All of my Steyr rifle’s calibers are stamped on the left side or on the top of the receiver. The only numbers I can find on this rifle (stamped twice on left side) are 01716.50 I’ve Google searched these numbers but haven’t been able to determine caliber. Another number on the 'right side' is 2020 which I think is the serial #. May 24, 2013 Austrian soldier holds a M95 Steyr Mannlicher rifle during World War I. In the 1880s, the bolt-action rifle was a new-fangled innovative firearm. One of the leaders in design of these guns was a. See full list on guns.com.
By Dennis D. Ottobre
As a military rifle collector there is no way for me to pick a'favorite' from my collection but I do find Yugoslavian M95M conversionrifles fascinating. Very little information has been published inEnglish on these odd rifles although there is mention of them here andthere with little or no detail. I had purchased my fist M95M (thelower rifle pictured) back in 1995 with a pile of M1895 Steyr carbinesand noticed nothing until I discovered no M95 bayonet would fit on it dueto the muzzle ring inside diameter on the bayonet being too small by 0.5mm. That's when I finally noticed the odd barrel length being longer than theother carbines but far shorter than a full sized rifle and decided to setit aside until I knew what it was. Fast forward almost 4 years to1998 when I made the bayonet collecting part of my hobby into a full timeon-line business. While test fitting a small group of M95 bayonetsI had acquired for resale I came across one with a large MRID. Thelight bulb went on in my brain and I mated the rifle and bayonet perfectly. I still had no clue about the who, what or why until sometime in 2000 whenI was thumbing through my copy of 'The Book Of Rifles' and found a shortblurb identifying this very rifle. Mystery solved BUT more mysterieswere yet to come.
In 2005 I was at a gun show and tripped over the upper rifle shown. I knew it was an M95M by this time but the seller had no clue. Heconfirmed his lack of knowledge when he told me I would need the Mannlicherclip he gave me with it if I wanted to shoot it. Since these riflesare reworked M95 Steyrs reconfigured for use with 8x57mm ammunition instripper clips I just kind of chuckled, paid the man a price that wouldhave been good for a common Steyr M95 carbine and walked away with whatI thought was an upgrade to my collection. When I got it home anddid a side by side comparison of my 2 M95Ms I discovered that I now had2 different variants. The upper rifle has a recycled and reconfiguredM95 stock while the lower rifle has a completely newly Yugo made stock. Note the differences in the center barrel bands especially. So whyhave 2 variants and why recycle old stocks on some while going throughthe trouble of making new stocks for others in a different configuration? After multiple side by side comparisons with unaltered M95 Steyr long riflesand carbines it is clear that the variant using the cut down original M95stock was definitely made from a full length rifle as opposed to a carbine. This would seem obvious but it is important to note that the original riflebarrel band differs from the different barrel bands found on differentcarbine variants. I speculate that those M95M rifles equipped withthe newly made stock were probably built from original M95 carbines thatoriginally had stocks that would be too short for use on the M95M reworks.I possess an unaltered M95 carbine made by Steyr in 1903 for a Bulgariancontract. My M95M with new made stock is also built on an actionfrom the 1903 Bulgarian contract so I suspect it was also a carbine. This is certainly not conclusive but provides a basis for more study.
Note the stripper clip guide cuts in the receiver bridges and the 'M'suffix added to the nomenclature on both examples. The upper riflebore no prior property marks and the lower rifle was previously a Bulgarianissued example. These came to Yugoslavia from all over after WWIbut were of little use to Yugoslavia after standardizing the use of the8x57mm cartridge in 1924. The Steyr rifles were stored until financesand needs dictated the feasibility of converting them from their original8x50R caliber and changing the Mannlicher loading and feeding system tothe Mauser type 'stripper clip' charging system . The conversions weredone by the commercial firm Yakov Poshinger Arms and Ammunition Factory(FOMU) in Uzice, Yugoslavia under contract for the Yugoslav Governmentdue to inadequate capacity to effect the conversions within the MilitaryTechnical Institute (AT3 and BT3) at Kragujevac, Yugoslavia. Thecontract for conversion was bid out in 1933 and FOMU was contracted toperform the conversion beginning in March 1938 completing the work by Mid1939. The contract specified conversion of 10,000 rifles at a rateof 50 per day. The barrel used is actually the Yugoslavian M24 'Mauser'barrel supplied to FOMU by Kragujevac which was producing the M1924 rifleat the time.
