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Old September 15, 2009, 01:21 PM   #4
Scorch
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Join Date: February 13, 2006
Location: Washington state
Posts: 15,248
Is it possibly a commercial M98 sporting rifle, or a rifle that was intended as a civilian rifle but put into military service? The Mauser crest and "Standard Modell" designation seem like a civilian marking (military M1898 rifles were marked "Gewehr 98 Standard Modell"). It is marked for the S bore (.323"), something that would not seem necessary with a military rifle, since all military M98s were rebarreled for the S bore by 1905, while civilian rifles continued using both the I bore and the S bore. It has a straight bolt because that was the standard rifle (Standard Modell) configuration, as opposed to a carbine with the bent bolt handle.

Russian capture rifles usually have the WaffenAmpt marks defaced, yours are very clear. Russian capture rifles usually have a brushed-on coat of spar varnish, yours looks like a very nice finish.
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