The Gewehr 98 rifle was patented by Paul Mauser on September 9, 1895. It became the development of the 7, 92-mm M1888 rifle, which was not actually his development, and with which he himself was not very happy. Therefore, already in 1889, he designed a new M1889 rifle, which was adopted by the Belgian army. Then in 1893 he created the M1893 rifle for the Spanish army. Well, and then Paul, for five whole years, assembled all his innovations, tested on different rifles, into a single whole, and the M1898 rifle became this “single whole”. By the decision of the Gewehr-Prüfungskommission (G. P. K.) commission, it began to be designated as Gewehr 98 (G98 or Gew.98 - that is, a rifle of the 1898 model), and it entered service with the German army on April 5, 1898. Well, it was tested in battle very soon, in China, during the suppression of the “boxer uprising” in 1900-1901.
Here it is - a carbine "Spanish Mauser" М1916, type 1. Issue of 1920. Even the belt has survived … Although, who knows if it is of that time, or later?
The production of the new rifle was developing quickly enough. So, in 1904, the German government ordered 290,000 rifles from Mauser, and 210,000 from DWM. Moreover, we note that the program for the production of new rifles at the Paul Mauser enterprise was provided by three thousand workers and employees, two thousand machine tools, seven of the most ultra-modern steam engines at that time and two hydro-turbine power plants that gave current to production, as well as several powerful locomotives that delivered raw materials and equipment. That is, it was the most advanced military production at that time, which ensured very high quality standards for its products.
Here they are - "two twin brothers" M1916 carbines, type 1 on the right (with a dark stock) and type 2 (on the left) - a stock of light wood.
And, of course, other countries, for example, Spain, also wanted to possess such modern and high-quality weapons. The latter received Mauser rifles of the 1893 model of the year (caliber 7 mm, cartridge 7 × 57 mm), which became the standard weapon of the Spanish army; then a Mauser carbine model 1895 for the same caliber 7 × 57 mm. Finally, the Spaniards got a shortened Mauser rifle of the 1916 model, again of the same caliber, and it would be strange if it were different!
Well, this is the Gewehr 98 rifle, with which all its other clones originate!
A good rifle is, first of all, a good cartridge. So the German Mauser cartridge was one of such ammunition. It was distinguished by a high muzzle energy, which was 3828 J for a rifle (3698 J for a carbine), and a good penetrating and also lethal bullet effect. In the Gewehr 98, the bullet speed was 870 m / s, and the effective firing range was 1000 m with a standard barrel length of 740 mm. The barrel of the carbine was 140 mm shorter, and the effective range of the shot was reduced to 600 m. The photo shows an old cartridge weighing 227 grains * and an actual bullet diameter of 8.07 mm (left) and a new "S", mod. 1905 weighing 150 grains ** (right). As a result of the use of a new bullet and gunpowder, the range of a direct shot at the waist figure increased from 305 to 413 meters, with an increase in flatness, penetration and accuracy at all firing distances.
But on the other hand, during the civil war in Spain, the republicans and nationalists literally flooded the country with foreign weapons. In total, if you count, Spain got … 64 different models of rifles and carbines from all over the world, ranging from Shosspo needle rifles chambered for a paper cartridge, and to Japanese Arisaka rifles! Weapons came literally from everywhere: from Mexico and Paraguay, Chile, Poland and Romania, the USA and England (not from England itself, of course, but of the English model), Switzerland, and the USSR, France and Japan. From the same Canada, the Republicans received 27,000 Ross rifles, 27,000 Mannlicher rifles from Austria М1895 / 24, 9,000 Winchesters of 1895, 10,000 Gra-Kropachek rifles of 1884 with an 11 × 59 mm underbarrel magazine, 10,900 Lebel rifles of the 1916 model from France, 50,000 Czechoslovakian Mauser model 1924 (Puška vz. 24), caliber 7, 92 × 57 mm. And much more! That is, what was the main problem of the Republican army? That's right - the problem of supplying this whole freak show with ammunition! That is, everything is almost like in Gaidar's fairy tale about Malchish-Kibalchish - "there are cartridges, but the arrows are beaten." Only here the opposite is true - "and there are arrows (at the expense of the international brigades, at first the Republicans even managed to temporarily gain a numerical superiority over the nationalists!), But there are not enough cartridges!" Much more, if even the same Chasspot rifles and Remington rifles of the 1871 model of the year and the caliber 11 × 57 mm R (.43 Spanish), with a crane bolt, and they were in service with the Republican troops, and they fought with these "museum exhibits" !
