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1917 Simson & co. In k98 configuration

Gunnut

Well-known member
Hello, I'm fairly new here and have the German Mauser disease pretty bad. Found a sporterized one a couple days ago and would like to get some of your opinions on it. I've read about them in a couple of books but haven't run across one until now. It is a 1917 dated Simson and co. Gew98, but in K98 configuration with Nazi eagle proof marks on the barrel and receiver, all matching serial nos. and a few different waffenamts on several parts. It is in an old fajen or bishop sporter stock and looks to have been reblued a long time ago, the bore looks almost like new, whoever had it before removed the entire rear sight, sleeve and all. I love to rescue these old sporters and to study them, and try to restore them to their correct original configuration. Any info or opinions on this will be appreciated also any info on removing and replacing the front sight, so I can install a new rear sight sleeve will help, thanks in advance.
 
Well something like this requires pictures to even guess at what you have and its potential for a restoration. However, generally it is usually considered by most collectors that reblued=shooter.

I guess it depends on how scarce the rifle variation is or how much attachment you have for a rifle though, I own a neat S42/37 that is reblued but metal matching, I kept it as a shooter because it is worth more to me, because I have had it so many years and I couldn't get but a couple hundred out of it.

Anyway, we would have to see pictures of the barreled receiver to see if it was made by Simson, or Dresden, or even if during the FWW, Simson supplied receivers to Dresden and I have seen some that were never assembled during the war. A couple Zeithan builds exist, and they show no signs of wartime assembly. Also the pictures of the muzzle and rearsight area would be helpful to the other question, sometimes sporters have altered barrels and that complicates things. The barrel markings will tell you when the barrel was made also, that could help in an opinion.
 
1917 Simson & Suhl

Hello Loewe, I have no intentions of ever getting rid of it or even trying to fool anybody. I just want it to keep as a shooter and a correct specimen of a certain era of the change over from Gew to K98. I've only sold one that I had found, and have been all but begging the guy to sell it back to me. Anyway I just wanted to try to post some pics. and give some more info on it. On the barrel is 660 followed by a large 65 with a line over and below it, then 38 followed by BO with two small dots above the O and then three WaA623 waffenamts. Directly on top of the barrel behind the rear sight is a large S and on the left side of barrel is a Nazi eagle and ser. No. I tried to get the best pics. I could with this phone, on top of the receiver is Simson & Co. Suhl over 1917, on the right side of the receiver is what looks like three different Imperial proofs, on the right is a Nazi eagle with ser. No. And Gew 98 on the side. I hope these pictures help. Thanks again. Well guess that didn't work, sorry but I tried to post pics.
 
It sounds as though the rifle is probably more of a salvage receiver built as a Kar98k by a depot, which is typical of the early war period. The barrel is an ordnance spare made by Steyr, how the rifle is serialed might offer a clue, sometimes these are depot builds, with the Wehrkreis number as a prefix to the serial, other times they are just numbered to match the original receiver serial or given a new serial. Really there is a lot of variation depending on the circumstance of where & when it went through a depot.

W/o pictures nothing else can be said about your rifle, at least nothing but mere speculation.
 

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