*UPDATED with pics and war trophies* any k98 gurus out there?

[4thSBCT]

Are you absolutely sure yours is missing? It was located under the lower band in early rifles that used the shorter cleaning rod, and farther back in the stock for the longer cleaning rod from March 1939 on. You have a later stock with a cupped buttplate so it should be visible in the barrel channel inside the stock.

its there i just think its stripped since the cleaning rod just falls out

[Milsurp Collector]

its there i just think its stripped since the cleaning rod just falls out

More likely it is clogged with cosmoline and dirt. Try carefully prying it out, then clean it.

But again, you don't need to have a cleaning rod to shoot it, and a Russian Capture K98k is perfectly correct without a cleaning rod. You only need one if you are trying to make it look the way it did before the Soviets captured it.

[rojocorsa]

Russian Capture (RC) K98k's are not supposed to have cleaning rods (or sight hoods, or locking screws on the triggerguard), they were removed by the Soviets. Your RC K98k is "correct" just as it is. If you want to replace the removed parts with reproductions, you can get them at http://www.landser.com/Mauser.aspx
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Why did they get rid of these things?

[Milsurp Collector]

Why did they get rid of these things?

Different theories have been proposed, but the most likely one is that those parts were non-essential and they were melted down as scrap.

The Soviets took the captured\surrendered rifles apart down to the barreled receivers and grouped the parts by type (triggerguards, upper bands, lower bands, firing pins, handguards, rear sights, etc.) In order to take the rifles apart they would have had to remove the cleaning rods, sight hoods (if present), and retaining/locking screws. Those parts are non-essential and it probably wasn't worth the trouble to refinish and reinstall them.

The essential metal parts sometimes had their markings scrubbed off, and then they were refinished. The wooden parts were sanded and shellaced, and then the rifles were assembled with mixed parts from the bins. New forced-match numbers were inscribed with an electropencil and were stamped on the left side of the buttstock.

[4thSBCT]

I removed the cleaning rod retaining lug, I had to dimple the inside of the stock close to the lug to get it out. The threaded hole on the lug was plugged with rust. The rest of the lug was covered in rust also and had some heavy pitting. I was convinced it would be trash but I soaked it for 8 hours in rust solution and cleaned it with a wire brush. Knocked out the rust plug with a nail and Used an ak47 cleaning rod to rethread the threads. They matched up perfectly. It works perfect now. Thanks for the suggestion milsurp collector

[Dr.Mauser]

Why did the Soviets do all that? And where the heck are all the other things they captured!?!?!? The tanks, armored vehicles, and all the other weapons? Melted? Still in a storage warehouse in siberia? They probably owned more then half the German Military's firearms supply after the war was over from everyone that surrendered or was killed on the slaughtering fields of the various pockets throughout the war, Kourland pocket, Narvik, Korsun Pocket, Seelow Heights...the list goes on

[mosinnagantm9130]

Why did the Soviets do all that? And where the heck are all the other things they captured!?!?!? The tanks, armored vehicles, and all the other weapons? Melted? Still in a storage warehouse in siberia? They probably owned more then half the German Military's firearms supply after the war was over from everyone that surrendered or was killed on the slaughtering fields of the various pockets throughout the war, Kourland pocket, Narvik, Korsun Pocket, Seelow Heights...the list goes on

The vehicles were either scrapped, sold to a third world country, put into storage, or are now in mueseums.

The Soviets gave captured German weapons around to help out with various wars and things by their allies. The North Vietnamese were supplied with RC K98's.

The Russians today still have G43's and the like, but the Russians want too much money for the legal to import surplus rifles. At least that was the rumor I heard.

[nick]

Why did they get rid of these things?

If I recall correctly, this was their way of "disabling" the rifles for some of the "arms reduction" treaties. By taking some non-essential parts out of the rifles they could then report that they rendered so and so many small arms non-operational.

[Dr.Mauser]

thats BS, with all the money the russians are sitting on with those guns and who knows how many other things from the German military they could be the richest country in the world, pull themselves out of debt, buy some franchises, you know...i wouldnt mind a Tiger, or a SDKFZ 222 lol