U.S. patent

Locally, the Dreyse needle gun had just been adopted, so the brothers turned to the Austrian ambassador to try to sell their own gun; the ambassador forwarded their new gun to Vienna for testing. It was here that Norris, an American, of the Remington company saw the new Mauser rifle design. In 1867, Norris hired the Mauser brothers to go to Liège to work on a new design. Norris also stipulated that patents were to be taken out in his name and that a royalty would be paid to the Mauser brothers for rifles sold. Norris was convinced that he could sell the design to the French to convert their Chassepot rifles. The Norris-Mauser patent was taken out in the United States. Remington was outraged at this behavior by Norris and never made an effort to sell the new rifle.^[3]

Based on the Dreyse needle gun, Paul developed a rifle with a turn-bolt mechanism that cocked the gun as it was manipulated by the user. The rifle initially used a firing needle; a later version used a firing pin and a rear-ignition cartridge.^[5] The rifle was shown to the Austrian War Ministry by Samuel Norris of E. Remington & Sons. Norris believed the design could be adapted to convert Chassepot needle guns to fire metallic cartridges. Shortly thereafter, a partnership was formed in Oberndorf between Norris and the Mauser brothers.^[6] The partners went to Liège in 1867, but when the French government showed no interest in a Chassepot conversion, the partnership dissolved. Paul Mauser returned to Oberndorf in December 1869, and Wilhelm arrived in April 1870.^[7] Before leaving Liège, the Mausers insisted that he submit the rifle to Royal Prussian School of Riflemanship. The results were impressive and Wilhelm was invited to the arsenal at Spandau.

Model M/71

Paul and Wilhelm Mauser continued development of their new rifle in Paul's father-in-law's home.^[7] The Mauser rifle was accepted by the Prussian government on 2 December 1871, and was accepted for service on 14 February 1872, after a requested design change to the safety lock.^[7] The Mauser brothers received an order for 3,000 rifle sights, but actual production of the rifle was given to government arsenals and large firms. The sights were produced at the Xaver Jauch house starting 1 May 1872. After an order for 100,000 rifle sights was received from the Bavarian Rifle Factory at Amberg, the Mauser brothers began negotiations to purchase the Württemberg Royal Armoury. A delay in the purchase forced them to buy real estate overlooking the Neckar River Valley, where the upper works was built that same year. A house in Oberndorf was also rented to fulfill the Bavarian order.^[7]

Acquisition of Königlich Württembergische Gewehrfabrik

The Königlich Württembergische Gewehrfabrik was acquired on May 23, 1874, after an agreement between the Württemberg government and the Mausers to produce 100,000 Model 71 rifles. The partnership of Mauser Brothers and Company was formed between the Württemberg Vereinsbank of Stuttgart and Paul and Wilhelm Mauser on February 5, 1874. By 23 May 1874, the Mauser partnership had three factories in Oberndorf.^[8]

Wilhelm Mauser suffered from health problems throughout his life, which were aggravated by his frequent business travels. A combination of these led to his death on 13 January 1882.^[9] The partnership became a stock company with the name of Waffenfabrik Mauser on 1 April 1884.^[10] The shares held by the Württemberg Vereinsbank and Paul Mauser were sold to Ludwig Löwe & Company on 28 December 1887, and Paul Mauser stayed as the technical leader.^[10] Ludwig Löwe & Company was fifty per cent owner of Fabrique Nationale d'Armes de Guerre, a company formed in 1889 to manufacture Mauser rifles for the Belgian government.^[10] Deutsche Waffen und Munitionsfabriken A.G. (DWM) formed on 7 November 1896 as a merger of Ludwig Löwe & Company A.G., Deutsche Metallpatronenfabrik A.G., Rheinisch-Westfälischen Powder Company, and Rottweil-Hamburg Powder Company.^[11] Mauser A.G. was formed on 23 April 1897. After World War II, DWM was renamed Industrie-Werke Karlsruhe A.G. (IWK).^[11]

