Gewehr 88
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The Gewehr 88 was a German rifle adopted in 1888. The invention of smokeless powder in the late 19th Century immediately rendered all of the large-bore black-powder rifles then in use obsolete. To keep pace with the French (who had adopted smokelss powder "small bore" ammunition for their Model 1886 Lebel rifle) the Germans adopted the Gewehr 88 using the new 8 mm Mauser cartridge, though with a different bullet smaller powder load than 8 mm Mauser manufactured after 1905. The Gewehr 88 is also known as the "Commission rifle," or "Reichsgewehr," a name derived from the fact that the design was based on the specifications of a German military commission looking for a replacement for the older Model 71 and 71/84 Mauser rifles. It was soon replaced as front line issue by the Gewehr 98 in 1898, which stayed in service with modifications until the end of World War II.
The Gew 88 is in essence a Mannlicher design, though it is sometimes (incorrectly) called a "Model 88 Mauser." It has a receiver with a "split bridge" (i.e., the bolt passes through the receiver and locks in front of the rear bridge; a rotating bolt head; and the characteristic Mannlicher-style "packet loading" system in which cartridges are loaded into a steel carrier (a clip) which holds them in alignment over a spring. As shots are fired the clip remains in place until the last round is chambered, at which point it drops through a hole in the bottom of the rifle. This system was used in almost all Mannlicher designs and derivatives, and while it allows for speedy reloading, it also creates an entry point for dirt.
At the time of adoption, the "Patronen 7.92x57mm" was loaded with a bullet that measured 0.318" in diameter. In 1905, the German Army (which by then had adopted the Model 1898 Mauser rifle) changed the specifications of the cartridge to use a bullet 0.323" in diameter. Because it is dangerous to fire the larger bullet in the smaller bore of the Gew 88, the original 0.318" barrels were replaced with ones having the 0.323" diameter. These are referred to as "Model 88/05" rifles and are usually (not always) marked with a large "S" over the breech to indicate they are safe to use with the post 1905 ammunition. The powder load used for the Gewehr 88 is also less than that of any other 8 mm Mauser rifle, as the makers of the Gewehr 88 did not understand the great power of smokeless powder compared to black powder. Shooters planning to use modern 8mm Mauser ammunition should ensure their rifles have been converted to the larger .323" bore.
The packet loading system, in practice, proved to be a design defect, and it is rare to encounter a Gew 88 today which still retains it. Most of them were modified to use the chargers used with the Gew 98. The modification consisted of riveting a modified stripper clip into the magazine well, and milling a slot into the left side of the action. 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 plugged or covered. The rear receiver bridge is slotted to accept the Gew 98-style chargers.
Many Gew 88 rifles stayed in active service in second-line units, reserves, and in armies allied with the Germans through and well past World War One. Most of the Gew 88's seen in the USA are ones given to the Turkish forces in WW One and have been modified from the original design. The Turks issued these and updated versions at least as late as the 1930's. Gew 88/05 rifles were also used by Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia, mostly ones that were captured from German forces in WW Two. A few are encountered with Finnish markings.
The Gew 88 was also sometimes made into very elegant sporting rifles by custom gunmakers in Germany. Examples of these usually show first-class workmanship and special features such as folding sights, altered bolt handles, etc.
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