Gewehr 1888

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Model 1888 commission rifle / Gewehr 88
clip in a fixed external magazine

The Gewehr 88 (commonly called the Model 1888 commission rifle) was a late 19th-century German

bolt-action rifle
, adopted in 1888.

The invention of

black powder rifles then in use obsolete. To keep pace with the French (who had adopted smokeless powder "small bore" ammunition for their Lebel Model 1886 rifle) the Germans adopted the Gewehr 88 using its own new Patrone 88 cartridge, which was also designed by the German Rifle Commission.[2] The rifle was one of many weapons in the arms race between the Germanic states and France, and with Europe in general. There were also two carbine versions, the Karabiner 88 for mounted troops and the Gewehr 91 for artillery. Later models provided for loading with stripper clips (Gewehr 88/05s and Gewehr 88/14s) and went on to serve in World War I to a limited degree. Unlike many German service rifles before and after, it was not developed by Mauser but the arms commission, and Mauser was one of the few major arms manufacturers in Germany that did not produce Gewehr 88s.[3]

Design

In 1886, fifteen years after their defeat by German forces in the

black powder
. The practical result was that the French rifle had greater accuracy and range, and needed cleaning much less often, giving French troops a tactical advantage over the German Army. In response the German Army's Rifle Testing Commission developed the Gewehr 88 which was adopted for service in 1888. For this reason the Gewehr 88 is also known as the "commission rifle," or "Kommissionsgewehr".

Cartridge

1888 pattern M/88 (left) alongside the 1905 pattern 7.92×57mm Mauser S Patrone

The first step was to select a new cartridge. This began by adapting a Swiss design, resulting in the Patrone 88 or M/88 of 1888, an 8 mm rimless "necked" cartridge (bullet diameter 8.08 mm/.318 in) loaded with an 8.08 mm (.318 in) 14.6 g (226 gr) round-nose bullet propelled by a single-base smokeless powder. In 1905, the 8 mm M/88 cartridge was replaced by the

spitzer bullet
and more powerful double-base smokeless powder, resulting in nearly 40% higher muzzle velocity and 30% more muzzle energy.

Receiver and magazine

Five-round clip with 1888 pattern M/88 ammunition

The Gewehr 1888 is a further development of the

Steyr-Mannlicher, Germany contracted the Austro-Hungarian company to be one of the manufacturers of Gewehr 88s, and Mannlicher together with Otto Schönauer derived from the Mauser-Schlegelmilch design a whole family of turn-bolt actions, the last of which
was serially produced until 1970s.

Bolt and barrel

The commission rifle's bolt action design was a commission modified Mauser action. The barrel design and rifling were virtually copied from the French Lebel. The rifle has an odd appearance as the entire 'floating' barrel is encased in a sheet metal tube for protection, but with the tube removed the rifle looks rather modern. This tube was intended to increase accuracy by preventing the barrel from directly contacting the stock, but in practice it increased the risk of rusting by providing a space for water to be trapped if the rifle was exposed to harsh conditions. The Karabiner 88 utilized a different bolt handle, which resembled those found on commercial sporting rifles.

Service history

Some early models had flaws due to rushed ammunition production. This was used in 1892 by the then notorious

malicious falsehood.[3][4]

Part of the production run was exported to China (see lower) or Latin America (for example Brazil army use them in War of Canudos in 1896–1897). The commission rifle saw field service with Germany's colonial expansion, including in China during the Boxer Rebellion (with the Gewehr 88s and the unlicensed Hanyang 88 copies also being used by the opposing Chinese troops),[5] and served as a front line weapon for German troops during World War I until 1915 when the supply of Gewehr 98s increased. When Germany replaced the 88 with the Gewehr 98, many of the rifles were given to Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire during World War I because both states had a shortage of rifles (however, it was used extensively by the Turkish Army even through the 1930s and 1940s). Many Gewehr 88 rifles stayed in active service in second-line units, reserves, and in armies allied with the Germans through and well past World War I.

Most of the Gewehr 88s seen in the US are the ones that were given to the Turkish forces in World War I and have been modified from the original design.[

East African Campaign. These rifles were also used by the German Volkssturm in 1944–1945.[13]

Gewehr 1888 and its copy Hanyang 88 were the main rifles in China for over 50 years.

