During the war, factories churned out huge quantities of 98ks which proved to be reliable and accurate arms. The 98k went into production in 1935, and served throughout World War II as Germany’s standard rifle. Even though it was called short, it was still fairly long for a carbine. The 140mm (5.51in) shorter and otherwise improved rifle was based on a commercial Mauser design called the Standard Model (Standard Model), and in military service was known as the Karabiner 98k (the “k” stood for kurz, meaning “short”). Although the Wehrmacht desired a shorter and less bulky gun, the new version, the Karabiner (Carbine) 98b, despite its name (a carbine is a short-barreled gun) was the same length as the Gewehr 98 and incorporated only some fairly minor changes.īy the time Germany invaded Poland, the Kar 98b had at last shrunk a little.
It used a Mauser-type action and held five rounds of 7.92x57mm (also known as 8mm Mauser) ammunition on a stripper clip, loaded into an internal magazine.Īfter the war, the Wehrmacht decided to modify the rifle. In 1898, Mauser introduced a fine bolt-action rifle, the Gewehr (Rifle) 98 that Germany adopted and used in World War I. The Karabiner 98k (often abbreviated Kar 98k or K 98k) was a bolt-action rifle adopted as the standard infantry rifle by the Wehrmacht, and was one of the final developments in the long line of Mauser military rifles. 3 Mauser Karabiner 98k with ZF-41 Scope.