The rifle is a wartime rifle, made at Oberspree during the war, probably near the end of the war, say August-September or so, though the Berlin firms suffered from unrest/strikes more than the other makers, so no way to tell the normal way (dividing totals known by 12 months). The p-block is right in the middle of production, though it is probable that this is later than it seems because 1917's probably lingered well into 1918 production (1917 serialing continued w/o rollover into 1918). It is also known that DWM sent components/parts to Oberspree during 1918 because they were dropping rifle production. (Mauser Oberndorf also supplied components to WOK/Oberspree throughout the war, Jon Speed has recorded deliveries to this sister firm)
The scrub/reserial is almost certainly done by the Spaniards, but at least they left the suffix, which is the most important thing. Without the suffix the rifle would be pointless to my work...
As for the assorted markings ("A" and MP/8 ordnance bomb) and the other typical Spaniard traits, like serialing the stock under the receiver serial, I doubt anyone really knows the meaning or purpose. John Wall took a keen interest in such things, he spoke to Spanish collectors about such things and all you can do is catalog the variations looking for patterns, which I am sure John Wall did, but all his work is lost to us today.. The man was a thorough researcher, best I knew, - across a wider breadth of topics, with a diverse catalog of articles and documents. Even if his work could be recovered, finding a man to follow through on it would be near impossible, John Wall was unique... anyway, what John once wrote was that the MP/8 bomb was probably a post war (post civil war, very probably post WWII) ordnance acceptance for a rework, some suggest it was a rearsenal prior to the sale to Sam Cummings, though no one really knows, at least 10 years ago. Gunboards isn't work much these days, but TP and JPS still do good work on Gunboards-Mauser, if there is an answer your best chance is there.
Odds are good this rifle was reworked/upgraded by the Germans in 1935-1936 and was sent to the Nationalists (Franco), - large numbers of small arms were sent, none for free, Hitler sent them on credit but expected full payment (which Franco paid before WWII ended), and this was never written off as was done by Mussolini, who was far more sympathetic to Spain than Hitler ever was... the civil war for Hitler was more of fighting communists and getting nice with Mussolini (who Hitler courted early on, ridiculously so, almost embarrassingly so at times, though it paid off in 1938 and during the early stages of war) than anything else, much of the crap that passes for history on the internet is pathetic. If you can find General JFC Fuller's work on the subject, it is quite good, - find work by military men, avoid propagandist politicians, especially ones that worked for FDR, like Claude Bowers, the US Ambassador to Spain, like FDR a communist sympathizer. Most collectors rely on Arms for Spain by Howson, he is a republican sympathizer (which is common to most books on the SCW - Franco & Hitler is another), but is more objective than some. Howson doesn't go into good details on small arms or rifles, but does give some details. Actually, I have read or reviewed several others, and none give meat and potatoes details we would want as collectors. Like most books they try to appeal to a broad audience and try to take a popular view (popular in the aftermath of WWII, which is quite different than the view by Fuller and military men of 1936-1938, - after WWII anything Hitler could be linked too, even so superficially as Franco, was automatically evil, even though Franco played his cards perfectly during the war, - he was in a tight spot 1939-1942 and I'd like to hear how anyone could have done better...)
Anyway, nice rifle as far as a SCW goes, as you mentioned, most were brutalized in the 1960's, chopped or worse, and many were quite hard to find variations, if old Sam Cummings hadn't been a businessman looking to make a buck more than a collector (back then there were few collectors) we would be better off today.
Below is an early auction result for this rifle:
Waffenwerke Oberspree -- 1918 GEW-98 Mauser. S/42G code. Not Import. C&R.
Category: Firearms : Curios & Relics -- Item# 8477924
Winner:thisoldman (view feedback)
Current Price: $400.00
Quantity:1 lot
Auction Type:Basic Style
NRA Grade:Good
History:37 Bid(s) ($0.01 starting bid)
Seller:BR-549 (view feedback)
(view this seller's auctions)
Location (State):ME
Auction Start:02/10/2008 at 15:53:42
Auction Close:02/17/2008 at 15:53:42
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Buyer Tip: If you're the High Bidder above, you're the High Bidder in this auction. All Auctions are conducted in Pacific Standard Time.