Mauser-Norris Model 67/69 rifle

Between 1867 and 1869, the Mauser brothers and Samuel Norris developed a single-shot bolt-action rifle. The caliber and number produced are not known. Ludwig Olson wrote that an example had at one time been on display at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.^[12] The rifle was patented in Austria by Samuel Norris on 24 December 1867. The bolt head did not rotate, a feature chosen by Paul Mauser to "protect the heads of paper cartridges from friction and possible damage while locking the bolt, and to provide a non-rotary seat for the extractor when metallic cartridges were used."^[12]

An improved version of the rifle used a coil spring wrapped around the firing pin and a safety and a cocking piece attached to the rear of the firing pin.^[12][13] This rifle was shown to the Prussian government, and after some design changes to the safety, was accepted for service as the Infantry Rifle Model 71 on 14 February 1872.^[12] Although it is sometimes considered a close relative of the Chassepot rifle, and borrowing Dreyse's turning-bolt action lock, the most innovative features of the new weapon were the work of Peter Paul Mauser.^[14]

Model 1871 and derivatives

Mauser Model 1871 rifle

The Mauser Model 1871 was the Mauser brothers' first rifle. It was adopted by the German Empire (except for the Kingdom of Bavaria) as the Gewehr 71 or Infanterie-Gewehr 71 (I.G.Mod.71 was engraved on the rifles). Production began at the Oberndorf factory for the infantry version, which fired a black powder 11×60mm round from a long 850 mm (33 in) barrel. Shorter versions were introduced with the 700 mm (28 in) barreled Jäger and 500 mm (20 in) cavalry carbine.

Slightly modified versions were widely sold to other countries, firing bullets that would today be considered very large, typically 9.5mm to 11.5mm. Such large bullets were necessary due to the limitations of black powder, which hindered velocities. Serbia designed an improved version of the Model 71 in 10.15mm, made in Germany and called the Mauser-Milovanović M1878/80. In 1884 an 8-shot tubular magazine was added by Mauser to the Model 71/84. The Turkish model 1887 rifle was the first of a series of rifles produced for the Turkish Army. Its design echoed that of the German Gewehr 71/84 service rifle: a bolt-action weapon with a tubular magazine beneath the barrel. The Turkish contract specified that if any other nation ordered Mauser rifles with more advanced technology, that design would be used in the Model 1887 to fill the remainder of the Turkish order. This clause was utilized after Belgium adopted the Model 1889 rifle.

Models 1889/90/91 and Experimental Model 92

Mauser Experimental Model 92 in caliber 8x58R. This rifle took part in the rifle trials that led to the Swedish Mauser.

After the Mauser brothers finished work on the Model 71/84 in 1880, the design team set out to create a small caliber repeater that used smokeless powder. Because of setbacks brought on by Wilhelm Mauser's death, they failed to have the design completed by 1882, and the German Rifle Test Commission (Gewehr-Prüfungskommission) was formed. The commission preferred to create their own design. Paul Mauser created two different variations of the same rifle, one with a stock strengthened with a barrel shroud and a traditional design following the layout of the 71 series in hope he might be able to overturn the commission's decision, or at least sell his design to the Kingdom of Bavaria, which adopted its own arms. The two rifles became known as the 89 Belgian (with a barrel shroud) and the 91 Argentine (with a 71 layout) Mausers, identical in their function and feed system. The main features were the ability to use stripper clips to feed the magazine (a revolution in rate of fire), and its rimless 7.65×53mm Mauser ammunition, advanced for the time.

The system proved impressive at the 1884 Bavarian Arms Trials. Both firearms were a success, but decision-makers were not convinced that the stripper feed was superior to the en-bloc system employed by Mannlicher. In response, Mauser started small-scale production of the design in an effort to interest foreign nations, but failed to convince any of the European major powers.

