Help on info on K98k 1939 - Code 42

Dear everyone,

I hope you will be able to point me in the right direction to get some more information on my K98k.

I bought it in Germany, and I have an official gun registration number for it: 7535

Some things I oberserved and I have questions:
- Stock is numbered (all wood) with 3377 and the piece that keeps the wood together (H) is 3377, the shoulder plate is also 3377 (with a 0 below?)
- The gun itself is numbered 7535
- The little parts are numbered 35 (so the end of the 7535) - does it mean it is matching numbers?
- The WA is mostly 63 but the end piece of the stock (just below the barrel) is WA23 and a 77 (the last 2 digits of the stock numer)
- On the case release is a 02 and not a 35?

Is the K98k matching numbers? Do you know if during this period there was different numbers for stock and metal parts?

Would be great if you could give me any information about it that you have - I know you are all great experts and you probably spot things that I cannot even think of now!

Thank you so much!

Here is some additional pictures - hope these help!

It isn’t matching. All numbered parts would have had serial matching numbers.

Herk1994 said:

It isn’t matching. All numbered parts would have had serial matching numbers.

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Thank you for your reply. So all metal parts are the same except the stock and the metal part of the stock. I thought I read somewhere that this was in the pre war times not unusual. Probably the most realistic outcome was that the stock was replaced later.

Cherry237 said:

Thank you for your reply. So all metal parts are the same except the stock and the metal part of the stock. I thought I read somewhere that this was in the pre war times not unusual. Probably the most realistic outcome was that the stock was replaced later.

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Yes. And the extractor (with 02) is not original either.
You can see examples of all matching rifles here:

Guillaume d'Orange said:

Yes. And the extractor (with 02) is not original either.
You can see examples of all matching rifles here:

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Thank you so much! It explaines why the stock isn't walnut! Probably replaced during the war.
The gun is working really well and smooth, much smoother than my other K98k

I took the rifle completely apart and found more stamps and numbers

So the shaft is fully 3377
The gun itself is 7535 and 35 except extractor which is 02.

Can anyone help me on the numbers on the barrel on the pictiure below:

Cherry237 said:

Thank you so much! It explaines why the stock isn't walnut! Probably replaced during the war.
The gun is working really well and smooth, much smoother than my other K98k

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It is great that it works well, but don’t assume it was replaced/repaired during the war. Period repairs have markings that identify them as such. Without markings, it could have been replaced yesterday.

Cherry237 said:

I took the rifle completely apart and found more stamps and numbers

So the shaft is fully 3377
The gun itself is 7535 and 35 except extractor which is 02.

Can anyone help me on the numbers on the barrel on the pictiure below:View attachment 404803

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It is a barrel code, it identifies the provider of the blank barrel and the barrel lot. It was rifled at the Mauser factory (WaA 63)

The safety and gas shroud should have all 4 numbers.

I believe your stock and metal are from a Mauser Borsigwalde in the o block (3377).

The barrel code tells it was finished in 1938 from a blank supplied by Dohlen with a steel lot code of 371 for quality control purposes and was finished at Mauser Oberndorf.

heavy_mech said:

I believe your stock and metal are from a Mauser Borsigwalde in the o block (3377).

The barrel code tells it was finished in 1938 from a blank supplied by Dohlen with a steel lot code of 371 for quality control purposes and was finished at Mauser Oberndorf.

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Thanks for your reply! Super interesting!

a j s said:

The safety and gas shroud should have all 4 numbers.

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They only have 2 numbers and I wonder why?

Cherry237 said:

They only have 2 numbers and I wonder why?

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Because they're not original to this rifle.

Serial umber on bolt handle root is not right. I think the bolt is boinked.

whcoyote said:

Serial umber on bolt handle root is not right. I think the bolt is boinked.

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but I think not boinked in the usual way, note the eagle N proof mark above the new number. I’ve never seen that before on other mismatches or haven’t seen it pictured on other rifles sold in Germany by FWW. (a major ‘gun store’ chain in Germany.) The other bolt numbers also look ‘new’ to me.
OP said he bought the rifle in Germany, & this is supported by the modern marks on barrel & receiver.
In the domestic US market, we’d call this a stock & bolt mismatched rifle. In spite of its overall ‘nice’ appearance, those 2 factors dramatically reduce its collector value.
First clue: pic 5/15 in 1st group shows the barrel & receiver proofs & sns, note the original numbers & eagle/swastika proofs, PLUS civilian eagle N proofs, done at Munich in August 1976.
Second clue: pic 7/15 of 2nd group shows a caliber marking and “FWW” mark. (both applied around time of reproofing)
Third: the very end of the rear action screw is above the bottom of the guide groove in the receiver tang. (pic 15/15 grp 2) Filing these flush was part of the original assembly process, when I see one above or below the bottom of the groove, it suggests that the rifle has been ‘messed with’ after leaving the factory.
Presumably the stock & action were mated together and ‘new’ bolt assembly added before reproofing for sale in Germany, as there are no repair depot marks or unserialed armorer’s parts, as would be typical in the case of wartime repairs.
Finding rifles ‘restored’ (replaced stock & bolt) in this way in the States isn’t at all unusual, though deplored by collectors.

Muncher: Perhaps it is my eyes but, the marking above the S/N on the bolt handle root looks like a Weimar Eagle to me.

whcoyote said:

Muncher: Perhaps it is my eyes but, the marking above the S/N on the bolt handle root looks like a Weimar Eagle to me.

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it is similar (perhaps deliberately so, to contrast w/nozzi bird) but the ‘N’ wasn’t used w/military proofing, and an ‘N’ is clearly there. On military rifles the proof isn’t on the bolt ‘number pad’, but “around the corner” on the rear of the handle. If you look closely, it’s the same as the eagle N proofs on barrel & receiver. (IMO)

It’s difficult but, with some imagination I could make out an “N” under the Eagle.

whcoyote said:

It’s difficult but, with some imagination I could make out an “N” under the Eagle.

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I had to use a loupe to see it, but it's there and as Muncher said "it’s the same as the eagle N proofs on barrel & receiver". You can see them in pic#5 in the 1st post. I think it looks like this?