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Gun show pick up

Hchon3

Member
Went to the gunshow to look for smalls but ended up leaving with a gew 98. It's a 1917 C.G haenel suhl bolt mismatch but matches itself. All other parts appear to match but I'm no expert. Also looks like someone took a ballpoint pen and dimpled some b.s on the stock. I looked it up in Bruce's book but I only saw a small excerpt about a haenel suhl so any help would be appreciated.
 

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Nice find congrats! Pretty scare maker. CGH was part of the Suhl Consortium along with V. Chr. Schilling, and J.P. Sauer. Each assembled rifles at their own facilities but collaborated in production. For example, one maker would produce receivers and farm them out to the other firms, lots of the components were done in that fashion. Paul will be able to tell you more on this one. The graffiti on the stock is interesting, not exactly uncommon for vets to mark them like that.
 
Looks like an e-block, if so this is a transition point on stock marking and identification. Looks beech and if so the right side of the buttstock would be good to see better. In the e-block they changed how the stocks were identified, this early it should be the early method, later in the e-block it changed to a more traditional pattern (traditional in that most others used)

Little can be said with just three pictures, but it looks pretty good to me, it has the right features for a CGH/17 e-block, and CGH are pretty tough to find really nice and original (Suhl rifles are almost always well used, often abused). Generally, trends suggest CGH is the most prolific of the three, but I have found them damn difficult to acquire when I was a buyer, but either way, no Suhl rifle is common in original matching condition. They are rare in upper grades, far more difficult to find than an arsenal or WMO/DWM.

Try and do some good (direct and clear) pictures of the barreled receiver markings and the stock markings (rightside, small or wrist, and lower buttstock, also the top screw area of the buttplate) These areas will provide the information about what you have (if the bolt matches take a picture of the top and lower flat of the bolt handle stem). As Sam stated, the consortium worked by division of labor, CGH made the majority of the receivers and bolts, JPS the barrels, and VCS probably small components.. I think all finished their own stocks, though hard to say.

I have done much more trends work since this brief article, but here are the basics on the subject:

https://gewehr98.wordpress.com/2018/03/30/suhl-consortium-gewehr98-production/
 
Thanks guys for the info. I posted pics of all the markings I found, and so far they all seem to match minus the bolt. The cleaning all the gunk is taking me alot longer then expected, and I need to order new springs for the Lange viser sight. It's crazy to see how the germans stamped every thing. Anyways let me know what yall think, does everything seem righteous?
 

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A few more pictures
 

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And some more pictures
 

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Pictures of the stock
 

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Sorry for so many picture post. Files are to big to upload all in one post.
 

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The barrel code would be helpful if you can post a picture of it, should read S&S BJ*** C/B C/N etc.. typically on the barrel near the receiver, most often along the bottom of the barrel. Could vary slightly but most are this pattern. A shot of the small of the stock (wrist acceptance) would also be helpful, as would whether the suffix is on the buttplate, near the top screw? Often these are well worn and indecipherable, but see if it is clear enough for a picture.

The bolt is probably out of a WMO, 1916 probably, very nice bolt.

I would approach cleaning with some caution, aggressive cleaning will not help value.
 
Got the pictures you asked about. Except for the numbers most of the stamps on the stock are indecipherable. I would have never noticed the suffix stamp on the butt plate unless you said something, but it is there and still clear. How do you recommend I clean the rifle with out hurting value, and should I leave the big crack on the side of the stock? Is the bolt correct for this rifle?
 

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A few more pictures. Can anyone confirm the origins of the sling?
 

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Very cool rifle! Tough to find any Consortium rifle in nice shape.

Sent from my XT1635-01 using Tapatalk
 
How do you recommend I clean the rifle with out hurting value, and should I leave the big crack on the side of the stock?

VERY conservatively. Many rifle have been ruint/degraded by over cleaning. You can literally wipe $1k off a rifle in 10 minutes. I'd start with clean cloth (like an old white t-shirt) on the wood and some type of soft brush like a toothbrush or small paint brush for the crevices. Light coat of oil on a rag for the metal. So much smarter to under clean it than over clean it. Can't put the patina back once it's scrubbed off. Some feel even mild cleaning is too much but I'm not a fan of decades old cobwebs in my actions.

Same goes for the stock crack. Unless you know yourself or someone else who can do it at a very high level it's best to just leave it. A poor repair will hurt value more than a crack IMHO.

I shouldn't have to say it but for the love of God, no sandpaper, steel wool, emory cloth, buffing wheels, caustic chemicals, etc. Leave that nonsense to the pros (Dandy Don Mitchell, Milltech, etc). You can always clean it more but you can never clean it less.
 
Thanks for the cleaning advice. Unfortunately I didnt see it till after I started cleaning. I dont think I went way overboard but I did fully disassemble the rifle and hit it with a copper brush, 0000 steel wool, and some ballistol. I cant stand a dirty rifle, and this one had alot of gunk and dried Cosmo. Hopefully I didnt hurt the value to much. As for the stock, I decided to leave it be. It has already been sanded half to death and poke with a ball point.
 

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