To my eyes everything checks out except for a couple things. It's a 1943 Izhevsk with refurb marks on the barrel shank and scope. All stamped parts are Izhevsk. The stock looks original and even has a 1943 dated star cartouche (does not look like a Tula star as it does not have an arrow in the star). All serial numbers on the rifle are stamped matching, including prefixes, with the magazine floor plate old SN struck out. The SN font is the same on all parts except for the barrel shank. The action is really smooth and the trigger heavy but crisp and definitely better than the average MN one.
The features that bother me are 1. the scope mount SN does not match the rifle scope SN. 2. the bolt bend looks a little odd (I just don't have that much experience looking at real sniper bolts...) 3. the scope mount stock cut out looks old but not as old as the bolt handle side cutout.
What I think I have is a genuine re-arsenaled sniper rifle and scope. The mismatching of the scope base and rifle is what bothers me most. Could that have happened at the original arsenal level? Or is is more likely that it happened either at the German exporter or US importer level, or (hopefully not...) at the Bubba level? How does that affect the value of the rifle?
Now for the pics... It was humid that day and the metal picked up condensation.
Import mark and scope number on receiver:
WaffSchu mark under handguard:
Bolt:
Optics:
The rifling is strong even though the bore is pretty dark:
Scope markings:
Receiver screws:
Scope mount has the correct electro-penciled scope SN but the rifle SN is mismatched:
Penciled SN on the inside of the handguard and stock:
Scope mount cutout:
Barrel marks:
Star stock mark with "1943":
Various stock marks:
Haven't shot it yet, but I expect it will make a pretty nice shooter.
I would appreciate any comments the experts may have!
