Late war K98k byf44 - help.

[Mike Steves]

" Also we have lots of junk K98's offered at prices from 350 and up "



We have the same problem here- just take a look at Gunbroker.com and you will see plenty of junk 98k's for matching prices.

[Suber]

Interesting that you found a matching k98 for less money than a mismatched. Go figure! My friend has a matching k98 that his father brought back with him after landing on D-Day. I have been trying to talk him into selling it to me, but so far he has not budged!!

[P08]

Update; I got the rifle and it is more original/unmessed with than I had expected. This is a nice surprise.

It appears that there is in fact a suffix to the serial. A small "K". So it must be from the late half of 1944?

The laminate stock is serialed on the inside but not the outside. It turns out my brother's unmessed with dou44 is similar. I wasn't aware of that practice.

[pitts duncan]

dating a rifle

my original stock was date coded with arubber stamp under the butt plate. i think 2 12 1941 and was in fact an ar 41 so you may want to look under the butt plate (2 screws) and see if it is dated

[Mike Steves]

You won't have any markings under the buttplate on a byf44 rifle, except maybe a random stamp or 2, nothing exciting. To me, the "k" block is interesting because it is the transition block to the Kreigsmodell rifles, and where the simplification really got started. Early k blocks will have bands and floorplate serial numbered, later k blocks will have unnumbered parts. With your serial, it is probably the earilier type, and is probably serial numbered on the barrel. The later ones are serialed on the reciever. Good for you!

[P08]

Mike


Thanks for the additional info! You are right, the serial is on the barrel. I already had the buttplate off some time ago, but there are no marks under it. My other K98s also have no markings under the buttplate.

Mike would you be able to estimate a production month for my serial? 20379 k

It could be fun to know the approximate time of production.

[Mike Steves]

The 1944 Mauser Oberndorf production is pretty easy to determine month of production. The concensus is that each letter block relates to a month. Not all letter blocks were filled in full as Backbone of the Wehrmacht presumes. For example, January would be no suffix, Feb "a" suffix, March "b" suffix, etc. This puts "k" blocks in the month of November 1944. Mauser did have an "n" block in 44, but these rifles are an anomoly, and appear to have been assembled in Dec.44 with the L blocks.

[P08]

Thanks.