Hello folks,

I just acquired a vintage Mauser that has me a little stumped. It has all the features of a Commercial Army Model C Oberndorf sporter except that it has a DWM marked receiver, not Oberndorf. Left wall is marked "Deutsche Waffen und Munitionsfabrik Berlin".

It has an original vintage Lyman #35 receiver site which appears to be original to the time of building. It has added markings for 175g and 139g bullet zeros. In many ways is a Dead-Ringer for a Model C Army. It carries Commercial the "2,57 G.B.P. St.m.g" proof marks that were in use from 1891 - 1913, along with "Crown/Crown N" proofs on Barrel, Receiver, and on the turned down Bolt. It has a red recoil pad with the maker's name removed from the center. LOP is 13-3/4" to the front trigger.

"Made in Germany" after the serial number is one-line stamped on the bottom of the stock. 3 digit serial number with last 2 digits matching on all the parts including the Double-Set Trigger assembly. A "7" is on the top of the barrel ring ahead of the receiver indicating it is 7x57 cal. The only other mark found is stamping of "4 small circles in a diamond patern" on most of the parts. I think this may be an inspectors mark, but not sure.

Every indication is that this is a Professional Factory built rifle as opposed to a Gunsmith project. The 22" stepped barrel also looks factory original and not a cut-down. The rifle weighs exactly 7 pounds.

I've listed a bunch of pictures and would ask for opinions and comments please.

Thanks to all.

buckstix - I'd like to welcome you to a somewhat exclusive club; owning a factory DWM Commercial Mauser. The link below will take you to a posting by Michael Petrov a few years ago seeking info on a "Spitzer bullet" marked Mauser. I posted about my rifle at length with the info gathered since obtaining mine. It is likely to be one of the rare occasions he's been stumped.

My rifle is serial #100 and is in 8x57 caliber. Mine also has the elusive (and expensive) Lyman #35 sight. I do envy the double-set triggers and hinged floorplate on your rifle. On the other hand, I also have a DWM 1893/5 factory sporter with them, also in 7x57. These two rifles I own are the only examples I've ever seen in person.

Sincere congratulations on your find.

http://www.jouster.com/forums/showthread...=Spitzer+bullet

Thank you so very much Alkali,

Not too often that Michael Petrov is stumped about something. In searching for history about Tauscher, I found several requests from Michael Petrov looking for a Tauscher catalog. Do you know if ever found one?

I had a hunch that my DWM sporter was something special. It just didn't seem to be a sporterized military rifle. Rather, it appeared to me to be a factory sporter from the start, much like my Oberndorf Model C Army. But, I had never heard of a DWM Factory Sporter. Were your DWM sporters marked with any importer's marks?

buckstix - This is a link to my previous post here as regards the 1893/95 sporter. This will give you a little more on Tauscher. Neither of my rifles are marked with Tauscher's name or any other import info.

http://www.doublegunshop.com/forums/ubbt...7257#Post207257


P.S. Here's a link to a Tauscher article and catalog.

http://www.landofborchardt.com/tauscher-article.html

I get stumped more often than you might think, I just try not to advertize that ;-).

About the time I got all the Tauscher information together was when I lost my hard drive and 90% of the back up. I have not had the time to replace or find it but I do not remember ever seeing any rifle marked "Tauscher".

I miss Michael,

I got info about this unique rifle from Axel E.

"Though this rifle may look like a sporterized surplus military rifle, it is not. At the time it was proofed there were no "surplus" M98 rifles, as these were still state of the art military rifles.

The CROWN-crown/N proof mark shows it was civilian proofed according to the rule of July 23, 1893, using the special "4000 atm proof powder". This proof was in use mainly before 1912, though Zella-Mehlis apparently sometimes used up left-over powder up to 1922. This rifle was proofed before WW1.

In those innocent days around 1900 it was usual practice to include some sporting rifles in the military calibers into each shipment of military rifles to foreign countries. These were meant as "presents" to the decision-making officers. Mauser, Oberndorf sent C-type "Army Hunting Rifles", for example some in 7.65 mm for Argentinia, see Jon Speed's first book "Mauser-OOSR" page 111.

Ludwig Loewe/DWM also had sporters, the so-called "Plezier rifles" built on left over M93 Spanish Mauser actions and shipped them, together with the military M95 7x57 Mausers, to the South African republics Orange Free State and Transvaal, where the sporters were not only used for hunting, but for shooting Brits too. These plezier Mausers are now rare and sought-after collector items. All these rifles show civilian proofmarks.
This DWM made, civilian proofed sporter served as a present (or bribe) when it was shipped to a South American country. At least, it looks somewhat similar to a Mauser C-type with the military stepped barrel and front sight base. Though DWM did not offer sporters to the public, they made several hundreds at least, but not for sale."

Interesting to me on this rifle is the set trigger arrangement. The spring of the double set trigger is the long Mauser factory type, not the short V-type of the contemporary Suhl-made rifles. But the set trigger assembly is mounted into the trigger guard with a separate housing, other than the Mauser commercial ones. The two small cross pins holding the housing are visible in one of the photos. The Magazine-trigger guard unit with hinged, button release floorplate apparently comes from either Argentine 1909 or Portuguese Vegueiro production, both are the same.

The load information "2.57 gramm Gewehrblättchenpulver = rifle flake powder / Stahlmantelgeschoss = steel jacketed bullet" is of the type used up to 1912, so this rifle was civilian proofed before.

The stock looks more like a pre-1912 Mauser B one instead of the usual "sporterized military" C type one.