Cz Postwar Codes

What's the latest idea for the end user of the tgf marked rifles, bayonets etc? I know a lot seem to have been for East germany, but did Czechoslovakia retain any, or were they all lion crested there? Were the Danish post-war K98's all tgf?

And the tgf Vz24 bayonets - did this become THE standard Czech bayonet with the post-war Czech K98's, and for the exports as well?

My interest was piqued when I picked up an absolutely unissued, chock-full of grease tgf 1950 dated vz24 bayonet on the weekend (with an equally unissued 1946 dated scabbard)

No one? I thought maybe Eric knew?

Israeli

I went through a pile of Israeli Mausers when they were imported in 87 and I found many tgf's. It is hard to say whether they were sent to Israel directly or were bought from another country as many variations were found.

Thanks. I know post-war is "off topic" in this forum, but nowhere else to put it really...

I still kick myself missing the tgf 1950 marked K98 10 years ago at a show. I know who got it, but I doubt I will get it in the end.

In ALL the Israeli K98's I have seen here - and there have been a LOT - I have yet to see a tgf marked one. I wish I had, as I would probably now own it! We got THOUSANDS of Israeli K98's in country in the late 1970's when GCA 68 prohibited their import to the USA. And MANY are in as-new condition.

Vulch said:

No one? I thought maybe Eric knew?

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I assumed the tgf rifles were an export product based on their (relatively) late manufacture but do not know for sure. The commonly held belief is that they were manufactured for the DDR. To what degree that is true I couldn't tell you.

Probably a dumb question, but why "tgf"? What would be the point in using a "secret", WW2-style manufacturing code post-war?

Wolfsburg said:

Probably a dumb question, but why "tgf"? What would be the point in using a "secret", WW2-style manufacturing code post-war?

Click to expand...

Evidently they found the system usable and simply went with it. They also coded some of their postwar pistols "rid" (e.g. CZ52 pistols), some of their other weapons "she" (e.g. CZ52 rifles, CZ52/57 rifles), and used the codes "aym", "bxn" and "czo" on ammunition. In addition to bayonets and 98k's, tgf was also used on a .22 caliber trainer (Model 1).

Here's an incomplete list of Czech postwar codes stolen from GunBoards along with the GB link to a discussion on the topic. For the record, I DO NOT believe that tgf has anything to do with the title "Tschechische Gewehr Fabrik".

avm Unknown Czech factory (code found on fuzes)
aym Povazske Strojarne, Narodny Podnin, Povazska-Bystrica
bnt Unknown Czech factory (code found on cases)
bxn Sellier & Bellot, Vlasim
czo Weapons factory Zbrojovka Vseten
dtp Vlarske strojirny, Slaviein
ena Policka´s machine works, Policka
evr Powder filling plant in Nyoany
fut Adamovske strojirny, Adamov
grv Konstrukta Brno
gts Powder filling and ammo-assembling plant ZVS, Dubnica nad Vahom
hsu Kovohuti Rokycany
irv Weapon factory Bojkovice, now Zeveta Bojkovice, Bojkovice
jpw Zbrojkova Vsetin, factory in Jablunka (code found on 30x210 Br-303 belt link)
ndn Unknown Czech factory (code found on 9mm Luger cartridge cases)
nma Powder manufacturer Syntesia, Pardubice-Semtin
oma Unknown Czech factory (code found on 9mm Luger cartridge cases)
rid - Ceska zbrojovka Strakonice
she Ceska zbrojovka Uhersky Brod
tgf Zbrojovka Brno
uxa Zbrojovka Vlasim, Narodni Podnik, Vlasim
whx Filling and recalibrating plant Nováky, Slovakia
xbk Optikotechna/Meopta
yal Meopta Prerau - Prerov factory
zyj Unknown Czech factory (code found on fuzes)

http://forums.gunboards.com/showthr...zech-arms-and-ammunition-(esp.-quot-tgf-quot-)

In the immediate postwar era German surplus and weapons were highly regarded / sought after by 3rd world countries. The K98k at that time was the AKM of today. Seems like if the marking equipment was already there to roll stamp and punch three letter codes, and the workers were already used to this process, AND it was good marketing, no reason not to go with it. Thanks for posting those codes Pisgah, stickied.

Not sure how valid it is, but some people reckoned that Czech codes were letter juxtapositions.

For example, she is tgf - s+1 = t, h-1 =g, e+1=f.... Seems plausible, maybe.

But do remember German coding for Czechoslovakia seems consistent too:

dou

dot

dow

"do" seems the "country" code or region code for Czechoslovakia.

I don't think "do" was meant to be for Czechoslovak region- simply a matter of adding all of the Czechoslovak factories around the same time. A quick check of the other codes around those show German companies.

Did it inspire the Police to write the song De Do Do Do De Da Da Da?