qve 45 "a" block K43 Questions

AN-94

Well-known member
First time I've ever really looked at a K43 up close and want some advice as to what's right vs what's wrong with this rifle. The rifle in question is an "a" block qve 45 K43 with a mismatched stock and matching bolt carrier. The Waffenamts I found on the stock were pretty faint from what I could tell. Can anyone could offer some insight as to the correctness and things I should be taking a closer look at tomorrow? And what would be a fair price for something like this these days? I took a few quick pics but I'll get some better ones tomorrow. Thanks!
 

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All looks good from here.. Oddly enough the stock is also off an A block duv/qve. The side proofs on these tend to be week. The bottom proofs a little deeper. This is from the denseness of the stock on the side is harder than on the bottom.
 
Thanks for the feedback and sorry for the delay. That's interesting to know about the side proofs. Got a few more pics of the K43 today. It appears that someone shot it a bit. Did not get a chance to disassemble the bolt group but took a peek under the handguard at the gas system. Underside of the handguard is pretty well coated with carbon. I think the gas system installed is the original and has a fair bit of carbon. Does it look like the original gas system? And what should I further inspect next time I see it?
 

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Just saw this. It almost looks like the stock has some type of stain on it (like furniture stain), but it is hard to tell from your pictures. I do not see a lot of electro-penciled serial numbers. Shouldn't they be on the gas cylinder and bolt and lugs (if you can disassemble)? The gas piston looks like the one on my QVE45, but mine also has a Waa214 stamped on the nut end of the piston. It does look like it has been shot a fair bit and relatively recently. If that is the original gas system, then BE VERY CAREFUL TO INSPECT FOR CRACKS AND DAMAGE TO THE RECEIVER/BOLT CARRIER GROUP. I have no idea what a fair price is, but this would be less than a serious collector grade because of the mismatched parts and (possible) sanding/staining(?). Nice rifle, though, and QVE45s are not everywhere. GLWP!
 
Finally got a chance to take the rifle apart today! I looked it over closely and took a ton of pics but I didn't see any cracks, just what I think is the seam on the action cover. Good news is that the bolt carrier group seems to match the rifle though it was a bit dirty so it was hard to see on the flaps. Bad news is that the hand guard is cracked right at the front.
 

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Took the action out of the stock to inspect the receiver for any bending or cracking and I didn't really any signs of it. The stock seems to have a minor chip by the trigger and it almost appears like someone messed up the spanner holes on the recoil lug. I take all of the markings found on the underside and right side of the receiver are inspection or forge markings?
 

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And lastly, the cracked handguard. I didn't see any markings on the hand guard or the trigger guard for that matter.
 

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Judging by the size of the gas port I would say its original. If you intend to shoot it by all means get a "Shooter Kit" reduced gas port & new springs.
 
Took the action out of the stock to inspect the receiver for any bending or cracking and I didn't really any signs of it. The stock seems to have a minor chip by the trigger and it almost appears like someone messed up the spanner holes on the recoil lug. I take all of the markings found on the underside and right side of the receiver are inspection or forge markings?
Picture 185712 -- I can't tell, but is there any wood behind the crossbolt? I see shadow there. It could be that the wooden "braces" or "buttresses" that go up against the crossbolt to support it against recoil, have sheared away. It happens, it was a known problem even in WW2.

This photo.

If so, that's not good. You should not shoot that gun until that's been corrected, because the only thing taking recoil are the head of the crossbolt and the nut (with the two drive holes which you mention) on the opposite side. That crossbolt is being hammered back with every shot, and eventually will split the stock, which is very thin in that area, with the cracks originating from the round crossbolt head and nut holes.

There should be wood on either side (front and back) of the crossbolt, more or less flush with the top of the crossbolt.
If that wood has broken away, it can be fixed / replaced by a couple of authentic-looking and strong (like the original) laminate "dutchmen." But setup and milling are a bit complicated.

That wood breaking away is why some of the later guns had a different cutout on the receiver to drop over that crossbolt, and the crossbolt was moved forward to give more shear surface to the wood supporting it. The load would be distributed over a greater area.

Here's an example -- the brace on the left side is still hanging on but is obviously cracked and compromised. The one on the right is completely gone, exposing the entire face of the crossbolt on that side.

And a photo of a repaired stock. I could have stained the patches a little redder but I'm happy with the way this turned out.
 

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Thanks for all the help. It does appear that there are a pair of chips right behind the crossbolt on the one I examined. Unfortunately, someone else went and bought it today for about $2800 without looking it over so I'll have to look for another one to eventually get as my own K43 (guess that's what I get for being cautious). It was a great learning experience to take it apart though and see everything up close. I now know that the next time I see one, I'm asking to have the bolt carrier group field stripped and the action pulled out of the stock before committing any funds to one. Hopefully, I can find a slightly nicer qve 45 to fill the K43 shaped hole in my heart. My last question is is it possible that this rifle has a factory mismatched stock? Weaver's "Rough Forged" states that in March of 1945 "At BLM, in the haste to provide Germany's defenders with as many rifles as possible, hundreds of K.43s left the factory with mismatched stocks (Walther had by now given up on numbering stocks months before).".
 
No, you dodged a bullet.

That's kind of a tricky repair. Not something most folks can do at home. For that much money, you should get a gun that doesn't need repairs. It's not shootable (in my opinion; not shootable for long) until that's taken care of.
 
I never thought I would see this rifle again but it showed up on gunbroker with someone having taken the liberty of renumbering the stock to match as well as adding a front sight hood. Some idiot ruined a legit qve 45 a block stock and didn't even do a good job of it either.
 

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Hahahaha I was going to start bidding on that puppy tonight, not now 😊.
Not much gets by you guys. Pretty awesome!!
Thank goodness 👍😊. Jesse
 
That's a really nice looking rifle. That's a real shame on that stock renumbering though. I'm watching it because I was (past tense) interested in it and I want to see how high it might go even with that strike. All else is exceptionally nice.
 
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