As you did not specify the type of ammunition you shot, it seems reasonable to recommend that any subsequent shooting be restricted to reduced power hand loaded rounds or American produced sporting ammunition. I would NOT fire any surplus 8mm Mauser ammo in this. The newest of these rifles is now over 110 years old and it seems ill-advised to subject then to unneeded stress. Slugging the barrel is good advice but it seems you're ready to roll in enjoying this at a range near you.

In the "either/or" scenario you mentioned, all of the rifles furnished to Turkey in World War I were 88/05 modifications. These have brackets riveted to the rear porion of the receiver designed to accept Mauser type five shot stripper clips and a cut-out area along the left receiver rail to facilitate pushing the cartridges into the magazine well. The Turkish rifles typically have a cresent moon stamped on the crest of the receiver ring.

The South American rifles are unmodified Gew 88 rifles which accept five shot Mannlicher charger clips that fall through the bottom on the trigger guard when empty. I am not aware of any distinctive markings applied to these rifles.

Knowing nothing about your specific rifle, it is certainly possible that it was never in either Turkey or Ecuador.

In general terms, there are three "types" of Turked Gew 88/05 rifles: (1) those that simply have a Cresent moon stamped on the crest of the receiver; (2) those that have a very deep "thumbhole" machined into the left receiver rail and a Turkish numbered rear sight blade; and (3) those that were extensively reworked in the mid- to late-1930s by removing the barrel tube, blueing the replacement barrels, and adding a Mauser style stock. (Be assured that someone will disagree with this overview). If any list of the specific serial numbers furnished to Turkey ever existed, it has long since disappeared. I suspect that the selection of the tens of thousands of rifles furnished to Turkey was a "snatch and grab" effort that merely emptied a government storage depot and expedited shipment. It seems that a random sample of rifles from each of the arsenals or factories which produced Gew 88s were shipped to Turkey.

The majority of rifles sold to Ecuador left Germany between 1900 and prior to 1905. It has been contended that a second batch of Gew 88s was sold to Ecuador in the 1930s but I have seen no firm documentation to support this contention. However, every arsenal EXCEPT Amberg is represented among the Model 1888s recently imported from South America. I have seen no evidence to suggest that any of the rifles issued to Turkey ever saw service in Ecuador.

The only Gew 88 serial number study of which I am aware is one conducted by a friend and I which examined yearly arsenal production. In this vein of thought, the highest 1891 Danzig serial number we have recorded to date is 4895l (L) equating to a production of at least 124,895 rifles in that year. Some folks want to argue that "i" and "j" were interchangeable but I would note that we have seen or had reported to us Gew 88s with "i" and "j" serial number suffixes. Our cumulative information suggests that ca. 3,250,000 Gew 88 rifles were manufactured from 1889-1898 (yes, they were produced that late).

As you mentioned that your rifle was an 1891 Danzig, I would note that some Danzigs 88s display seemingly "stray" block Latin letters or odd numerals on the front portion of the left receiver rail or the lower left side of the receiver ring. Discussed more fully in postings elsewhere in this forum, these are thought to be post-production workers' marks applied during the course of repairs or rebuilding efforts. (Not all Danzig rifles are so marked.)

Blitz: As always, your insightful comments are greatly appreciated. However, as my remarks indicated "in general terms," I think I'll stand by my generalized observations lacking access to either the unspecified documentary materials you mentioned or clear illustrations of innumerable Turkish sub-types. It seems that a reasonable question regarding the 42,000 Gew 88/14 rifles (the reputed totality of their production) sent to Turkey is "What became of them?" It strikes me as a tad odd that the 88/14 modification seems harder to find than hen's teeth (I have seen reference to but three 88/14 rifles) but are you suggesting that effectively none of these were fortunate enough to have survived Turkish service during World War I whereas piles of 88/05 rifles did? If there were so many, why weren't more of these upgraded in the 1930s and later subject to being sold as surplus arms obtainable in the US? I likewise wonder that if a given Model 1888 of any ilk or variety saw service in Turkey but was not marked with a Turkish crescent how would one know that it ever there?

The matter is NOT one of argumentation and endless point and counterpoint but rather of clarification. I have suggested before that it would seem appropriate for you to compile your thoughts and observations in a well documented and clearly illustrated article for The Military Rifle Journal. That suggestion stands.

It comes as no surprise that a "great condition" Gew 88 is worth precisely what one is willing to pay. That being said, in having followed the offering on GunBroker.com for some time I see reputedly "better" 88s being advertised with some frequency in the $300-$400 range. Admittedly, some of these are "nice looking" rifles but if they're actually that good is another matter. Based upon my reading of some ill-informed descriptions, the mind-set seems to be "it looks good and it's old therefore it's worth a small fortune."

I start getting nervous when I scan a sales pitch that begins with "I really don't know much about these" and continues with a series of amateurish comments that read like the script of an English as a second language junior high school theatrical production. Of course, not knowing much about the rifle doesn't prevent them from "slapping" an inordinately high "sticker shock" price on it (some of these prices give new meaning to Fred Sanford's famous line, "It's the big one!"). I fully understand the concept of seeking to make a profit but I am not willing to single-handedly fund someone else's retirement. It is worth noting how many times these listings are recycled time after time before the rifle is either sold or withdrawn from sale. Short of any VERY compelling reasons (fully matching numbers, absolutely impeccable condition, and/or personally autographed by the Kaiser) I would be very reluctant to pay over $300-$325 for one without - and this is important - having the opportunity to hold it in my hands and personally inspect it.