Swiss K11 or K1911 mystery.

[Man-Goat]

Hello everyone,

It's been a while since I posted here however since last time y'all were so helpful I figured I would see if you could help with this boggle. I recently acquired a C.A.I. imported k1911. At least that's what the marking says. However the serial number is way too low for her to have been manufactured as such. Her number is in the 133xx range. I know it's not uncommon for older models to have been retrofitted into newer models and my research has lead me to come to the conclusion that she was originally either a 1889/1900 rifle or a 1905 Calvary rifle. The serial number chart that I'm using says her number falls in the range for a 1915 mfg. date. That's all well and good. What interests me is another marking, concurrent with the serial number. It's a P#. This interests me because in the serial number tables there was a series of 1889/1900 short rifles that were manufactured for export / private sale. The marking is P64 which puts her in two ranges, either 1/176 or 1/89. Basically I'm wondering, did I stumble into a real unique little rifle or does the P# mean something entirely different and I'm reading too much into things?

Serial number info - http://www.cruffler.com/ProductionDataPages/SwissMilitaryRifles/schmidt_rubin.html#manufacture

Man-Goat

[Man-Goat]

Hello,

As an addendum I found this tag under the buttplate.
It means that Mr. Heinrich Sigrist who was born in 1908 stationed in Obfelden in the 1st Fsilier Kompagnie of the 184th battalion was issued the rifle that I bought. The history on these old girls is really something special. :)

[Parashooter]

The table you reference contains a well-known error. The third column is actually just a cumulative total of conversions, not serial numbers. If you think about it, converting all those arms in serial number order would have been a logistical nightmare to no practical purpose.

Model 1911 Carbines (Karabiner)
Converted from Model 1889/1900 Short Rifles and Model 1905 Cavalry Carbines
Year Quantity Serial numbers [wrong!]
1913 1000 1-1000
1914 8000 1001-9000
1915 8000 9001-17000
1916 8200 17001-25200
1917 900 25201-26100
1918 100 26101-26200
1919 70 26201-26270
1920 65 26271-26335

The partial serial given is that of a 1900 short rifle originally manufactured in 1908. The "P64" is most likely to mean "Privatized in 1964". Pictures could assist positive ID.

Nothing unusual.

[Man-Goat]

Hello Parashooter,

Sorry for the delay, been a rough week. Here is a picture of the serial number and the other markings on the rifle. Thanks in advance!

[Parashooter]

That's a typical late-style privatization mark. It means that the arm was released from government ownership in 1964.

[Man-Goat]

Awesome! Thank you. I love knowing the history behind the guns in my collection. Can any other info be derived from the markings? I would love to know everything snot it, which is why the little tag made me so happy to see.

~Man-Goat

[Parashooter]

See http://www.swissrifles.com/proofs/ for markings.

[Man-Goat]

Thank you very much, Parashooter. That was a really neat site and allowed me to know more about my rifle. I appreciate all your help.

~Man-Goat

[madsenshooter]

I was just reading a post on the Swiss Rifle Collector's facebook page. Fellow was lamenting letting one of those 1900 short rifles get away from him. Might have some collector value over other Swiss rifles. Something for you to check into.