Model 1888 Commission Rifle

The Gewehr 88 is commonly called the Model 1888 Commission Rifle was a late 19th century German bolt-action 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. The rifle was one of many part of arms race between Germanic states and France, and in Continental Europe in general. There was also a Carbine version, the Karabiner 88. Later models were updated (G88/05 and G88/14) and would go onto serve in WWI to a limited degree. Unlike many of the rifles before and after, it was not developed by Mauser but the Arms Commission.

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.

In 1886, fifteen years after their defeat by German forces in the Franco-Prussian War, the French Army introduced the new Lebel magazine rifle firing an (8 mm) high-velocity projectile. This made Germany's rifle, the Mauser Model 1871, obsolete due to its large and slow 11 mm round. The practical result was that the French rifle had greater accuracy and range giving French troops a tactical advantage over the German Army. In response the German Army's Rifle Testing Commission developed the Gewehr 88 rifle (Commission Rifle), which was adopted for service in 1888.

German Empire, 1871â€"1918; Adoption of the rifle included parts of modern day Poland but not Bavaria

The first step was to design a cartridge. This began by adapting a Swiss design resulting in a new 7.92 mm rimless "necked" cartridge, which featured smokeless powder. The basic design of the cartridge would be adopted for higher technology powders, and shift to pointed 'Spitzer' bullets (though the trend was started by the French). The new round was not compatible with older rifles, and they had to be converted. This was similar to the United States change from 30-03 to 30-06. The newer round is still popular today with hunters, commonly known as the 8 mm Mauser; it remained in military service until Germany adopted the standardized NATO ammunition post WWII. The later rounds use is often confused with this earlier type. The later was not introudced on the G98 either- but rather after the turn of the century, and the G98 had to be converted.

The Commission Rifle's bolt action design was a modified Mannlicher action with a few Mauser features, but it is incorrect to call it a "Mauser." The barrel design and rifling were virtually copied from the French Lebel, and the magazine was based on a popular Ferdinand Mannlicher design, which allowed for rapid reloading. The rifle has an odd appearance as the entire barrel is encased in a sheet metal tube for protection, but with the tube removed the rifle looks rather modern. However within ten years a true Mauser design would be 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. This rifle, soon all had to go overall as Germany switched to a new pointed round after the turn of the century. These would go on to serve in WWI, though in WWII the main rifle would be the Karabiner 98k, a shortened carbine version adopted in 1935.

The Commission Rifle saw field service with Germany's colonial expansion, including in China during the Boxer Rebellion, but served only as a second line weapon for German troops during WWI; however, it was used extensively by the Turkish Army even through WWII. Some early models had flaws due to rushed production; anti-Semitic factions within the German Press exploited the flaws citing a conspiracy between the rifle's manufacturer Ludwig Loewe Company and other Jewish owned manufactures, including the firm manufacturing the smokeless powder. Thus the rifle became known derisively as the Judenflinte (Jewish Rifle). 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 the ones given to the Turkish forces in WW I 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 II. A few are encountered with Finnish markings

The rifle was adopted during a period of rapid development in firearms technology. Although its period as the primary official service rifle perdios was over about a dozen years, it remained in limited service for much longer. improvements. It also marked Germany's shift to a smokeless powder (but not spitzer tips), as well as providing a basis for early 1900 versions of it.

The Gewehr 88 was a German rifle 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 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.

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.