M95 Steyr Rifle Serial Number New Innovations 2017
The bayonets are also poorly documented and usually misidentified whenfound. The original bayonet I had was just a common Austro-HungarianM95 with its MRID reamed out a bit larger for the M24 type barrel to fit. The bottom bayonet in the pictures is such a bayonet but has also had it'sgrips replaced by Yugoslavia and fixed with their signature spanner headscrews. The markings were not changed although they will sometimebe found with the triangular Yugo AT3 mark on the ricasso. The scabbardis of new Yugo construction and is unique among M95 series scabbards.
The center bayonet shown is one made from the parts of former Austro-HungarianM1888/16 bayonets and are quickly identified by the long pommel and shortgrips. At the time this article was written I had had 3 of theseand the one depicted was acquired from fellow BCNer Earl Stanford. Until I purchased this one and mounted it to the M95M I had not confirmedthe identity of these as it never occurred to me to try mounting the onesI owned previously. The discovery with the center bayonet openedmy mind up to more possibilities. At the same time I discovered theidentity of the center bayonet I had the top bayonet shown on hand withno positive ID so I figured 'why not give it a try'. I was tickledpink when it mounted on the M95M and like the center bayonet it is derivedfrom a design for the M1888 Steyr.
M95M conversion bayonets made from Austro-Hungarian M1890 bayonets.
The top bayonet depicted above is usually identified as an Austro-HungarianM1890 bayonet for the RG1888 series rifles. The lower bayonet isa Yugoslavian conversion of a leftover M1890 bayonet to fit the M95M rifle. The hilt was shortened and a new crossguard based on an M1895 bayonet crossguardblank with larger muzzle ring inside diameter for the M95M.
The pommel was removed from the tang, a new crossguard installed thenthe original pommel recycled and reinstalled on the shortened tang.
M95M conversion bayonets made from Austro-Hungarian M1888/16 bayonets.
During WWI The Austro-Hungarian Empire fielded the M1895 Steyr as it'smain battle rifle. Due to wartime shortages of arms many obsoleteRG1888 series rifles were pressed back into service for second line andrear echelon troops. An additional shortage of bayonets resultedin several variations of bayonet being produced for these obsolete riflesas well as the first line M95 rifles. Given limited manufacturingcapacity that could not keep up with wartime demands deriving multipleuses for parts already being produced maximizes manufacturing effectivenessto take better advantage of a nation's manufacturing capacity when limited.
The image above depicts the evolution of the M1895 bayonet to the M1888/16to a final version of the M95M. The M1895 bayonet is depicted atthe top in the image above. The second bayonet depicted above wasone such variant for the RG1888 series rifles. It was constructedusing modified M1895 components that were already being produced. The blade and tang are standard M1895 type. The crossguard is alsofrom a blank M1895 crossguard but with a larger muzzle ring inside diameterand mounted lower on the blade to account for the lower muzzle ring heighton the RG1888 series rifles. Note that the 'quillon' end of the crossguardextends farther from the hilt than that on the M1895 bayonet above it. The pommel was of a unique new construction being made longer than whatwould seem normal at a glance. The extra pommel length is to compensatefor the shorter than needed M1895 tang as the RG1888 series rifles requirea longer lug to muzzle ring distance to mount their bayonets. Thebottom bayonet is a later Yugoslavian conversion of a leftover M1888/16bayonet to fit the M95M.
M1895 tang compared to the M1888/16 tang.
