Gewehr 98
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Gewehr 98 | |
|---|---|
 Gewehr 98 with bayonet and 5 round stripper clip on the side |
|
| Type | Bolt-action rifle |
| Place of origin |  German Empire |
| Service history | |
| In service | Germany 1898-1945 |
| Used by | German Empire, Nazi Germany, Nationalist Spain, Ottoman Empire, Turkey, Republic of China |
| Wars | Boxer Rebellion, World War I, Spanish Civil War, World War II |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Mauser |
| Designed | 1897 |
| Manufacturer | Mauser, Deutsche Waffen und Munitionsfabriken, Haenel, Sauer & Sohn, Waffenwerke Oberspree, V. Chr. Schilling Co., Imperial Arsenals of Amberg, Danzig, Erfurt, Leipzig, and Spandau |
| Produced | 1898-1918 |
| Number built | Approx. 5 million [1] |
| Variants | Kar 98a, Kar 98b, Kar 98k |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 4.09 kg |
| Length | 1250 mm |
| Barrel length | 740 mm |
|
|
|
| Cartridge | 7.92x57 mm Mauser |
| Action | bolt-action |
| Muzzle velocity | 878 m/s |
| Effective range | 500 m (547 yd) (with iron sights) 800+ m (875 yd) (with optics) |
| Feed system | 5 round clip in internal magazine |
The Gewehr 98 (abbreviated G98 or Gew 98) was the standard German infantry rifle from 1898 to 1935, when it was replaced by the Karabiner 98k.
Contents |
[edit] General information
The Gewehr 98, named for 1898, the first year of its manufacture, superseded the earlier Model 1888 Commission Rifle (also known as Gewehr 88) in German service. The G98 itself was the latest in a line of Mauser rifles that were introduced in the 1890s. It was a bolt-action rifle, 1250 mm in length and 4.09 kilograms in weight. It had a 740 mm long rifled barrel and carried 5 rounds of 7.92 x 57 mm Mauser ammunition in an internal magazine.
The German Rifle Testing Commission adopted the Gewehr 98 on 5 April 1898. The action was derived from the experimental Gewehr 96 Rifle. In 1901, the first troop issues of the Gewehr 98 Rifles were made to the East Asian Expeditionary Force, the Navy and three premier Prussian army corps. In 1904, contracts where placed with Waffenfabrik Mauser for 290,000 rifles and DWM for 210,000 rifles. In 1905 the 8 mm standard cartridge was changed from an "I" (it has been declared that the common "J" reference was a miscommunication with American intelligence, and it ended up sticking) .318 in (8.08 mm) bullet to the new .323 in (8.20 mm) IS-Patrone spitzer bullet which was indicated by a small 's' stamped above the chamber and on the barrel at the back of the rear sight base, the sight was changed to the 'Langes Visier' which is distinctively large. The Gewehr 98 received its baptism of fire in the Boxer Rebellion.
[edit] Design details
The bolt action used in the various Mauser designs was very good, with extra large gas escape holes designed to protect the user in case of a primer or cartridge rupture or explosion, good extraction of fired cartridge cases, shrouded bolt face, guide rib, under-cut extractor, and a three-position safety at the rear of the bolt which can be flicked from right (safety on, bolt locked) to middle (safety on, bolt can be opened for reloading), to left (ready to fire) but only when the rifle is cocked, otherwise the safety will not move. In addition to the dual locking lugs of previous Mauser bolts, the Gewehr 98 added a third emergency lug, which serves as a backup if the primary locking lugs fail. The bolt handle on the Gewehr 98 is straight and protrudes out. The Gewehr 98 has two sling swivels, open front sights, and a curved tangent-type rear sight, known as the 'Lange Visier'.
[edit] Variants
[edit] Sniper models
In the spring of 1915 it was decided to fit 15,000 Gewehr 98 rifles, selected for being exceptionally accurate during factory tests, with telescopic sights for sniper use. To do this the bolt had to be replaced with a model with a turned-down bolt handle, so the telescopic sight could be mounted directly over the rifle. In the stock a cavity had to be cut out to accommodate the turned-down bolt handle modification. The telescopic sights consisted of 2.5x and 3x models made by manufactures like Görtz, Gérard, Oige, Zeiss, Hensoldt, Voigtländer and various civilian models. Several different mountings produced by various manufacturers were used. In reality 18,421 Gewehr 98 rifles where converted and equipped with telescopic sights and issued to German snipers during World War I.[2]
[edit] Karabiner 98a
Not to be confused with the later Karabiner 98k, the Karabiner 98a (K98a) was a shorter version of the Gewehr 98 originally made for cavalry and support unit use. The original model Karabiner 98, with a shorter barrel than the G98, was produced from 1899-1908 but it was not successful. In 1908 the Karabiner Model 1898AZ was approved. The new features were a small diameter receiver ring, tapered rather than stepped barrel contour, an L-shaped stacking rod attached to the stock near the muzzle, a turned-down bolt handle and excavation in the stock in the same fashion as sniper Gewehr 98s. The "A" stood for "with bayonet", the "Z" stood for stacking pyramid, meaning carbine Model 1898 with bayonet attachment point and stacking rod device. In 1923 the AZ was dropped for 'a' as Germany sought to distinguish the model from the newer models 'b' and 'k'.[3]
During World War I The Karabiner 98a was issued to cavalry, and also to mountain troops, and later to "established" assault units. It was liked because it was lighter and less bulky than the Gewehr 98, and was thus better suited for use in trench assaults.
