What Exactly are These Marks? Who Did Them?

[Nugilum]

I recently came across reasonably priced Yugoslavian captured German Mauser. After 30+ minutes of internal debate (Do I need a third 8mm? Is the bolt and receiver solid? Was this Mauser made at the end of WWII when quality control was waining? etc.) I bought it.

When I got home and performed an "arsenal-grade" cleaning, I noticed these marks:







I wasn't eyeballing this part of the rifle when I was evaluating it. I have a very good idea what they are (lets just call it "keeping score"), but apparently I don't know what they're called. I haven't found much on the internet about them.

Now since this is a Yugo capture, this opens up a lot of possibilities as to who did them: German, Serb, Croatian, someone else?

Are they what I suspect, and guesses on who did them?

 

[Sistema1927]

Could be that someone was "counting coup", or could be that some soldier was bored.

You will never know.

 

[Joe Demko]

Would it make you happy if it was a body count? If so, then tell yourself that's what it is. You'll never know what it's from so you might as well choose to believe the explanation you like best.
Just don't relate it to others as documented fact.

 

[Loomis]

Those marks were made with a saw, not a knife. So I find it hard to believe they are "kills".

i don't know what they are.

 

[PercyShelley]

Maybe something to keep the rifle from slipping around too much when it's on a rest?

 

[Vaarok]

Most likely a rack number or other identifier, though it could very likely be kill notches.

 

[gcrookston]

a bored soldier

 

[paintballdude902]

could be that someone got the rifle then made the notches in it to try and say it was a confirmed killer with notches to prove it

been said before buy the rifle not the story

good to hear they didnt try to sell you a lame story

 

[Nugilum]

Joe Demko:

Would it make you happy if it was a body count?

Actually, no. However, I cannot change its past.

I'm choosing to believe this was done by someone trying to create "bragging rights". The individual who made those lines was probably compensating for something.

Can't say I've been in battles, but I can't fathom bragging about what I would have done.

 

[EShell]

. . .The individual who made those lines was probably compensating for something.

I reckon so, they ARE awful close together.

 

[Monkeybear]

My first guess was a home made ruler. They seem a pretty regular distance apart. Do they match up with a real ruler? Are they they right size to measure anything that pertains to the location/period or its use?

Am I just lame and thus have lame guesses?

 

[The Tourist]

I hate to say it, but considering the era, they could be "notches."

General Patton carried an engraved silver plated .45 SAA in WWII. He had purchased it as a regular blue revolver, and killed to Mexican insurgents on his first engagement.

When the revolver was customized, he had two notches engraved in the ivory grips in memory. That was tolerated at the time.

We may not do that now, but it was a custom.

 

[SimpleIsGood229]

Looks like seven dead Ruskies to me.

 

[Deus Machina]

My opinion: If you decide they are 'notches', carve a cross (or what have you) above each and promise to put it to better use.

 

[Joe Demko]

Looks like seven dead Ruskies to me.

Could just as easily be seven dead Serbs or seven dead Croats. Given the habits of the region, the seven dead could also quite easily be women, kids, or old people eliminated during an ethnic cleansing.
All that assumes, of course, that the marks are a tally and that the gun was ever actually used to kill anybody.

 

[cracked butt]

Graffiti and carvings are fairly common on Yugo mausers. A half dozen years ago when you couldn't walk into a gunshop without tripping over a pile of yugo mausers, I've seen several with either a Fleur-de-lis or a Crescent moon and star carved in the stock (I wonder what would happen to a US G.I. if they did something like that to their issued rifle) . The notches could be a count, more commonly, 'counts' look like little circles where the soldier inpressed/pounded an empty case mouth into the wood.

 

[akolleth]

During the Yugoslavian civil wars there was a serious breakdown of military discipline. Both sides were known to carve into their weaopons various markings and such. Its not uncommon at all with period wepons from the Yugo republic. To date I have 2 M48 Muasers, 2 59/66 SKS, and a RPK with carvings in them. There is a whole group of us who collect the stock carvings.

As people have said, its some sort of hash marks. What those represent is anyones guess. Could be kills, could be number of operations they used the rifle in, could be number of girls they..... well you get the idea.

What makes this more rare than usual is its on a Yugo scrubbed K98. You can frequently find the Yugo built mauser (M48) that were used in the civil war, and a few of them have carvings. But to my knowledge this is the first scrubbed M98 that I have seen with stock carvings.

 

[akolleth]

A pic request, can we see the right side of the stock, like the whole right side?

I am interested to see if its a K98 stock, or a M48 stock.

 

[Fish Miner]

Looks like they were done before the stain was put on...maybe it is just dirt in there but they look a little too clean and even for a soldier keeping score...
I like the grip angle.

 

[Loyalist Dave]

First, I can tell from the symmetry of the lines that they were not individually made, they are of a uniform depth and spacing, and the slight variation in length appears due to the stock shape. So, a single implement was used to make the marks. My SWAG would be that the rifle stock was clamped in a metal holding device, without proper padding where metal met the wood, and the stock was compressed by the "teeth" of the implement.

LD

 

[cracked butt]

Both sides were known to carve into their weaopons various markings and such. Its not uncommon at all with period wepons from the Yugo republic. To date I have 2 M48 Muasers, 2 59/66 SKS, and a RPK with carvings in them. There is a whole group of us who collect the stock carvings.

I had a M48 with the word 'Davoba' carved in the stock- no idea if its a name of a soldier, a place, or maybe someone's girlfriend.

My SWAG would be that the rifle stock was clamped in a metal holding device, without proper padding where metal met the wood, and the stock was compressed by the "teeth" of the implement.

That sounds likely.

 

[SSN Vet]

I think a bored soldier was planning on making a cribbage board on it and the war ended

 

[kcmarine]

First, I can tell from the symmetry of the lines that they were not individually made, they are of a uniform depth and spacing, and the slight variation in length appears due to the stock shape. So, a single implement was used to make the marks. My SWAG would be that the rifle stock was clamped in a metal holding device, without proper padding where metal met the wood, and the stock was compressed by the "teeth" of the implement.

LD

The regular spacing might indicate something, but I doubt it was put in a vice. The lines look like they're in a somewhat angled direction in relation to the direction of the barrel. Also, there would have to be the same type of markings on the top of the handguard. It also seems like a weird place to put a vice on a gun. You think it would be more to the balance point.

Another thing to consider is that maybe a soldier used a serrated edge bayonet to do the job... thus making a clean cut.

If your suspicions about "counting the score" are strong enough, please carve crosses for each mark.

 

[TexasRifleman]

Maybe that's how things were done before Grip Tape came along?

Looks like a field checkering job to me.

Pretty far forward though so maybe not.

 

[Nugilum]

Picture requested from akolleth:



It's a K98k stock.

Now,
Deus Machina:

My opinion: If you decide they are 'notches', carve a cross (or what have you) above each and promise to put it to better use.

kcmarine:

If your suspicions about "counting the score" are strong enough, please carve crosses for each mark.

I like these ideas. I'll do something like that.