Gawehr 91 artillery thoughts

[whacko]

Have the opportunity to purchase a gawehr 91 artillery carbine.

Price seemed lower that what I see on GunBroker etc.....

What should I be looking for as far as usefulness / value. I don't generally purchase rifles I can't shoot.

Thanks in advance.

 

[majspud]

A Gewehr 91 is an upgraded M88 Gewehr, and somewhat scarcer. It depends on what the modifications are...has the receiver been notched and marked "S" for the Spitzer (pointed) bullet? Has it been modified from the Mannlicher clip feed system to stripper clips? Does it have a .321 barrel as opposed to .318? Is the receiver marked "NM" for Neues Metal (new metal)? If at least "S" and notched, you can shoot modern American made low power 8mm (7.92x57). I used a lot of PPU in mine.

t

 

[whacko]

A Gewehr 91 is an upgraded M88 Gewehr, and somewhat scarcer. It depends on what the modifications are...has the receiver been notched and marked "S" for the Spitzer (pointed) bullet? Has it been modified from the Mannlicher clip feed system to stripper clips? Does it have a .321 barrel as opposed to .318? Is the receiver marked "NM" for Neues Metal (new metal)? If at least "S" and notched, you can shoot modern American made low power 8mm (7.92x57). I used a loy of PPU in mine.

t

Thanks

I'll check for the s before I purchase.....if it has the s is there low power available at least if I look around?

How can I tell if it's modified to take strippers vs the manlicher clip?

From my quick internet searching i hear only 65k of the artillery 91 were made and most were destroyed. So yes they are a rarer model


General condition on this one at first glance looks pretty darn good. Bore is dark but not pitted. Sights are all tight and no visible rust anywhere.

 

[majspud]

"S" means the chamber has been reamed to accept the longer, larger spitzer bullet....but not necessarily having a .321 barrel. If there is no floor plate, then it uses the Mannlicher clip. Can be closed with a plunger inside and still be a Mannlicher clip. If stripper clips, then "ears" have been welded on the rear of the receiver as a guide for stripper clips.

t

 

[whacko]

"S" means the chamber has been reamed to accept the longer, larger spitzer bullet....but not necessarily having a .321 barrel. If there is no floor plate, then it uses the Mannlicher clip. Can be closed with a plunger inside and still be a Mannlicher clip. If stripper clips, then "ears" have been welded on the rear of the receiver as a guide for stripper clips.

t

I know there is no floor plate. It's open at the bottom.

Are clips available for sale anymore? If so can it be fired if it has the s and I buy some clips?

 

[majspud]

Then its still the Mannlicher clip. Can still be "S" updated and work with pointed bullets though.

t

 

[whacko]

Then its still the Mannlicher clip. Can still be "S" updated and work with pointed bullets though.

t

Thanks I'll do more research.

Overall.....is it a nice addition to a collection?

 

[majspud]

Very nice for a Mauser collector. Should have a stacking rod attached to the front that Gew88s did not have.

t

 

[whacko]

Very nice for a Mauser collector. Should have a stacking rod attached to the front that Gew88s did not have.

t

It has the stacking rod

 

[majspud]

Good. the Gew91 is much less common than the Gew88 carbine. Original, unmodified ones as explained above are worth even more, but not as shootable. Be prepared for a concussion and fireball similar to the MN carbine.

t

 

[majspud]

Gew88 clips; Liberty Tree Collectors & eBay. I may have an original laying around somewhere...probably in the Disaster Area known as the hall closet.

Gew 88 1888 Commission Rifle Clip Reproduction

t

 

[mac1911]

Have the opportunity to purchase a gawehr 91 artillery carbine.

Price seemed lower that what I see on GunBroker etc.....

What should I be looking for as far as usefulness / value. I don't generally purchase rifles I can't shoot.

Thanks in advance.

you can shoot it,
Just be sure of the bore
.318 vs .323 -
Trailboss makes a good fun powder for reduced loads with cast or jacketed bullets

 

[45collector]

Oh wow I totally forgot about my Gew88. I bought it on Gunboards years ago and when it arrived, it was absolutely nothing like how it was described. The bolt head was missing and the bore was a disaster. It was up for sale as “100% complete, in excellent shape”. When I PM’d the seller immediately after opening the box he took over a week to reply, and said the bolt face was there when he shipped it and that the bore was “acceptable”. Nooooo. Goddamn liar. He stopped responding and was banned from GB shortly thereafter for scamming some other folks too. I gave that gun away in a karma here out of anger and frustration. LOL

 

[whacko]

you can shoot it,
Just be sure of the bore
.318 vs .323 -
Trailboss makes a good fun powder for reduced loads with cast or jacketed bullets

If I do purchase it how would that be determined? How do you "slug" a bore?

I started reloading pistol cal a year ago and would not be opposed to reloading some ammo for a purchase like this.

 

[whacko]

I'm going to go take another look at it today with some cash in hand. I'll see where it goes. Thanks for the info everyone

 

[whacko]

Good. the Gew91 is much less common than the Gew88 carbine. Original, unmodified ones as explained above are worth even more, but not as shootable. Be prepared for a concussion and fireball similar to the MN carbine.

t

Pm sent. The asking price seems low which is why I actually paused on the purchase thinking something is "off".

 

[whacko]

So

A little more online research and I found the exact same gun being questioned on a gun buyer board. Serial number is the same as the one I was looking at yesterday. Turns out it's a cut down full size 88 with a stacking swivel added to the stock. If it sounds too good to be true.....it probably is.

I could buy it as a shooter to put in the safe and have fun with but I'll have to think about it.

Link below
This is the exact same gun I was looking at. I missed that the receiver and barrel shrowd have different sn

Question on this Gewehr 91

 

[mac1911]

So

A little more online research and I found the exact same gun being questioned on a gun buyer board. Serial number is the same as the one I was looking at yesterday. Turns out it's a cut down full size 88 with a stacking swivel added to the stock. If it sounds too good to be true.....it probably is.

I could buy it as a shooter to put in the safe and have fun with but I'll have to think about it.

Link below
This is the exact same gun I was looking at. I missed that the receiver and barrel shrowd have different sn

Question on this Gewehr 91

Nice find/catch
i would not buy it unless you think you might need some parts in the future.

 

[KBCraig]

If I do purchase it how would that be determined? How do you "slug" a bore?

To slug a bore, take an oversized soft pure lead round ball, and drive it through the bore using a dowel and mallet. Then you measure to diameter to see what size you're dealing with.

Not only does it help avoid a catastrophic disaster (should you use the wrong ammo), it tells you what size bullets you should use when hand loading.

Now that this one turns out to be misrepresented, you should walk, unless the price is right. For a good shooter or parts gun, it might be worth it anyway.

 

[mac1911]

To slug a bore, take an oversized soft pure lead round ball, and drive it through the bore using a dowel and mallet. Then you measure to diameter to see what size you're dealing with.

Not only does it help avoid a catastrophic disaster (should you use the wrong ammo), it tells you what size bullets you should use when hand loading.

Now that this one turns out to be misrepresented, you should walk, unless the price is right. For a good shooter or parts gun, it might be worth it anyway.

you can also get some cerrosafe chamber casting alloy.
You can cast the chamber and a small portion of the muzzle.