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Another M-S question:

There was an interesting M-S specimen on GunBroker just recently. Can anybody identify what exactly it is?

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=172716299

I read the description, which says, "THIS IS VERY SIMPLY A COLLECTOR'S CREATION MADE IN GERMANY CIRCA 1910." I thought that was funny because these are Austrian guns. But the photo looks like the receiver ring is stamped "Made in Germany". What's that all about?

And the caliber. It's advertised as a 6.5x54mm. However, the receiver ring clearly is stamped "Cal. 6.5 Norm." Would that be the 6.5mm Mauser? It's not marked Mod. 1903.

Then there's the style of the stock, with the close grip. The full length forend is clearly detachable. That would normally be indicative of a takedown rifle, but this rifle doesn't have the little takedown lever in front of the trigger guard.

Obviously I have a lot to learn. Any help will be appreciated.

Curl

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A few observations on the Mannlicher Schoenauer on GunBroker:

1) The roll mark "Made in Germany" on the front receiver ring suggests that it was manufactured after the "Anschluss" (annexation) of Austria by Germany in March, 1938. The fact that it is so marked in English would indicate that it was intended for export, presumably to the USA. The date stamp under the barrel would probably confirm this; I have no idea where the seller came up with the manufacture date of 1910.

2) The rifle shown has a full length stock and is fitted with a shotgun style triggerguard, double triggers, and tang mounted folding peep sight. It does not appear to be a takedown model, as it lacks the release lever in front of the triggerguard, and has no provision on the front end for a removable pin through the front sling swivel. All the takedown M-S rifles that I have seen over the years are half-stock rifles with a military style triggerguard.

3) The front end of the forearm appears to have been cut off immediately in front of the front sight, and then re-attached with a black spacer glued between the two parts. This is commonly called a "Duffle Cut" which referred to the practice of returning G.I.s cutting the stock of a war trophy rifle so the parts would fit into a military issue canvas "Duffle Bag" to ship it home.

4) The caliber marking "KAL. 6.5MM NORM" appears where one would usually see "M.1903" stamped; most (but evidently not all) pre-war 1903 (and 1905, 1908, and 1910) M-S rifles have the caliber marked on the underside of the barrel, not on top of the receiver ring. Markings were different on pre-war High Velocity (long action) models and post-war M-S rifles. The actual chambering is an interesting question; presumably it refers to the standard 6.5x54 Mannlicher-Schoenauer cartridge, although I suppose it is theoretically possible that it refers to the similar (but not identical) 6.5x54 Mauser cartridge sometimes seen on commercial Oberndorf rifles based on the "Kurz" Mauser 98 action. Not likely, but possible...

5) Although the horrible photos make a true assessment of condition difficult, based on what can be seen, in my opinion the starting price of US$2200 and "Buy-Now" price of $2750 are about twice the fair market value for this rifle. Since it remains unsold, it appears that other potential buyers concur.

Cheers,
Peconga in Boise, Idaho USA

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