Ecuador Commission Gewehr 1888

[Dutchman]

This was one of the $100 Gewehr 1888 Commission rifles that came from Southern Ohio Gun Dist. some years ago. Many (most) of them were tomato stakes. I got this in a trade with a friend who got it from SOG. He spent some considerable time making it presentable as you see it here. There are no cracks in the stock and no rust or holes in the barrel jacket.

What made it worth the effort was the new Czech barrel. Looked unfired. So this was also one of the reasons I wanted it and got it as boot in a trade with a couple other rifles. Its a presentable rifle... from a distance:). It does shoot pretty good but I haven't put it on paper yet. The only thing it'll be fired with are cast bullets, of course. I have 3 of the en bloc clips.

http://images40.fotki.com/v1261/photos/2/28344/6550810/ge02-vi.jpg

http://images40.fotki.com/v1250/photos/2/28344/6550810/ge03-vi.jpg

http://images40.fotki.com/v1240/photos/2/28344/6550810/ge06-vi.jpg

http://images39.fotki.com/v1288/photos/2/28344/6550810/ge07-vi.jpg

[Dutchman]

Some of you have probably seen the warehouse photo of these rifles in Ecuador. They were piled like cord wood. Lots and lots of rust.

This website is owned by a friend of mine, John van Texas. It has some info on Gewehr 1888.
http://www.texastradingpost.com/m88/

I once owned a Chinese Hanyang 1888 that I bought for $15.
Man what a *** that was!

http://images40.fotki.com/v1248/photos/2/28344/6550810/ge08-vi.jpg

http://images38.fotki.com/v1270/photos/2/28344/6550810/ge09-vi.jpg

http://images41.fotki.com/v1266/photos/2/28344/6550810/ge10-vi.jpg

[KCSO]

An 88 was the best shooting cast bullet rifle I ever had. If they built rifles like that today they would cost $2000 each. I do have the barrel band codes somewhere so I'll try and see who had it before it left Germany.

[EMC45]

I like the look of the stampings of the numbers and letters.

[Ricochet]

I have an 1891 Loewe also, but mine came through the Turks, has been rebuilt so it's a mixmaster, looks rather good and shoots very well. Cost me more, though. I remember when you could buy them for something like $7.50 out of the back of the American Rifleman and people made them into lamps because the gunwriters gave us all the impression that they were worthless junk that was dangerous to shoot.

[Buckshot]

...............Dutchman not a bad looking ole trooper. Some matching or all matching? So it hasn't had the 'Mods' done to it, eh? Like Ricochet, mine came via Turkey. I haven't shot it in some number of years. We moved here almost 8 years ago and it was a couple before that when shot last. It no longer requires the packet clips.

I forget now what I paid for it and where it came from, but twern't much :-) The bbl jacket has some dings and dents although the wood is fairly sound. As was apparently common the rear sight was complete with the missing elevator, ha. Lo and behold the 1903 Springfield Buffington ladder and elevator works almost 'as-is', so that's what it wears.

While it looks to have been around the block a couple times (and probably out of state, if not off the planet a couple times) it still shoots pretty dang good. My plans for it was to make a Mannlicher type sporter carbine out of it in 7x57. Probably never happen, but thems the plans.

...............Buckshot