der Karabiner 98K - a breakdown

By Pat Oehler

Every soldier is issued a weapon. Most soldiers in the Wehrmacht were issued the Mauser Karabiner 98K. This
article will describe how to disassemble and re assemble the rifle.

Rifle Disassembly:

1. Remove the Bolt: Remove the bolt by holding the release lever outward, and sliding the bolt rearward until it is
clear of the receiver. (note: you should have the safety catch in the vertical position for disassembly)

2. Remove Floor Plate: Use the "spoon" tool from your cleaning kit, or some other blunt object to depress the
button at the rear of the floor plate. While depressing the button slide the plate toward the rear of the rifle. This will
release the floor plate, magazine spring and follower from the magazine and trigger guard.

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3. Remove the Sling: Loosen sling, by sliding the buckle upward and pulling slack. Detach keeper from sling.
Slide sling out of buckle and band.

4. Remove cleaning rod. (unscrew counterclockwise righty tighty - lefty loosey)

5. Depress spring at upper band and slide upper band toward sight. (Be careful not to cut your hand on the sharp
edge of the sight's blade!)

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6. Remove lower band retaining spring and lower band. Remove Handguard.

7. Remove Magazine and Triggerguard: Unscrew capture (small) screws and main screws from front and rear.
Pull magazine / triggerguard from stock.

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8. Remove receiver and barrel assembly from stock. After inspecting the metal parts of your rifle you may choose
to clean and oil the parts prior to reassembly.

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Rifle Reassembly:

9. Place receiver and barrel into stock.

10. Place magazine and triggerguard into stock.

11. Replace main screws (long is near trigger, short near magazine). Use capture screws to help keep main
screws in place.

12. Replace Floor plate, magazine spring and follower into magazine. Place front edge of floor plate into the
magazine, then depress firmly while sliding towards the front of the rifle until you hear a click, or it is secure.

13. Replace handguard, and lower band.

14. Replace upper band spring and upper band making sure the stud in the spring snaps into place in upper
band's hole.

15. Replace Cleaning rod, screwing clockwise.

16. Replace sling. Make sure that the leather piece on buckle is against stock. Pull sling through upper band, and
thread sling through slide and buckle. Thread the sling through the hole in the stock and through the keeper on
bold side of rifle.

17. Replace bolt. You will more than likely have to hold down follower while pushing the bolt forward. (If you want
to release the firing pin spring simultaneously hold the trigger while returning the bolt to firing position.)

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Bolt Disassembly:

1. Remove bolt from rifle with safety catch in vertical position.

2. Depress button on bolt sleeve. Rotate Bolt Sleeve counter clockwise to remove.

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 3. Use bolt takedown tool on the rifle stock to depress firing pin. While pressing down bolt sleeve rotate
cocking piece 1/4 turn and remove.

4. Slide safety catch to side and remove. Separate firing pin and firing spring. Clean and oil all parts. (If you
recently purchased your rifle make sure you remove excess cosmoline so your rifle doesn't freeze in cold
weather.)

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Bolt Reassembly:
1. Replace firing spring over firing pin. Replace safety into cocking piece.

2. Place firing pin and spring in takedown tool in rifle stock. Press bolt sleeve so that the notches on the firing pin
extend past the sleeve. Line cocking piece up so that it is 1/4 turn from it's final position and push down so that
the rear of the firing pin is visible.

3. Replace bolt sleeve/firing pin assembly to the bolt by screwing clockwise until tight.