"Mannlicher-Carcano" М1891. Republicans also fought with such rifles!
Czechoslovakian ruška vz. 24, caliber 7, 92 × 57 mm also fought for the Pyrenees mountain range.
However, there were just enough rifles for the army in Spain. So, by 1896, she received from Germany 251,800 rifles and 27,500 model M1893 carbines. By the way, at the same time, the Spanish Mauser model entered service with the armies of China, Paraguay and Chile almost unchanged. However, Spain produced its own weapons, which were widely used in the battles of the civil war. First of all, these are Mauser carbines of the 1916 model, type 1, and type 2. And now we will consider them in detail.
On the breech of the barrel, we see the brand: the name of the manufacturing company "FACTORY DE ARMAS -" Oviedo "(Arsenal Oviedo)" is a large Spanish arsenal for the production of small arms in Spain, in the Basque Country. Year of issue - 1920 clearly indicates that the carbine had a chance to "sniff gunpowder" in 1936 - 1938.
Although the German Mauser had a semi-pistol butt neck from the very beginning, the Spaniards remained true to tradition and left it straight. The bolt handle is curved, although there is no characteristic depression under it. And attention is drawn to a certain detail built into the trigger bracket, which is also absent on the Mauser.
We look at the shutter and feeder. Two powerful projections that lock the shutter are clearly visible. In the English "Lee-Enfield" they were located at the back and locked in the receiver, and not at the bullet entrance. That is why it was believed that the English bolt, simply resting on the head of the cartridge, would vibrate when firing, while the German one, they say, “locks tightly”. In practice, it turned out that if it vibrated, then it did not bother anyone at all, but the bolt of the English rifle opened with greater speed than the German one. That is, with all other indicators, the British with their rifles could fire more shots than the Germans. Well, then the "law of large numbers" comes into play.
The finger cutout is very large for easy loading. The feeder plate is flat, the clip slot is made directly on the bolt carrier.
The bolt is closed, the drummer is cocked, as indicated by the firing pin protruding from the back of a simple cylindrical war.
It is believed that among the shortcomings of the "Mauser" can be attributed to its sight. And not even the sight itself - quite ordinary with divisions set up to 2000 m, but its location on the breech of the barrel, that is, far from the eye. It would be better to install it on the rear of the receiver and make it foldable, like on the same Arisaka rifle. But it was not done during the break between the First and Second World Wars … So this carbine has it installed in the same place. Why is that bad? The fact that the barrel gets very hot from intense shooting, which leads to thermal expansion, which affects the accuracy of the sight. What's changing there? Some fractions of a millimeter? But … here there are stakes, there is a permissible inaccuracy in manufacturing, and now the bullet hits the enemy not in the forehead, but just whistles over the ear!
When shooting at maximum range, the sight had to be set like this!
Now the original "Spanish design" has gone … See those hinges on the magazine lid and the latch built into the trigger bracket?
As a result, it was possible to open it and see what was there, or clean it if necessary!
Fly with a fly.
For some reason, there is no marking on the “type 2” carbine …
The sight on it was made not so … "protruding".
The design of the bolt and stock remained unchanged.
But the lid of the store has now been made non-opening. That is, in principle, it can be opened, but not so that by simply pressing the lever inside the bracket.
Personal impressions of these two carbines. The second - "type 2" with the same high-quality workmanship of both models seemed to me personally more convenient. The sight is practically made, there is no "opener" of the store, it is immediately clear whether the bolt is cocked or not, and a simple cylinder at the end of the bolt does not distract with any delights. And any form in technique the simpler the better! It is very convenient to recharge it. In a word, if the Republicans fought with these carbines, they caused a lot of trouble for the Franco nationalists, and … vice versa!
* In the United States and Great Britain, the small unit of weight, "grains," is used to measure the weight of bullets. One grain is equal to 0.0648 grams.
** In Russia until 1927, 1 grain weighed 62.2 mg.
