starter loves2plink
- Start date
condition and like des said its up to you $600 is not over priced for a good one. i have seen them in fair condition go for $450. if the bore is good and the gun looks good then $600 might be ok. also try and see how many parts have matching numbers. some times that can add to value
If not trashed, $600 is sadly a fair price. When newly imported in to Canada they went for $350-600 and now since the supply has dried up the prices have crept up into the $600-650 range. The odd rifle comes up used and sometimes still unfired for those lower prices, but they sell very fast.
For summary of each maker/code: http://www.ycgg.org/ycgg_ww2german_pdf.htm
More info: http://www.mausershooters.org/k98k/K98_manuc.html
http://home.scarlet.be/p.colmant/k98kmarkings.htm
For the purist view, go to www.k98kforum.com however many members don't hold RC's in high regard. However, as a Canadian collector they are a great way to get an example of a WWII K98 that probably saw service on the Eastern Front. The site is the leading site for K98 research and publication, setting a new Gold Standard and improvement over Law's books on the same rifle.
The barrels/recievers generally match on these rifles and many bores are good to excellent. The remainder of the parts will be mis-matched with different serial numbers and waffen amts. Usually the Russians used early milled vs stamped parts (slightly higher quality). However, the Russians did electro pencil all parts to match. The stocks are also shelaced.
If in all original RC condition I would consider keeping it that way. Many RC's were 'restored' after import (Blueing removed from the butt plate/take down disc, shelac removed, repro cleaning rods/screws/sight hoods added, etc). These restorations did make them look more like a WWII German issued K98, but then again the RC variation was altered, making non-altered rifles an even rarer and historical variation.
Some individuals would pay a premium for single rune rifles, rare maker codes (S/42, BSW, BNZ44, or late war Kreigsmodel Codes), or former snipers (some still have the zf41 rail) or a thick walled LSR drilled reciever. In the end, most RC's are worth the sum of parts - which would come close to $600 and if an ex-sniper probably closer to $800+.
I hope this helps.
For summary of each maker/code: http://www.ycgg.org/ycgg_ww2german_pdf.htm
More info: http://www.mausershooters.org/k98k/K98_manuc.html
http://home.scarlet.be/p.colmant/k98kmarkings.htm
For the purist view, go to www.k98kforum.com however many members don't hold RC's in high regard. However, as a Canadian collector they are a great way to get an example of a WWII K98 that probably saw service on the Eastern Front. The site is the leading site for K98 research and publication, setting a new Gold Standard and improvement over Law's books on the same rifle.
The barrels/recievers generally match on these rifles and many bores are good to excellent. The remainder of the parts will be mis-matched with different serial numbers and waffen amts. Usually the Russians used early milled vs stamped parts (slightly higher quality). However, the Russians did electro pencil all parts to match. The stocks are also shelaced.
If in all original RC condition I would consider keeping it that way. Many RC's were 'restored' after import (Blueing removed from the butt plate/take down disc, shelac removed, repro cleaning rods/screws/sight hoods added, etc). These restorations did make them look more like a WWII German issued K98, but then again the RC variation was altered, making non-altered rifles an even rarer and historical variation.
Some individuals would pay a premium for single rune rifles, rare maker codes (S/42, BSW, BNZ44, or late war Kreigsmodel Codes), or former snipers (some still have the zf41 rail) or a thick walled LSR drilled reciever. In the end, most RC's are worth the sum of parts - which would come close to $600 and if an ex-sniper probably closer to $800+.
I hope this helps.
Depends upon what maker and year, but there's some examples in the MKL - Germanyhttp://www.milsurps.com/content.php?r=123-germany including some excellent information on how to identify Russian captures etc.
Good luck ... K98k's can be addictive...
Regards,
Doug