[edit] Karabiner 98b
The Karabiner 98b was another "carbine" variant. The Karabiner Model 1898b was introduced in 1923.[4] The new rifle had a long Gewehr 98 type barrel, tangent rear sight as opposed to the original ramp sight, wider lower band with side sling attachment bar with a side butt attachment point, and a turned down bolt handle. It was essentially the same length as the Gewehr 98 and was designated as a carbine to comply with the terms of the Treaty of Versailles which only allowed Germany to produce carbines and no rifles.[5] The Karabiner 98k was derived from this variant of the Gewehr 98.
[edit] Combat service
The Gewehr 98 saw service primarily in World War I, as well as various colonial actions in the preceding years. As with all contemporary bolt-action rifles, it was a powerful and accurate rifle with long range that was poorly suited for the close quarter fighting of trench warfare.
Its successor, the Karabiner 98k, would go on to be the standard rifle of the German infantry during World War II. Some Gewehr 98s also saw service in World War II, though many of these older rifles were converted to Kar98k specifications.
[edit] The Gewehr 98 after World War I
[edit] Sporting and hunting
After the World War I, the Treaty of Versailles left Germany extremely constricted in terms of military power. Civilians were not allowed to have any use of standard military weapons or ammunition. Since the 8 x 57 IS round was so stout and great for hunting, people did not want to give up on it, so a redesign of the cartridge was made for the civilian market and the 8 x 60 S accommodate the new longer case.
The also rare 8 x 64 S cartridge offers a comparable rechambering option for Mauser Gewehr 98 and Karabiner 98k rifles sporting 8 mm S-bores. Due to its larger case capacity the 8 x 64 S chambering offers better ballistic performance than the 8 x 60 S. Some custom rifles were made using Mauser 98's and rechambering them for the 9 x 57 Mauser.
Since the purpose for these rifles was hunting and sporting, the bolt was professionally bent down, gradually the bent bolt became the standard and replaced the older straight bolt (though that was of course not always the case). The standard military sights were replaced by a 100 m sight, along with a flip-up on the rear sight for 200 m. The military stocks were replaced by newer ones that did not include the extra piece of stock for the bayonet lug.
Today these sporter rifles are extremely rare and the 8 x 60 and 8 x 60 S, 8 x 64 and 8 x 64 S and 9 x 57 Mauser cartridges are nearly obsolete, as only few mainstream ammunition manufacturers along with some other smaller companies continue to produce them. When correct ammunition is used in a converted rifle, a 8 x 60 (S), 8 x 64 (S) or 9 x 57 Mauser modified Gewehr 98 can be an extremely potent and inexpensive long-range big-game rifle.
Also, many Gewehr 98 rifles acquired as trophies by Allied forces during the war and brought home were converted to the 8mm-06 cartridge, a modification of the chamber from 57 mm to 63 mm to accommodate the use of common and inexpensive surplus .30-06 Springfield cartridges, with their 7.62 mm (.30 caliber) bullet replaced by a 8 mm (.323 caliber) bullet more appropriate to the bore of the rifle. Such conversions are indistinguishable from unmodified rifle without careful examination, and can be quite dangerous if fired with the shorter 8 x 57 mm ammunition, as the cartridge case will stretch to fit the elongated chamber and possibly rupture in the process, spraying the shooter with leaked propellant gas. However, the Mauser 98 action is designed specifically to direct gas away from the shooter in the event of a case rupture.
[edit] Weimar Republic
The Weimar Republic, the successor state to the German Empire, implemented a program designed to update their remaining supplies of Gewehr 98 rifles for the Reichswehr in the years following World War I. Rifles allowed into service with the early Weimar security forces were stamped with a "1920" marking on their receiver ring. Further updates to Weimar-era Gewehr 98's often the replacement of the Lange Vizier rear sight with a standard K98k-style rear sight and occasionally a shortening of the barrel. Rifles that received these later modifications will often have Weimar-era markings and "S/42" stamped on the rear sight base.
Additionally, Hitler initially chose to outfit his elite SS bodyguard units with modified Gewehr 98 rifles. Those rifles obtained by the SS normally had their original markings fully or partially removed and replaced with stylized "Totenkopf" markings.
[edit] Ottoman Empire
Large numbers of Gewehr 98 rifles were also given to the Ottoman Empire both during and after the war. Most of these rifles were converted to the "M38" standard by the Turkish Republic in the years before, during, and after the Second World War. Today these rifles are widely available in North America along with other Turkish Mausers. Careful observation is usually needed to tell an ex-Gewehr 98 apart from the myriad of other common M38-standard Mausers.
[edit] Spanish Civil War
The rifle saw some usage in the Spanish Civil War, mostly in the hands of Franco's Nationalists and German volunteer legions. Most of these rifles were bought and imported to the United States as cheap sporting rifles in the 1960s.
[edit] In China
After 1935 a license built model, the Hanyang Type 24 Chiang Kai-shek battle rifle, saw service with the Chinese National Revolutionary Army and saw extensive use from the Nationalist-Communist Civil War and the Second Sino-Japanese War to the Korean war with the People's Volunteer Army.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ French Gewehr 98 and Karabiner 98a Page - use the index to choose a particulare rifle variant (French)
- ^ French Gewehr 98 and Karabiner 98a Page - use the index to choose a particulare rifle variant (French)
- ^ Smith, Randy D. (2005). Old Mausers. Retrieved on 2007-04-01.
- ^ Graf (2005). The Kar.98a. Retrieved on 2007-04-01.
- ^ Smith, Randy D. (2005). Old Mausers. Retrieved on 2007-04-01.
[edit] External links
- Mauser model 98 at guns.ru
- Mauser Military Rifles of the World, third ed. Ball, Robert W.D. Krause Publications.
- French Gewehr 98 and Karabiner 98a Page - use the index to choose a particulare rifle variant (French)
