Original Item: Only One Available. This is a very good example of the Mauser Model 1871/84 rifle, the first Magazine rifle widely used by the German Empire. The rifle is covered with Imperial German inspection and acceptance markings on both the stock and metalwork. The serial number 1816 or shortened number 16 appear on almost every component of the rifle except for the bolt, which is an arsenal replacement marked 10416. We were not able to find any past regimental designations on the rifle, so it may have not been issued for front line service in the past, and may have only been brought out of reserve for WWI, after which it suffered wear to the exterior, but does not look to have seen much firing at all. It most likely had the bolt removed long ago at arsenal, and then had a new one fitted when it was issued to rear echelon reserve troops.

The receiver is dated 1888. on the right and marked I. G. Mod. 71/84. on the opposite side in "Black Letter" typeface. The top of the chamber is marked with a Crown over SPANDAU, for the Prussian (and later Imperial) Spandau arsenal in Berlin, a storied production plant that would produce weapons up until 1919, including the famous MG08 Maxim. Below this is the Crown over FW proof for Kaiser Wilhelm I, who used this cypher during his reign 1861-1888. Next to this is a 11 designation, giving the bore diameter in millimeters.

The rifle is complete with all major parts intact and functional, and much of the original finish retained. The receiver and bolt are still clearly bright steel, though there is overall light oxidation staining. The barrel still retains most of the original gloss blue finish, showing some scattered peppering and small areas of wear. The blued fittings show some wear to the finish, particularly the trigger guard. We checked the action, and it cycles well, with a strong dry fire, and the bolt still has an intact firing pin and extractor. The safety works as it should, and the magazine feed system and cutoff are also functional, though we have no way of testing it on real brass.

The bore is in excellent condition, showing a bright finish with crisp lands and grooves. It shows little to no signs of ever being used. There is just a bit of oxidation right at the muzzle from exposure to the elements. The rear sight is fully functional, sticking just a bit due to dried old grease. The stock looks to be beech wood, and has a lovely dark honey color, showing all of the original inspection cartouches clearly. There are dents, scratches, and other wear consistent with use in service, but no signs of abuse. The grain lovely, and has a lot of curl and figuring throughout the length of the stock.

The rifle comes complete with a very nice example of the Mauser Model 1871 rifle bayonet with brass hilt. The bayonet is in very good service used condition, and is marked on the rear of the blade with (Crown) / W/ 73, indicating acceptance in 1873 during the reign of German Emperor Wilhem I, who reigned 1871-1888. The blade does show evidence of sharpening and relatively heavy cleaning in the past to remove oxidation. The crossguard is regimentally marked with 39. R. 9. 111, for the 39th (Lower Rhenish) Fusiliers, garrisoned in Düsseldorf.

The blade ricasso bears a partial COUL[AX &CIE.] / KLINGEN[THAL] maker marking, indicating it was made in the territory of Alsace–Lorraine (German: Elsaß–Lothringen), captured during the Franco-Prussian war of 1871. The Coulaux family, or Coulaux & Cie (“& Cie.” is the equivalent to “& Company” in English) purchased the royal forge and swordmaking facilities of Klingenthal, France in 1838, which had previously been part of the Royal Arsenal in the City. The production of fencing blades and weapons began in 1850, and the Coulaux operators also exported their fencing blades to fourbisseurs and fencing supply houses such as Castello Fencing Equipment Co. of the United States and Souzy de Lacam of France. For more information on this maker please see J Anthony Carter's excellent work GERMAN KNIFE AND SWORD MAKERS.

This gun is most likely a WW1 Veteran's "bring back" souvenir. Great quantities of these 71/84 Rifles were pressed into service in WW1 since great piles of them had been put into storage in 1888 with the introduction of the M-1888 7.92mm German Commission Rifle.

This is a chance to add a very nice Mauser rifle to your collection, complete with an earlier bayonet. Ready to display!

Specifications (Rifle):-

Year of Manufacture: 1888
Caliber: 11x60mmR Mauser
Cartridge Type: Centerfire Cartridge
Barrel Length: 32 inches
Overall Length: 51 Inches
Action type: Bolt-Action
Feed System: 8 Round Tubular Magazine

Specifications (Bayonet):-

Blade Length: 18 ½”
Blade Style: Single Edge with Fuller
Overall length: 23 ½“
Crossguard: 4 ⅝”

Originally adopted as the Gewehr 71 or Infanterie-Gewehr 71, or "Infantry Rifle 71 ("I.G.Mod.71" was stamped on the rifles themselves) this was the first rifle model in a distinguished line designed and manufactured by Paul Mauser and Wilhelm Mauser of the Mauser company, and later mass-produced at Spandau arsenal.

Paul Mauser developed his bolt-action rifle from 1866 to 1871. During 1870-71 trials with many different rifles took place, with the "M1869 Bavarian Werder" being the Mausers' chief competitor. The Mauser was provisionally adopted on 2 December 1871, pending the development of an appropriate safety. With support from the government's Spandau arsenal, the improvements to the safety mechanism were completed and the rifle was formally accepted on 14 February 1872 as Infantry Rifle Model 1871 by the German Empire excluding Bavaria. The action was not based on its predecessor, the Dreyse needle gun which had seen service during the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71, and which was found to have a number of weaknesses.

The now well known Mauser "wing" type safety lever was developed for the Gewehr 71. The Gewehr 71 is a conventional looking bolt action chambered in 11mm using black powder cartridges. The action included only a bolt guide rib as its single locking lug, locking forward of the receiving bridge. The original design was a single-shot. The design was updated in 1884 with an 8-round tubular magazine designed by Alfred von Kropatschek, making this Germany's first repeating rifle. This version was designated the Gewehr 1871/84. A version of this repeater was adopted by the Ottoman Empire. Designated the M1887, it differentiated from the M71/84 in that it had a side mounted cleaning rod, a second locking lug on the rear of the bolt, and it was in caliber 9.5×60mmR, which Paul Mauser touted as the most efficient (black powder) cartridge. In the early 20th century a few were converted to 7.65×53mm smokeless by the arsenal in Ankara.

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