Steyr Luftwaffe Carbine

[R_Hessian]

Bill

Bill,

Thank you for sharing this RARE rifle with us, it is a nice example that has not been sanded ( as it appears to me ).

I would also agree with the statement that you Bill " have you got some neat stuff " but would add that you are also VERY knowledgeable on German firearms... Nice thread!

Robert

[Bill Grist]

Thanks

Thank you very much Robert.. BILL

[leondes]

What is the mark over the "660" on the receiver??

Ronnie it is the Waffenamt 623 which is a inspector at the Steyr plant.. BILL

Hi Bill,

Isn't the marking above the 660 code on top of the receiver a caliber designation of 79 (or 791, 792, etc)?

Regards, Leon

[Bill Grist]

Luftwaffe Karbine

What is the mark over the "660" on the receiver??


Hi Bill,

Isn't the marking above the 660 code on top of the receiver a caliber designation of 79 (or 791, 792, etc)?

Regards, Leon

Leon, It is the Caliber designation 791. I had put the weapon back up stairs and should have pulled out again.. There are three WaA623 on the right side of the receiver.. Thanks for catching that.. BILL

[leondes]

Hi Bill,

Here is the link to pictures of my example.

http://lmd-militaria.com/page544.html

Regards, Leon

[Bill Grist]

Nice

Leon, very nice.. BILL

[Gene]

Leon, that is OUTSTANDING!!

[leondes]

Thanks Bill & Gene.

I nearly gagged when I had to come up with the bucks for that one but I couldn't help it, I am a condition freak. It's a character flaw. HAHA.

Regards, Leon

[Gene]

Leon,

May I ask what you paid? Feel free to PM me if it's too private to say publicly, even if you have to use more than one PM to fit in all the zeroes!

Gene

[Matt Weber]

Bill and Leon,
My hat is now off to both of you guys!

These are both outstanding and extremely rare rifles you got!

It is nice to see some examples of stuff that you very likely will never see in person!

Thanks for sharing with us!

Matt

[Matt Weber]

Really nice Rifle!
I am just curious, why didn't the Luftwaffe just use the Standard K98?

I'd also like to answer Tylers' question here.

First, Goering was probably the most arrogant and flamboyant man in Nazi Germany. Just look at his personal uniforms that he wore! So, he wanted his Luftwaffe to be "different" or separted from the other branches of the military.

Second, the Luftwaffe did use the K98, however, they were constantly in competition with the army, and SS, for weapons procurements, that they sought out thier own contracts.

This is why they contracted with Krieghoff to produce weapons exclusively for the Luftwaffe; such as the P08 Luger, FG42, and most of the aircraft machine guns. Also they had a contract with Femaru to produce the P37 for the Luftwaffe in 1941 and 1943. This "Luftwaffe Karbine" (29(o), is just another example of a small Luftwaffe contract with Steyr for this rifle.

Matt

[Gene]

Don't forget that the small case letter in parentheses after the model designator denotes the country of origin, in this case the "o" is for Oesterreich (Austria)

[leondes]

I'd also like to answer Tylers' question here.

First, Goering was probably the most arrogant and flamboyant man in Nazi Germany. Just look at his personal uniforms that he wore! So, he wanted his Luftwaffe to be "different" or separted from the other branches of the military.

Second, the Luftwaffe did use the K98, however, they were constantly in competition with the army, and SS, for weapons procurements, that they sought out thier own contracts.

This is why they contracted with Krieghoff to produce weapons exclusively for the Luftwaffe; such as the P08 Luger, FG42, and most of the aircraft machine guns. Also they had a contract with Femaru to produce the P37 for the Luftwaffe in 1941 and 1943. This "Luftwaffe Karbine" (29(o), is just another example of a small Luftwaffe contract with Steyr for this rifle.

Matt

I have always felt that Krieghoff got the contract for P.08s from Goering because he had a special relationship with them. They made outstanding shotguns and Goering was a major hunter.

Regards, Leon

[Matt Weber]

Leon,

That could have had something to do with it, but I'm not sure if there was any direct relationship between H. Goering and H. Krieghoff?

However, Krieghoff was searching for a military contract at the time, and had no way to compete against Mauser, Sauer and DWM.
In Gibsons' book on the Krieghoff Parabellum, he states that Krieghoff took the contract to produce the Luger for the Luftwaffe just so it could get it's "foot in the door", and obtain it's first military contract.
Gibson even suggests that Krieghoff made little if any profit on the Luger production. However, this contract opened the door for future contracts for Krieghoff, which of course we all know were larger, and surely more profitable.

Gene,
Yes, you are correct the "o" model designation is for the country of origin. Just like the MP34(o), which is another high quality, outstanding firearms btw. Does anyone have one of these? If so, please show it, and start another thread on it. I love the MP34(o)!

Matt