China also used this rifle extensively during the

War of Resistance against Japan and proved more than adequate against the Japanese Arisaka Type 38 rifle, though the latter was newer by 30 years. The last time they saw action in Chinese service was during the Korean War, where some of them were captured and taken to the US as souvenirs.[14]

The rifle was adopted during a period of rapid development in

firearms technology, and marked Germany's shift to a smokeless powder. This explains why its period as the primary German service rifle was just over a dozen years, but it remained in limited service for much longer. In 1898 a Mauser design was adopted, the Gewehr 98
, which was the culmination of a series of Mauser models in the 1890s. It was a superior replacement using the same ammunition with a stronger powder charge. However, this rifle soon had to be converted to fire the new Spitzer round that Germany adopted after the turn of the century. With these modifications the newer design remained in use until the end of World War II.

The Gewehr 88 was also sometimes made into very elegant sporting rifles by gunsmiths in Germany. Examples of these usually show first-class workmanship and special features such as folding sights and altered bolt handles. Some Karabiner 88 carbines are known to have been produced in 7×57mm Mauser instead of the usual M/88 or the 7.92×57mm Mauser chambering.[15] These were likely intended for sale in South America, where use of the 7×57mm cartridge was widespread. All known 7×57mm Karabiner 88s were produced by Haenel.

Variants

Karabiner 88, German bolt-action carbine variants of Gewehr 1888
Karabiner 88, German bolt-action carbine variants of Gewehr 1888

At the time of adoption, the M/88 "Patrone 7.9 mm" was loaded with a 14.6 g (226 gr) round nose bullet that measured 8.08 mm (.318 in) in diameter. In 1894/95 the

German Army
changed the barrel specifications from 7.9/8.1 mm to 7.9/8.2 mm hoping to improve accuracy and Gewehr 88 rifles made from that date on had different bores. The 8.08 mm (.318 in) bullet diameter however remained unchanged. After 1895 most Gewehr 1888 rifles were regrooved. In 1903, the Germany Army adopted a new service cartridge that fired lighter bullets measuring 8.20 mm (.323 in) in diameter. From then on, many Gewehr 88 rifles were rechambered to fire the new 1903 pattern 7.92×57mm Mauser cartridge becoming Gewehr 88 S rifles.[2] This rechambering required more work as the 7.92×57mm Mauser chambering required a wider chamber throat to take the thicker brass of the new 1903 pattern cartridge. 7.92×57mm Mauser adapted rifles have the receiver marked with a large "S" rollmark. From 1905 the rifles were also converted to use the Gewehr 98 type stripper clip by adding stripper clip guides to the top rear of the receiver and altering the magazine becoming Gewehr 88/05 rifles. After the start of World War 1, some of the remaining Gewehr 88 S rifles were modified to the Gewehr 88/14 standard, which was generally similar to Gewehr 88/05 but with cruder workmanship. Some 88's were sold to various nations or armed groups, or captured in combat and therefore a wide variety of markings can be found such as Bulgarian stars, English proofs, Turkish crescents and symbols, Polish eagles etc. Gew 88's were re-serialized by the army capturing them in some rare cases (i.e.; Greece/Turks) or/and when they were re-barrelled. The markings found on Gew 88's are very extensive and therefore are a topic of their own.

Modern ammunition use

The maximum operating pressure for the Gewehr 88 commission rifle is less than that of any 8 mm Mauser rifle, as the makers of the Gewehr 88 did not fully understand the greater energy of smokeless powder compared to black powder. Shooters planning to use modern 8 mm ammunition in a Gewehr 88 slug their bore and chamber as there are four different possible bores and grooves and chamber dimensioning combinations found on the Gewehr 88 rifle. High performance and hence high pressure or military ammunition designated for machine gun use cannot be fired safely in a Gewehr 88 commission rifle.

Defects

Although the packet loading system proved to be a design shortcoming, it is not uncommon to encounter a Gewehr 88 today which still retains it. Some of them were modified to use the stripper clips used with the Gewehr 98 by milling a slot into the left side of the action and adding stripper clip guides on the top of the receiver. Through this slot projects a bar which retains the cartridges in place against the magazine spring's pressure. The hole in the bottom of the rifle is often covered with a small piece of sheet metal.

Unlike many rifles designed later, the bolt head of this rifle is able to be removed from the bolt body. This piece could be removed during disassembly, and was frequently lost. Additionally, both the ejector and the extractor that are attached to the bolt head are prone to falling out if care is not taken during disassembly and reassembly.

Users

Conflicts

Gallery

  • Cutaway model of the Gewehr 88
    Cutaway model of the Gewehr 88
  • Schematic. Images #5 and #6
    Schematic. Images #5 and #6
  • Cartridges M88
    Cartridges M88

See also

References

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External links

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