The desire for adopting new shorter barreled rifles and the introduction of the Karabiner 98k, featuring a 600 mm (23.62 in) long barrel, were reasons for changing the standard German service ball rifle cartridge. Just like its predecessor, the rifle was noted for its reliability, safety and an effective range of up to 500 metres (550 yd) with iron sights and 1,000 metres (1,090 yd) with an 8× telescopic sight. Since the Karabiner 98k rifle was shorter than the earlier Karabiner 98b (the 98b was a carbine in name only, as it was in reality a version of the Gewehr 98 long rifle designated a carbine to adhere to the Treaty of Versailles the 98b was additionally fitted with a tangent rear sight rather than the more claustrophobic 'Lange' ramp sight), the new rifle was given the designation Karabiner 98 kurz, meaning 'Carbine 98 Short'. The Karabiner 98k was derived from earlier rifles, namely the Mauser Standardmodell of 1924 and the Karabiner 98b, which in turn had both been developed from the Gewehr 98. In February 1934, the Heereswaffenamt (Army Weapons Agency) ordered the adoption of a new military rifle. The Karabiner 98k therefore continues to appear in conflicts across the world as they are taken out of storage during times of strife. Millions were captured by the Soviets at the conclusion of World War II and were widely distributed as military aid. It was one of the final developments in the long line of Mauser military rifles.Īlthough supplemented by semi-automatic and fully automatic rifles during World War II, the Karabiner 98k remained the primary German service rifle until the end of the war in 1945. It was adopted on 21 June 1935 as the standard service rifle by the German Wehrmacht. The Karabiner 98 kurz ( German: ' carbine 98 short'), often abbreviated Karabiner 98k, Kar98k or K98k and also sometimes incorrectly referred to as a K98 (a K98 is a Polish carbine and copy of the Kar98a), is a bolt-action rifle chambered for the 7.92×57mm Mauser cartridge.

Mauser (augmented by several other makers) Karabiner 98k made in 1940 from the collections of the Swedish Army Museum

1938 turkish mauser 8mm