The Belgian attache, however, urged his government to contact Mauser, hoping the design might give them a chance to found a domestic arms industry. The heavy-barreled Mauser with the barrel shroud resulted in the founding of arms manufacturer FN Herstal. FN could not keep up with orders, so they outsourced production to the Birmingham Small Arms Company in England.

The Belgians' talks with Mauser prompted the Ottoman Empire to consider the design. In the end they ordered their own simpler variation of the 91 Argentine Mauser known as the 90 Turkish. While this was taking place, the Argentine Small Arms Commission contacted Mauser in 1886 to replace their Model 71s; since they wished to keep retraining of their armed forces to a minimum, they went for the Mauser 91. As with other early Mausers, most such arms were made by the Ludwig Loewe company, who in 1896 joined with other manufactures to form Deutsche Waffen und Munitionsfabriken.

All variations used the same 7.65 mm round-nosed cartridge. Many parts were interchangeable, with the exception of the bayonets of the 89 and 90/91; the barrel shroud made the bayonet ring too wide. The 89 Mauser rejected by Germany in 1884 entered service in 1940 with the second-line units of Norway, Belgium, the Netherlands and Denmark.

A non-rotating Mauser claw extractor was introduced in the Model 92. Several variations of this model participated in rifle trials for the U.S. Army of that year; the Norwegian Krag–Jørgensen rifle was ultimately chosen.

Spanish M93

The Mauser Model 1893 is a bolt-action rifle commonly referred to as the "Spanish Mauser", though the model was adopted by other countries in other calibers, most notably the Ottoman Empire. The M93 introduced a short staggered-column box magazine as standard, holding five smokeless 7×57mm Mauser rounds flush with the bottom of the rifle, which could be reloaded quickly by pushing a strip of rounds from the top of the open bolt. It still had only two locking lugs.

Swedish M1894 rifle

Swedish carbine Model 1894

The Swedish army was issued the Model 94. The similar Model 1895 was sold to Mexico, Chile, Uruguay, China, Persia, and the South African states of Transvaal and the Orange Free State (Boers). A safety feature offered by the Model 1895 was a low shoulder at the rear of the receiver, just behind the base of the bolt handle, which would contain the bolt in the unlikely event that the front locking lugs sheared off due to excessive pressure. South African Mausers were highly effective against the British during the Second Boer War;^[15] these proved deadly at long ranges, prompting the British to design their own Mauser-inspired high-velocity cartridge and rifle. These rare Mauser carbines and rifles—especially the Model 1895—can be easily identified by the letters "OVS" (Oranje-Vrijstaat [Dutch for "Orange Free State"]) either marked on the weapons' receiver ring and the stock directly below, or otherwise carved into the right side of the buttstock. The British Pattern 1914 Enfield with a Mauser-style lug might have replaced the Lee–Enfield, but the exigencies of World War I prevented this from happening. The Lee–Enfield continued to see service until it was replaced by a semi-automatic L1A1 after World War II. The Germans had faced the U.S. M1917 rifle during World War I, which was the Pattern 14 rifle adapted to fire the U.S. .30-06 cartridge of the American M1903 Springfield rifle.

Chilean Mauser Model 1895

The Mauser Model 1895 adopted as Fusil Mauser Chileno Mo 1895^[16] by Chilean forces, is a bolt operated magazine fed rifle using the 7×57mm Mauser cartridge. It is the first major modification of the Mauser Model 1893 and was produced by Deutsche Waffen und Munitionsfabriken, known as DWM, and Ludwig Loewe Company from 1895 to 1900.^[17]

Model 1896

Swedish rifle Model 1896

On 3 November 1893, the United Kingdoms of Sweden and Norway adopted the 6.5×55 mm cartridge. As a result, the Swedes chambered their new service weapons, the m/94 carbine and m/96 rifle, in this round. The rifle action was manufactured relatively unchanged from 1896 to 1944, and the m/94 Carbine, m/96 Rifle, m/38 Short Rifle, and m/41 Sharpshooter models are known by collectors as "Swedish Mausers". They are still sought after by military service rifle shooters and hunters. Initial production of the weapons was in Germany by Waffenfabrik Mauser, with the remainder being manufactured under license by Sweden's state-operated Bofors Carl Gustaf factory. The m/38 short rifle was produced by Husqvarna; additional m/38s were converted from Model 96 rifles.

