![]() Abijah Brooks of Company A posing with his Mauser C96, complete with shoulder stock, beside seven of his Rangers, all of whom carry Colt Single Action Army revolvers and Winchester rifles. A photo taken around 1902 in Brownsville, Texas, shows Captain J. Several Texas Rangers bought the new foreign-made wonder gun. An optional set of straps allowed the pistol to be carried as a shoulder rig, which appealed to officers on horseback, who didn’t like having a pistol flapping about on their waist when in the saddle. WINNINg Over the WestĪvailable with a detachable wooden shoulder stock that doubled as a holster, the rapid-firing C96 soon caught the attention of Western lawmen. While Colt soon made a splash with its M1902 and M1903 semiautomatic pistols, the Mauser and its fellow German entrant the Luger (produced until 1943) made dents in the American market. Geared to the hunting, self-defense and general sporting crowd, the C96 was never an inexpensive arm, nor were its accessories and ammunition. Among the earliest ads for the pistol appeared in the January 1902 issue of Shooting and Fishing. One of the primary importers was the German-American firm Von Lengerke & Detmold of New York City. The New York–based German-American firm Von Lengerke & Detmold was among the primary importers of the Broomhandle.īy 1901 Mauser was exporting the C96 to a willing, albeit curious, customer base in the United States. ![]() The unique design of its fluted wooden grips earned the C96 the nickname “Broomhandle.” The cartridges fit in 10-round stripper clips one inserts from the top of the magazine, enabling almost instantaneous loading. market five years later.Ĭhambered for the high-velocity 7.63×25 mm (.30-caliber) Mauser cartridge, the 10-shot pistol features an internal box magazine just forward of an integral trigger guard. Debuting in Germany in 1896, the C96 hit the curious U.S. Its wooden holster doubled as a detachable shoulder stock. The self-loading, semiautomatic Mauser C96 pistol’s distinctive wooden grips inspired its “Broomhandle” nickname. ![]() Through 1937 the company turned out more than 1 million C96s. Made IN GERMANYīrothers Fidel, Friedrich and Josef Feederle designed the C96 ( Construktion 96) for their employer, Mauser, of Oberndorf am Neckar, Germany, though founder Peter Paul Mauser patented the pistol in his name only. But the self-loading, semiautomatic Mauser C96 pistol rates as one of history’s truly iconic firearms. ![]() a run for their money.Īnother contender of note often goes overlooked, perhaps because it wasn’t introduced until 1896 and didn’t hit the U.S. For a time such handguns gave their pricier, heavier counterparts - the Colts, Smith & Wessons, Merwin & Hulberts, etc. Notable among them were Britain’s double- and single-action Webleys and ubiquitous Belgian-made copies of the double-action British Bulldog. By the turn of the 20th century, however, foreign-made revolvers had also made their mark in the states and territories west of the Missouri. 45-caliber Colt Single Action Army (aka “ Peacemaker”), or perhaps the Colt 1851 Navy, followed by a host of percussion and cartridge revolvers from a score of American manufacturers. Texas Ranger Wonder Gun: Broomhandle Mauser C96 CloseĪmong aficionados of Old West firearms the handgun that first pops to mind is the.
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