Description
Seller's Description:
Up for auction is this WW1 GEW-98 Mauser, dated 1918, in the .8mm-caliber. 29-1/2-inch barrel. Good bore, with good rifling, but dark in the grooves. Metal finish is good, with light rust spots, and light to moderate pitting. Stock showing serval scratches, dings, and gouges from heavy use, but no serious damage. Serial number-1291 matches on the stock, barrel, receiver, and bolt. Some of the bolt parts, bands, and butt plate numbers do not match. The floorplate serial number has been restamped to #1291. Rifle is not import marked. Please see photos for all the markings, and e-mail questions. FFL required, or a C&R is OK for this rifle. Please be advised that we have visually inspected this rifle, but we have not test fired it. As with any firearm, please have them checked out by a competent gunsmith before attempting to fire them. Please be aware of all firearm related laws in your state before bidding. Remember that ignorance of the law is no excuse. This rifle carries the usual 3-day non-firing inspection. Returns accepted with a full refund, less shipping cost. We do not end our auctions early, every one gets a fair shot. Thanks for looking, and good luck bidding.
Payment and Shipping Instructions:
Shipping on this rifle in the continental United States will be $25.00, this includes insurance and confirmation. Sorry, no international shipping. We hold gun until personal checks clear. With money orders, or cashiers check, we ship within 48-hours. Residents of Maine must add the 5% sales tax or provide a valid resale certificate. Thanks.
Bidding History for Item #8477924
1918 GEW-98 Mauser. S/42G code. Not Import. C&R.
Bidder Bid Quantity Comments Date/Time Bid Posted
thisoldman$400.001-no comment-3:53 PM Sun Feb 17
xjking$399.001-proxy bid-3:53 PM Sun Feb 17
xjking$354.001-proxy bid-3:52 PM Sun Feb 17
1911A1 Enthusiast$353.001-no comment-3:52 PM Sun Feb 17
xjking$334.991-proxy bid-3:52 PM Sun Feb 17
1911A1 Enthusiast$333.991-no comment-3:52 PM Sun Feb 17
xjking$319.011-proxy bid-3:51 PM Sun Feb 17
havvey$318.011-no comment-3:51 PM Sun Feb 17
xjking$311.001-no comment-9:31 AM Sun Feb 17
luan$310.001-proxy bid-9:31 AM Sun Feb 17
luan$304.001-proxy bid-2:39 PM Sat Feb 16
1911A1 Enthusiast$303.001-no comment-2:39 PM Sat Feb 16
luan$251.001-no comment-6:08 PM Fri Feb 15
thisoldman$250.001-proxy bid-6:08 PM Fri Feb 15
thisoldman$236.001-proxy bid-8:39 AM Fri Feb 15
1911A1 Enthusiast$235.001-no comment-8:39 AM Fri Feb 15
thisoldman$231.001-no comment-2:00 PM Thu Feb 14
YUKON75$230.001-proxy bid-2:00 PM Thu Feb 14
YUKON75$187.001-proxy bid-10:19 PM Wed Feb 13
1911A1 Enthusiast$186.001-no comment-10:19 PM Wed Feb 13
YUKON75$185.001-proxy bid-5:15 AM Tue Feb 12
EDMAN2$184.001-no comment-5:15 AM Tue Feb 12
YUKON75$163.001-proxy bid-5:15 AM Tue Feb 12
EDMAN2$162.001-no comment-5:15 AM Tue Feb 12
YUKON75$132.131-proxy bid-12:54 AM Tue Feb 12
nibbs$131.131-no comment-12:54 AM Tue Feb 12
YUKON75$127.881-proxy bid-7:23 PM Mon Feb 11
fredrsv1000s$126.881-no comment-7:23 PM Mon Feb 11
YUKON75$79.981-no comment-9:53 AM Mon Feb 11
WaterEagle$78.981-proxy bid-9:53 AM Mon Feb 11
WaterEagle$66.001-proxy bid-8:13 PM Sun Feb 10
chadtram$65.001proxy bid8:13 PM Sun Feb 10
WaterEagle$56.001-proxy bid-8:12 PM Sun Feb 10
chadtram$55.001proxy bid8:12 PM Sun Feb 10
WaterEagle$41.011-proxy bid-7:17 PM Sun Feb 10
C.A.W.$40.011-no comment-7:17 PM Sun Feb 10
WaterEagle$0.011-no comment-5:55 PM Sun Feb 10
$0.01Starting Price3:53 PM Sun Feb 10
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