Want to learn more about Turkish Mauser Ammo? Read on for facts and info on the trademark rifles developed in Turkey…
Mauser ammo was a breakthrough league of rifles that was developed in Turkey in the 1800s. It was regarded as being highly cost effective to produce, which is why it was widely available in the entire region. Today however, Turkish Mauser ammo has acquired a collectorship status amongst gun enthusiasts and is not nearly as cheap as it used to be upon a time.
The trademark Mauser rifle was an all-corrosive Berdan that was primed on stripper clips. It fired 154 grain jacketed bullets which were coated in flake powder. The round used in these guns was similar to the 8mm S cartridge. In terms of performance Turkish Mauser ammo met the international standards of full power military cartridges. The pressure range of the cartridge used in the Mauser rifle was at the upper end and this was quite obvious once the rifle was fired.
Turkish Mauser Ammo Versions
Mauser ammo initially came on to the scene as 7.65×53 Mauser. This was prior to the advent of WWI. As the war broke out, the Turks made a move to employ Imperial German arms and ammunition so as to keep up with international standards. This led to the modification of the conventional Masuer to the 8mm rifle standard.
In Turkey the new Mauser was known as the 7.92x57mm but the Americans assigned to it the title of 8mm Mauser. The barrels embedded in these guns were made in Turkey and had the dimensions clearly noted on them. The two dimension markings found on these guns were 7.91 and 7.92. It is important to note that this was not the dimension for the unfired bullet. Rather, it was meant to denote the land-to-land dimension of the Turkish made barrel. The diameter of the bullet on the other hand was almost 8.2mm so as to match the groove-to-groove dimensions.
The Mauser rifle developed in 1931 made use of cupro-nickel jacketed bullets. These bullets remained in use until 1949 following which gilding metal and copper jackets were introduced. One of the unique things about Turkish Mauser ammo is the fact that they attract a magnet, which is a clear indication of the fact that materials other than lead have also been used in preparing the copper jacket.
Turkish Mauser Ammo Markings
The classic Mauser ammo also has markings in Arabic script. The earliest dated Mauser rifle with the Arabic script belongs to 1927. However, they were not marked according to the Gregorian calendar. Rather, they showed the date according to the lunar calendar, which the Turks were accustomed to. Hence you have dates marked as 1327 which can only give you an approximate indication of the year of manufacture when converted to the Gregorian calendar.
As the Mauser ammo went through a series of modifications post WWI, the Arabic script was removed and English marking were introduced. However, it is the Mauser rifle with the Arabic script that has greater collectorship value simply because it dates further back than the ones that have markings in English.