"Swedish steel" is a term for the steel used by the German Mauser, and later by Swedish manufacturing facilities, to make the m/96 rifles. Swedish iron ore contains the proper percentages of trace elements to make good alloy steel. Thus, though lacking the industrial base necessary for mass-producing steel and iron, the Swedish steel industry developed a niche market for specialty high-strength steel alloys containing nickel, copper, and vanadium. Swedish steels were noted for their strength and corrosion resistance and were especially suited for use in toolmaking, cutlery, and firearms. When Mauser was contracted to fabricate the initial production runs of Swedish Mausers in Germany due to production delays, Sweden required the use of Swedish steel in the manufacturing process. The Swedish Ordnance Office continued to specify the same Swedish steel alloy in Swedish-made Mausers until the last new-production m/38 barrelled actions were completed in 1944.

Model 1898

Mauser Model 98

In 1898, the German Army purchased a Mauser design, the Model 98, which incorporated improvements introduced in earlier models. The weapon was originally chambered for the Patrone 88 and officially entered German service as the Gew. 98 on April 5, 1898. This remains by far the most successful of the Mauser designs, helped by the onset of two world wars that demanded vast numbers of rifles.

Noticeable changes from previous Mauser rifle models included better ruptured case gas venting, better receiver metallurgy, and a larger 35.8 mm (1.41 in) diameter receiver ring compared to previous Mauser "small ring" bolt-action designs that had 33 mm (1.30 in) diameter receiver rings for additional strength and safety. Mauser incorporated a third "safety" lug on the bolt body to protect the shooter in the event that one or more of the forward locking lugs failed. In 1903 the improved 7.92×57mm Mauser S Patrone "spitzer" (pointed) round was introduced. Mauser had nothing to do with the development of this round. The S Patrone provided the accuracy and barrel life improvements the German military was looking for and it was in response to the French adoption of a pointed boat-tail bullet, which offered better external ballistic performance. The bullet diameter was increased from 8.08 mm (0.318 in) to 8.2 mm (0.323 in). Pointed or spitzer bullets give bullets a lower drag coefficient (C_d) making them decelerate less rapidly and also markedly decreases the lateral drift caused by crosswinds, improving the effective range of the cartridge.

Most existing early Model 98s and many Model 88s were modified before World War I to take the new round, designated "7,9mm" or "S Patrone" by the German military. Modified Model 88s can be identified by an "S" on the receiver. Due to the possibility for overpressure from the undersize barrel, the spitzer round cannot safely be used in unmodified guns, particularly with Model 88 rifles.

Paul Mauser died on 29 May 1914, before the start of World War I that August. The war caused a spike in demand for the company's rifles. The 98 carbines were sold, as well as an experimental version with a twenty-rather than five-round box magazine. The extended magazine was not well received, however.

A number of carbine versions known as Karabiner 98s were introduced and used in World War I, some even shorter than the later K.98k. These carbines were originally only distributed to cavalry troops, but later in the war to the special storm troop units as well.

