Mauser Gewehr 1898

Last Updated on Tuesday, 21 July 2009 16:41 Written by Administrator Thursday, 02 July 2009 16:10

The Mauser Gewehr 1898 was the standard Germany infantry rifle from 1898 to 1935. The rifle was designed to use the 7.92 mm Mauser round. On the whole, the rifle was very well-constructed and reliable. The rifle was used until the Second World War after which it was completely replaced with the Karbiner 98 rifle.

The Mauser G98 is designated after the year of its manufacture. It replaced the earlier Gewehr 1888 model. It saw action in a number of conflicts such as the Boxer Rebellion, World War I, Spanisn Civil War and World War II.

The production of the rifle was stopped after the Second World War after Germany’s defeat. However, production of the rifle has been resumed in the recent years by Mauser Jagdwaffen GmbH. These rifles are intended for the civilian market and are meant mainly for hunting and sporting purposes.

Several variants and versions of the M1898 were designed and manufactured in the years following the introduction of the rifle. These include:

>> Sniper Models: The M98 was very effective and accurate in the field. Thus 15,000 rifles were converted into snipers by adding aiming optics. The initial design of the rifle didn’t allow for optics to be mounted. Thus, changes had to be made to the design to accommodate the scope without hampering operation of the gun.

>> Karabiner 98a: This is a shortened version of the Gewehr 98 designed for use by cavalry.

>> Karabiner 98b: This version was almost the same as the Gewehr 98 but was designated as a carbine in accordance with the Treaty of Versailles which prohibited Germany from manufacturing rifles.

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