I can't find value

[Northrider]

I cannot find the value or anything about this rifle I inheirited. It says "Waffenbirk-Mauser Oberndorf on the receiver and has the same serial number on the receiver, barrel, and bolt. It has two triggers and is in 8mm cal.
I have looked in my 27th edition of Book of Gun Values and it is not listed in the Mauser section or Waffenbirk. Any ideas? It has not been fired in years, the bore and stock are beautiful, and the sling is leather. The scope has an interesting mount too.

Thanks in advance for the assistance.

 

[Scorch]

It looks like you inherited a Mauser Model A or Model B sporting rifle, in very nice condition. That is the quintessential German pre-war sporting rifle. 8X57 is a powerful cartridge, comparable to the 30-06. Very nice. Value of the last one I saw was around $2,000, but it may be worth more now. If you get tired of it, just ship it to me, I won't.

 

[PetahW]

You should count yourself very fortunate, indeed - most of those found today have the inletted scope mount, but are usually missing the scope.

Mauser made about 125,000 total of 7 different types of commercial Sporting Rifles (they were NOT converted military rifles, BTW) from 1898 to 1946.

They are listed in the Blue Book of Gun Values under Mauser Jagdwaffen GmbH, in the middle of the rifle listings, just after the multiple countries' listings of military Mausers.

The reason is that the rifles were usually stored separately from the scopes, the scopes being attached only when/if needed (scopes weren't the gold standard then, like they are today) - and were ignored or never found when the rifle was siezed after/during WWII.

Do you know how/when your benefactor obtained it ?

It might be a very interesting story...................


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[Northrider]

Thank you both for the information. The rifle was in my step-father's house when we moved in Dec of 1962. I have no further info as to when or how he obtained it. When he was telling me about the two triggers, he said it was a sniper rifle. I was 11 at the time and knew nothing about guns, had only fired my first real gun a few months before. That's another story, over a beer.
Thanks again.

 

[Northrider]

Went back to my Blue Book of Gun Values and found the listing. Now I think I need to take off the leather(looks like an old Herters) cheek piece and see if there is anything useful there on the butstock.

Firing a few rounds through it should not hurt the value, should it?

 

[mattL46]

Shoot it!! It was made for it!

 

[PetahW]

Good idea - Sometimes owners secrete information under the buttplate. (I know I put old hunting licenses there)



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