After WWI when Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia were formed the new nationsreceived and employed a great deal of former Austro-Hungarian arms untilboth nations moved quickly to variations on the German GEW98 series ofrifles. The Czechs began as early as 1922 and Yugoslavia incooperation with FN of Belgium in 1924. The Czechs also fielded anew design in 1924 leaving today's collector with the Belgian FN24, CzechVZ24 and Yugoslav M1924 being very close to the same rifle with the samenomenclature. Fast forward to 1938 when Yugoslavia began reworkingof former M95 rifles to the M95M configuration by installing M24 barrelsas discussed above. In addition to modifying the M1895 bayonet tofit many others bayonets were modified to include existing stocks of M1888/16bayonets.
M1888/16 tang compared to the M95M tang.
The M1888/16 bayonets had their grips removed and tangs shortened thena new crossguard for the M95M was installed before the pommel was remountedto the shortened tang to create this version of the M95M bayonet. A similar operation was conducted by Portugal to convert their M1904 bayonetto fit the M1934 Steyr-Soluthurn sub machinegun. The Soluthurn convertedbayonet incidentally fits the original M1895 Steyr as well since the SMGwas built to accept the existing M95 bayonet.
Double edged variant of the Serbian M1899 bayonet was constructed foruse on Serbian and captured Turkish 'export pattern' Mauser rifles. (Bogdanovic also identifies this model as an M1899C depending on the erathat it is used. It is also incorrectly referred to by some collectorsas an 'M1915'. I am guilty of using this identification and wouldlike to interject my personal thanks to Branko Bogdanovic for taking thetime to personally explain the correct nomenclatures to me.) The term 'exportpattern' refers to the critical dimensions used to determine what bayonetfits. It is characterized by a 15.5mm MRID (the same as the M95M)and a set muzzle ring to locking catch distance (locking distance) andmuzzle ring height. The M95M has a shorter locking distance and lowermuzzle ring height. Bending back the upper portion of the crossguardand reshaping it to something resembling a letter 's' places the muzzlering at just the right height and locking distance to make the bayonetfit the M95M.
Export pattern M1899 double edged bayonet.
COURTESY DORLIN KERR COLLECTION dkerr45394@roadrunner.com
M95M modified M1899 bayonet.
Components of the Yugoslav M1924 bayonet were also used in making bayonetsfor the M95M but it is unclear if these were produced from incomplete orblank bayonet components or if they are actually conversions of existingbayonets.
The Yugoslav M1924 bayonet.
COURTESY BRANKO BOGDANOVIC
The Yugoslav long M95M bayonet based on the M1924 bayonet.
This long M95M bayonet is based on the M1924 with M95M crossguard installedand hilt shortened. I have never observed a physical example of thisbayonet but I strongly suspect it is a conversion of an existing M1924bayonet as opposed to being newly purpose built.
An additional long M95M varaint bayonet also based on the M1924 bayonetbut with the tang in its normal length and a shorter pommel to compensatefor the locking distance.
COURTESY BRANKO BOGDANOVIC
Another variation of M95M conversion of the M1924 bayonet. Thisconversion uses what appears to be a shorter version of the M1924 pommelwhich compensates for the shorter locking distance of the M95M. Thispommel has a T type mortise slot.
COURTESY RONNIE WILSON COLLECTION
This example has had the muzzle ring removed from the crossguard. Such muzzle ring removal of Yugoslavian bayonets is generally characteristicof WWII German adaptation practices for re-issued Yugoslav bayonets butin this case with the shorter T slot pommel it would have been relegatedto the status of a knife or sidearm as it will no longer mount on any rifle. The long pommel with it's long T/O mortise slot would be required to mountany such bayonet lacking a muzzle ring.
References used in researching this article:
Branko Bogdanovic. Serbian And Yugoslav Mauser Rifles. North Cape Publications,Inc., Tustin, CA, USA 2005
W.H.B. and Joseph E. Smith. The Book Of Rifles. The Stackpole Co., Harriburg,PA, USA 1960 and 1963
My special thanks to the following people who contributed to thisarticle:
Branko Bogdanovic
David Hughes
Dorlin Kerr dkerr45394@roadrunner.com
Nebojsa Milanovic
Steyr Mannlicher M95 Serial Numbers
Ronnie Wilson