G98 derivatives

Many military rifles derive from the M98 design. Some of these were German-made by various contractors other than Mauser:^[18]

• M1902 & M1936 Mexican in 7×57mm Mauser
• M1903 Turkish in 7.65×53mm Argentine
• M1907 Chinese in 6.8×57mm
• M1904 Portuguese in 6.5×58mm Vergueiro, 7×57mm Mauser and 7.92×57mm Mauser
• M1907 and M1908 Brazilian in 7×57mm Mauser
• M1908 Uruguayan in 7x57mm produced by the Deutsche Waffen und Munitionsfabriken
• M1910 Serbian in 7×57mm Mauser
• M1909 Argentine in 7.65×53mm
• Steyr Model 1912 Mauser for Mexico, Chile and Colombia, in 7×57mm Mauser
• Type 24 Chinese in 7.92×57mm
• Belgian Mauser Model 1935
• M1943 Spanish short (not to be confused with the M93 Spanish Mauser) in 7.92×57mm manufactured in the Spanish arsenals. Will have "La Coruna" or the Spanish Air Force Eagle stamped on the top of the receiver. Virtually identical to the K98k.
• vz. 98/22 Often made from G98 parts, rebuilt in the BRNO factory in Czechoslovakia.

The Mauser 1918 T-Gewehr was the world's first anti-tank rifle—the first rifle designed for the sole purpose of destroying armored targets. The weapon, essentially an enlarged G98, fired 13×92mm (.525-caliber) TuF (Tank und Flieger, "tanks and aeroplanes") semi-rimmed cartridges. In May 1918, the Mauser Company began mass-producing the Mauser 13mm Tank Abwehr Gewehr Mod. 18 in Oberndorf am Neckar.

Following the collapse of the German Empire after World War I, many countries that were using Mauser models chose to develop, assemble, or modify their own G98-action rifle designs. The most prolific of them were the Czechoslovak M1922 CZ 98 and M1924 CZ and the Belgian Fabrique Nationale M1924 and M1930.

The Belgians and Czechs produced and widely exported their "Mausers" in various calibers throughout the 1920s and 1930s, before their production facilities were absorbed by Nazi Germany to make parts or whole rifles for the German Army. Strictly speaking, these were not "Mauser" rifles, as they were not engineered or produced by the German company.

To take advantage of the widespread and popular German single-shot 8.15×46mmR cartridge for use in a military firearm, a modified Gewehr 98 referred to as a "Wehrmannsgewehr" was designed. These were made primarily as single shots; some only had a wood block in the magazine space. These became the 1936 Olympic team rifles for the Germans.

• 
  An 8.15×46R Mauser Wehrmannsgewehr
• 
  The top of the receiver on an 8.15x46r Wehrmannsgewehr

As the restrictions on production were increasingly ignored by the Germans in the 1930s, a new Mauser, the Mauser standard model, was developed from the rifle-length Karabiner 98b. It was nominally intended for export and civilian sales. While many standard model rifles were indeed exported, it was meant primarily for use by the revived German military. It rapidly evolved into the Karabiner 98 Kurz, which was adopted by Nazi Germany as the standard infantry rifle in 1935 and saw service until the end of World War II.

Type A, Model B, Model K, Armee-Model C, Africa Model

A series of very successful hunting rifles were developed in the first decades of the 20th century. The Special Rifle Type A was the top-of-the-line sporting rifle of the early 20th century. The Model B (B for Büchse) and Model K were sport rifles offered in many configurations. The Model C, made from 1903 to 1930, was a cheap rifle made to accommodate a range of cartridges for hunting. The Mauser Africa Model, introduced around 1904 or 1905, was used mainly by settlers in Africa.

Model M and model S

The Model M was introduced in 1914. A Model S (S for stutzen or short) was also offered.

Mauser M1916

Mauser M1916

The Mauser M1916, or Mauser selbstladekarabiner (self-loading carbine), was a semi-automatic rifle that used a delayed blowback mechanism and fed from 25-round detachable magazine. The process of developing a semi-automatic rifle cost Paul Mauser an eye when a prototype suffered an out-of-battery detonation. The mechanism was quite delicate, working reliably only when completely clean, which made the rifle unsuitable for infantry use. However, the Imperial German Flying Corps adopted the rifle for its aircraft crews in 1915, and more generally in 1916. Aerial combat provided the clean environment the rifle required, and its semi-automatic capability was an advancement over bolt-action rifles.

