GUN SPRING 2017
The live portion of this session begins on Tuesday, April 11, 2017.
VERY DESIRABLE MAUSER C96 ITALIAN NAVY FLATSIDE WITH VERTICAL HAMMER MARKING. MAUSER C96 FLAT SIDE 4895 7.63 MAUSER Cal. 7.63mm. Italian Navy Flatside with 5-1/2″ bbl, fixed front sight, and slip-in 1-10 rear sight. Long extractor, single lug firing pin and large ring hammer. Usual chamber address with SN on the left chamber flat. "DV" on left side of the bbl extension and a Crown "AV" under the bbl as typical for Italian Navy pistols. The full SN is on the back of the frame just under the locking lever and repeated in full or in part on the rear sight assembly, bolt, bolt stop, vertically on the hammer, sub-frame and locking lever. Disassembly shows a matching follower and floorplate. All numbered components of the sub-frame are matching, as is the locking block. Single lug firing pin is numbered "3898". Grips are matching. Lanyard ring present. Major components are rust blued. The extractor, components of rear sight, bolt stop and safety are fire blued. Hammer is grayed and trigger is strawed. Complete with an attache carrying case, bound in light brown suede leather, internally lined with luxurious fabric and secured with two brass keyed clasps. Included is a pair of keys retained by a suede tab. PROVENANCE: The Friedrich-Wilhelm Dauphin Collection - Germany. CONDITION: At least 90% orig rust blue with most wear involving the front and back straps that have largely toned with oxidative etching. The pistol must have been stored in a humid environment as most of the fire blued surfaces, along with the exposed in-the-white portions of the bolt, hammer and sub-frame, have transitioned to a mellow patina. Trigger with about 30% orig straw. Dark grips with a scattering of handling dings. Bright bore with good rifling and some frosting. Perfect manual mechanics. Case is near new. A nice representative military Flatside, all matching except for the firing pin, near the end of the Italian Navy contract, reflecting an unusual variation in hammer numeration. 49828-66 LMA (4,500-7,500)