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New purchase G43 AC44, I’ve got some questions!

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Whiterice

Member
Hey all! I just received my G43 today and after taking a look at it, I’m not so sure I got what I paid for... so I paid $2200 Canadian. It’s been sanded previously so the stock no longer bares the waffenamts. It’s all matching except for the buttplate and the durofoil handguard (which should really be durofoil anyway.) however after taking the rifle apart I noticed the handguard had broken in the past and it was bubba’d back together with shitty glue and a plastic piece.. I wasn’t told the buttplate wasn’t matching, nor was I told the handguard had been bushfixed at some point.

So I was wondering how much i would have to pay for another handguard if I was to buy one or ask for that amount of money back, and I’m looking for a general consensus of price for the overall rifle as it is.

Here’s a link to some photos! If you need anything clearer or closer up let me know!
https://m.imgur.com/a/qjiVWlt
 
Honestly, it doesn’t look so bad. It’s hidden on the underside correct? One of my 43s with laminated hand guard has some kind of epoxy reinforcement. It doesn’t bother me as it’s well hidden and has repaired what would otherwise have been a broken original hand guard. The hand guards are pretty fragile. Even my G41 with Durofol hand guard is broken under the band. It was a surprise when I bought it but it hadn’t been apart in 25 years and I found several things assembled incorrectly. Since it was a less than perfect example anyway, having a duffel-cut stock, I just sucked it up because I wanted the rifle. Of course it was priced accordingly. Point is that if the rifle, other than the hand guard issue, is up to your expectations then I’d keep it. And, by the way, replacements are tough to come by and you’ll likely pay dearly for another. I’d didn’t know Durofol hand guards were numbered to the rifle—my G41 is not numbered but that’s s different rifle. That sanded stock is a different issue, sort of, and that’s your call, but you got the rifle at a decent price.


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Okay. So now I understand....you have a Durofol hand guard on a Walther. You could acquire a laminate original but they don’t come up for sale too often. I may be wrong but although Walther supposedly didn’t use Durofol hand guards I think there are a few recorded even way back to have had them. So, I would not assume beyond all doubt that Durofol isn’t correct for that rifle and I think it’s always possible to be original. There are always exceptions to the rule and it seems the rules change as new information comes to light. I think if it is totally matching otherwise then I’d leave it be. Others I suppose will have different opinions, but that is mine. If the rifle is acceptable to you then keep it. At that price I think I would, but that’s me.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
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Whiterice said:
Hey all! I just received my G43 today and after taking a look at it, I’m not so sure I got what I paid for... so I paid $2200 Canadian. It’s been sanded previously so the stock no longer bares the waffenamts. It’s all matching except for the buttplate and the durofoil handguard (which should really be durofoil anyway.) however after taking the rifle apart I noticed the handguard had broken in the past and it was bubba’d back together with shitty glue and a plastic piece.. I wasn’t told the buttplate wasn’t matching, nor was I told the handguard had been bushfixed at some point.

So I was wondering how much i would have to pay for another handguard if I was to buy one or ask for that amount of money back, and I’m looking for a general consensus of price for the overall rifle as it is.

Here’s a link to some photos! If you need anything clearer or closer up let me know!
https://m.imgur.com/a/qjiVWlt
Click to expand...

Which SHOULDN’T really be durofoil anyway*******
 
At $2200 CDN you did just fine.

The rifle has an 'X' and likely a VOPO Sunburst on the left of the receiver (pictures are dim). These rifles were rebuilt captured rifles and many issued to the East Germans. As a result, the handguard isn't a concern as it is correct for a VOPO rebuild. It may even be a post war VOPO hand guard if it doesn't say durofol underneath, these VOPO handguards are scare and actually worth more than a WWII handguard. There is also a serial range of original WWII 'ac' marked rifles that did have durofol handguards. It is damaged, but it looks like a solid repair and is hidden. The seller may not have known if they never took the rifle down, I'd simply point it out to the seller and ask for a discount as not disclosed. $50-100? You should be able to find a handguard for ~$200 but I would leave it as is.

Why do you believe the butt plate isn't matching? Different serial number? Anything goes on VOPO rifles. They electro penciled or stamped serialized parts that were not originally serialized on WWII rifles. For example, trigger guard, magazine and sometimes the butt plate. They also generally blued the butt plate, but I have seen butt plates in the white as well. Sometimes they are even forced matched a second time, stamped out and re-stamped or lined out and remarked.

If you look at some of my past posts, I've handled a fair amount of G/K43 rifles in Canada. If your not happy, I'd buy the rifle off you - just send me a PM.

You honestly paid the lower end market value for a VOPO G/K43. If you want an all matching WWII G/K43 you will likely have to import from the US and you are looking at least 3-6K US as about 90-95% of these rifles in Canada are VOPO.

Unlike the US GI's that were allowed to bring home war trophy's near the end of the war, there were no official orders for the Canadians. Simply long rifles stayed overseas and pistols were snuck home. Hence why P38's, P35's and P08's can be found at a fraction of US pricing but an honest G/K43 or K98 is scarce or rare in Canada. The VOPO's were imported in the early 1990's.
 
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Joseph Burke said:
Okay. So now I understand....you have a Durofol hand guard on a Walther. You could acquire a laminate original but they don’t come up for sale too often. I may be wrong but although Walther supposedly didn’t use Durofol hand guards I think there are a few recorded even way back to have had them. So, I would not assume beyond all doubt that Durofol isn’t correct for that rifle and I think it’s always possible to be original. There are always exceptions to the rule and it seems the rules change as new information comes to light. I think if it is totally matching otherwise then I’d leave it be. Others I suppose will have different opinions, but that is mine. If the rifle is acceptable to you then keep it. At that price I think I would, but that’s me.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Embarrassingly enough... I just realized the rail has been milled off. I thought I saw it clear as day the first time I looked over the receiver, how much (if at all) does this change the value?
 
In my opinion, no on hurting value, but maybe so if you were expecting a scope rail. I really like what I've seen of yours. I have one with the milled off scope rail and that immediately caught my eye about your rifle. Many enthusiasts don't just collect the rifles, but, at least in my case, prefer to collect the variants of a particular type of rifle. I always look for completely matching rifles and when a variant pops up, well, that makes it all the more attractive. Of the modest group of 43s that I have each is unique in it's own way and I hold as much intrinsic value on the variant with the milled off scope rail as I do the others. I will say the one I have with the milled off scope rail was, coincidentally, the least expensive of my 43s.



Whiterice said:
Embarrassingly enough... I just realized the rail has been milled off. I thought I saw it clear as day the first time I looked over the receiver, how much (if at all) does this change the value?
Click to expand...
 
If milled off at the factory - it doesn't affect value at all. Many rifles left with scope rails milled off (I have one such rifle in my own collection, also a VOPO). It simply means that the rifle didn't meet the highest accuracy standards; they simply milled off the rail to prevent the temptation of mounting a scope to a slightly sub-standard rifle. By the finish and milling marks, you should be able to tell if the work was done in the factory or not. Usually rifles with milled off rails are late rifles. Your is 1944 with a pretty early suffix, but some receivers were set aside and completed later in the war. If not as accurate as other rifles, that might explain why it was potentially assembled later. If it was milled post war, it pretty much makes the rifle a parts gun/shooter.

Claus Espeholt has a good website and serial number study on these rifles and often there is a pattern in production/finishing.
 
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