However, the rifle was expensive to make. The air service turned to the Swiss-produced Mondragón rifle, which was tested by the army; though less accurate than Mauser's design, it cost about a third as much. The widespread adoption of machine guns then made all self-loading rifles obsolete in the air service.

Mauser 1925 Special range rifle

The 1925 Special range rifle was a commercial product introduced in 1925 and sold in the United States. It was intended for high accuracy range shooting. The company also produced a .22 caliber training rifle during this time frame.

Karabiner 98k

Karabiner 98k in mint condition, made in 1940. From the collections of the Swedish Army Museum.

The Karabiner 98k "Mauser" (often abbreviated "K98k" or "Kar98k"), adopted in the mid- 1930s, became the most common infantry rifle in service in the German Army during World War II. The design was developed from the Karabiner 98b, one of the carbines developed from the Model 1898. The K98k was first adopted by the Wehrmacht in 1935 as their standard issue rifle, with many older versions being converted and shortened.

Mauser KKW cadet rifle

The Mauser KKW cadet rifle is a single shot, .22 caliber rifle that was introduced in 1938. It is virtually identical to the Karabiner 98k. These cadet rifles were used by all German military, paramilitary and police organizations, especially the Hitler Youth.

Gewehr 41

Gewehr 41 (Mauser version) semi-automatic rifle

The Gewehr 41 rifles, commonly known as the "G41(W)" or "G41(M)", were semi-automatic rifles used by Nazi Germany during World War II. By 1940 the Wehrmacht issued a specification to various manufacturers, and Mauser and Walther submitted prototypes that were very similar. Both Gewehr 41 models used a mechanism known as the "Bang" system (named after the designer of the M1922 Bang rifle). In this system, gases from the bullet were trapped near the muzzle in a ring-shaped cone, which in turn pulled on a long piston rod that opened the breech and re-loaded the gun. Both models also included inbuilt 10-round magazines that were loaded using two of the stripper clips from the Karabiner 98k, utilizing 7.92×57mm Mauser rounds, which made reloading relatively slow. The Mauser design, the G41(M), failed as it, along with its G41(W) counterpart, suffered from gas system fouling problems. Only 6,673 G41(M) rifles were produced before production was halted, and of these, 1,673 were returned as unusable.

Mauser C78 "zig-zag" Revolver

Mauser C78 "zig-zag"

The Mauser C78 zig-zag was a revolver manufactured by Mauser during the late 19th century. It was Paul Mauser's first handgun design.

C1896 Pistol

Mauser C96 in 9 mm Luger

Mauser branched out into pistol design in 1896, producing the C96, commonly known as "broomhandle," designed by the three brothers Fidel, Friedrich, and Josef Feederle^[19] (often erroneously spelled "Federle"). All versions used detachable shoulder stock holsters. Over a million C96s were produced between 1896 and the late 1930s.

Mauser 1910 and 1914 pocket pistols

Mauser factory, 1910

Mauser 1910

Mauser 1914

The Mauser Model 1910 was a small self-loading pistol chambered for .25 ACP (6.35 mm). It was introduced in 1910; an updated model chambered for .32 ACP (7.65 mm), the Mauser Model 1914, came out in 1914. Most of these were used by the Wehrmacht and the Kriegsmarine. They were also sold commercially.

Mauser Model 1934 pocket pistol

left: 7.65 mm 1934 Model pocket pistol, right: Browning 9 mm (for comparison)

This was a small pocket pistol chambered for .32 ACP (7.65 mm) based on the earlier Model 1910/14. The Mauser Model 1934 is virtually identical to the 1914 except for the grip, which has a more curved back. It was used by the Kriegsmarine and was also sold commercially.

Mauser HSc

The Mauser HSc was a self-loading handgun introduced in the 1940s. It was a compact double-action blowback design in .32 ACP. Production ran from 1940 until the end of World War II, and into the 1960s and early 1970s. The post-war models were also available in .380 ACP.